(Written by Suzanne Collins. Book Two in the Hunger Games trilogy.) Having survived the Hunger Games, Katniss Everdeen is now adored by people all over Panem - particularly the citizens in the Capitol. There are only two problems: First, she can't seem to shake the Games from her life. They linger in her dreams and keep her apart from Gale, her old friend who might just be something more. Second, President Snow thinks Katniss is dangerous. If anyone in the districts thinks she was directly defying the Capitol with her final act in the Games, she might just be the cause of a rebellion. So Katniss is left in a position every bit as dangerous as the one she held in the Games - perhaps more so, because her life isn't the only thing on the line.
The first book in this trilogy developed the setting: The way North America will be X years from now. Guessing that the government will have taken over and that people will be grossly self-absorbed, The Hunger Games could be seen as a cautionary tale or a philosophical exercise. The second book delves more deeply into Katniss and, unfortunately, also focuses more on the romantic storyline.
In this book, Katniss develops a strong sense of responsibility and honor. The first book depicts her as pretty selfish and self-centered at times. She has had to fight for her survival and the survival of her family for so long that she has forgotten what it means to be honorable. In the second book, however, she discovers that a lot more than her family and her own life hinges on her choices. Because she has evidently been the cause of uprisings, widespread bloodshed and death might come on the heels of any decision that she makes. Additionally, she develops a high sense of honor and a strong protective instinct that she only hints at in the first book. She will not harm anyone who has helped her in some way, nor will she harm anyone who is too weak to protect him or herself.
Since the focus of Catching Fire is on Katniss and her development (as well as setting the stage for the third book... but I don't want to spoil anything), the book naturally takes a look at her romantic feelings. *Book 1 Spoiler Warning* Does she love Gale? Does she love Peeta? Does the reader need to know every little nuance of her complex relationship with him? While Peeta's sleeping in her bed to comfort her after nightmares is a little sweet, it's also highly dangerous - what is known as "a near occasion of sin." Katniss obviously has no interest in taking the relationship farther than their fake love on the screen and their real friendship off of it. However, it's still uncomfortable. Then there's Gale, who might be a red herring. He completes the love triangle, which is fairly solid from a character interaction standpoint - Katniss is definitely appealing, Peeta is the sort of loving, sweet man that most girls dream of, and Gale has been Katniss's best friend for years. But Gale is in the books very little (at least so far), which makes the love triangle existent mostly in Katniss's thoughts. In fact, it seems to pop up mostly when she tells herself that she won't think about it. This makes the romantic triangle an annoying sideshow that, at times, threatens to engulf the story. *End of Book 1 Spoiler*
The Hunger Games trilogy got off to a fantastic start with the first book. The second one, although it moves Katniss's character farther along its arc, tends to get lost a bit in the romantic triangle and in various other storylines. In short, it seems very much like an intermission between Act I and Act III. Having said that, Act III looks promising, if only because Katniss seems to be moving along from a girl with only the will to survive to someone concerned with honor and the protection of the weak.
My Rating: T (sexual content and references, violence)
Review of the third book, Mockingjay
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Great review! I've only read the first book, but plan to read the second as soon as possible. In the meantime - have you seen the trailer for the Hunger Games movie yet? Apparently Suzanne Collins worked on the adaptation herself, so it should be pretty close to the original book.
ReplyDeleteThank you. Yes, I have seen the trailer. In fact, that's why I read the book; I wanted to see if the movie was likely to be any good. I didn't know that Suzanne Collins is in on the adaptation. That's good. She's a pretty good writer (though her endings stink - more on that next week), and movies should generally stick close to the original stories. And Jennifer Lawrence is Katniss! She's such a fantastic actress, and perfect for Katniss besides. (There are definitely echoes of Ree from Winter's Bone in her character.)
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