by Suzanne Collins
Winning means fame and fortune. Losing means certain death. The Hunger Games have begun. . . .In the ruins of a place once known as North America lies the nation of Panem, a shining Capitol surrounded by twelve outlying districts. The Capitol is harsh and cruel and keeps the districts in line by forcing them all to send one boy and one girl between the ages of twelve and eighteen to participate in the annual Hunger Games, a fight to the death on live TV.Sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen regards it as a death sentence when she steps forward to take her sister's place in the Games. But Katniss has been close to dead before-and survival, for her, is second nature. Without really meaning to, she becomes a contender. But if she is to win, she will have to start making choices that weigh survival against humanity and life against love.
reviewed The Hunger Games
The pacing is relentless from chapter one. Collins builds tension like a professional and doesn't flinch when she needs to hurt you. The world is totalitarian without feeling cartoonish. A book that takes its young audience seriously.
reviewed The Hunger Games
The arena sequences are brilliant, but what makes this book stand out is the pre-Games setup. The reaping, the training, the interviews. Collins understands that the horror of performance is just as frightening as the horror of violence.
reviewed The Hunger Games
Still one of the sharpest pieces of political dystopian fiction written for any audience. Collins doesn't soften the horror. The Games are brutal and the Capitol is genuinely monstrous. Katniss is one of the best protagonists of her generation, competent and traumatized in equal measure. The commentary on media and spectacle has only gotten more relevant.
James Dashner
