Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins

The Hunger Games, by Suzanne Collins, was the wildly popular dystopia novel released last year. Catching Fire, the eagerly awaited sequel, was equally as riveting—full of extraordinary twists and turns as well as further fleshing of conflicts introduced in its predecessor.

For those unfamiliar with The Hunger Games, the story centers around Katniss Everdeen, who takes her young sister’s place in the The Hunger Games. The Games consist of twenty-four “tributes,” or teenage citizens, who are put in an arena and forced to kill each other off in the hopes of being the last one standing. The book finishes with the end of the Games, and Catching Fire picks up a few weeks after it is all over.

I received this book in early summer as an ARC (Advanced Reader’s Copy) from Scholastic, and positively gobbled it up. The second installment is just as fast-paced and riveting as the first, with even more surprise twists and deeper exploration of the legend of District 13. Katniss grapples with more ethical issues and discovers that whatever she started with the berries in the arena is far from over. A rebellion is stirring, and Katniss finds herself, willing or not, the rallying point of a revolution.

Catching Fire was wonderful. The characters were genuine, and the alternate universe was just as thrilling as it was the first time around. There is the constant, looming threat of the Capitol, and this not-quite-fake charade of love that must be kept up at all times. There is the uncertainty of which boy Katniss should choose, and this whispered revolution that is putting everyone Katniss cares about in danger.

The first half focuses on Katniss’s life in District 12, as well as the victory tour that she and Peeta must go on. There is one massive twist that dictates the second half of the novel so I dare not describe it further, though I will say that the book ends with a huge cliffhanger.

One aspect of this book that did not flow as smoothly as it might have, was that the twists seem a little forced and deliberate—like the novel was so keen on making startling twists that it failed to have the effect of a change that is unexpected.

All in all, however, I think Catching Fire will live up to expectations. There is still the horrifying presence of a “game” in which children are encouraged to kill one another; something I still find difficult to think about. Both books provide originality in a genre that is prone to clichés, and both are well written with genuine characters who suffer real human dilemmas. Five evil daggers, without a doubt.

Yours, Briar

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

Somewhere in the expansive throes of the future, across a land once known as “North America,” lies a country, Panem. Led by the power-mad and appearance-obsessed Capitol, the country’s twelve districts are forced to offer up two “tributes,” or teenage sacrifices, to partake in the country-wide battle called The Hunger Games. The tributes are chosen by lottery (although one’s name can be entered as many times as one likes, in exchange for a tessera—a year’s worth of grain and oil to help support a poor family). In some countries, participation in the Games is an honor, as one’s district gets showered with money and food for an entire year, and eternal glory is thrust upon the winner. But when Katniss Everdeen, a poor but fiery citizen of District Twelve (the country’s poorest district), finds herself a tribute, her entire world comes crashing down. For you see, the Hunger Games are no ordinary reality show—the twenty-four tributes are placed in an arena in which they must fight to survive not only against the environment, but most of all, their fellow tributes. It is the duty of each tribute to kill as many of each other as they can, for the winner will be the one that is the last to survive as all others are dead.

The Hunger Games, by Suzanne Collins, was a positively riveting book. I felt my eyes were actually glued to the pages, and I finished it in a matter of hours because I found it so difficult to pry myself away. Filled with some astonishing twists and turns, the games themselves were nerve-wracking and heartbreaking, as Katniss would constantly have to remind herself that trusting anyone would result in pain as only one could win, but moreover, a smile and a knife in the back.

The scariest part, perhaps, is that the whole thing reads like a glorified reality show. Sure, it is government run and mandatory to watch—the government likes to remind the citizens just how at-their-mercy they are—but one has to think about how easily we watch reality shows that, by a stretch, were born from the same seed as the Hunger Games.

For Katniss and her fellow tributes, the reality show aspect means that they must be constantly putting on a good face, proving themselves to the audience who have placed bets on their lives, as well as trying to win sponsors who can send them gifts in dire situations.

I was so impressed by this book. It managed to effectively weave a futuristic sci-fi setting with a reality show that is hard to stop turning over in your head, with a commentary on image, as well as a love story. I can’t even weave that sentence to sound ordered or clear, yet Suzanne Collins managed to do so beautifully, creating a book that is a package of sheer suspense and delight.

The first of a trilogy, it has certainly caused a stir among both readers and professionals. Stephenie Meyer and Stephen King both gave rave reviews, and the rights to a movie have been already bought, with the author herself adapting it as a screenplay.

But even more exciting—there is something in which YOU can get involved! The author is hosting a competition in which teens can enter to win an ARC (Advanced Readers Copy) of the book’s sequel, Catching Fire. The entry consists of writing, in 500 words or less, how you would survive the Hunger Games. For more information, check out their website here.But hurry, because the contest ends May 15th!

Again, I absolutely loved this book, and am under the impression that everybody should read it. Unsurprisingly, I give it a whopping and wonderfully evil (oxymoron? no way-- Evil IS wonderful!) five daggers.



Relieved that OUR kind of evil is delightful rather than murderous,
Briar