I know that I said I didn't want to read anything completely depressing or disturbing or post-apocalyptic BUT my son is reading these books and I want to be able to talk to him about them. I read them years ago when they came out and honestly, remembered the first one pretty well, but not the subsequent books, so I'm re-reading them now so that I may be able to talk to my son about them. They're SUPER quick reads - I read this one in about 1.5 days - so I don't feel too badly reading them and the best part is that I get to talk to my kid about them.
The Hunger Games is a Young Adult book that was written maybe ten years or so ago - and the movies catapulted Jennifer Lawrence to fame. It is a dystopian Young Adult book where the world is post-apocalyptic for lack of a better way of describing it. The novel takes place in the United States and the country is governed by an authoritarian regime that has divided the country into 13 Districts. Each district is known for something - District 12, where our main characters hail from - is Appalachia and is known, therefore, for coal mining. Young people - children anywhere from 10 through 18 - are forced to compete in the annual Hunger Games tournament, where they have to kill each other in order to win basic necessities for their respective districts. The whole point is to remind the inhabitants of the punishment that they must endure for rebelling in previous years. The main character - Katniss - volunteers to be the tribute from District 12 so that her younger sister Prim doesn't have to go. The rest of the novel follows Katniss as she tries to stay alive during the Hunger Games.
This is a typical Young Adult novel. I generally enjoyed it but am now surprised that it was geared towards the age group that it was, and deals with the topics that it does. Literally, the age group the novel was written for is reading about their peers killing each other off for entertainment of rich government types. It's not a book I would let my child read alone, obviously. Read along and talk about the themes with your reader on this one! I generally liked it. It moved quickly and really hooks you. Definitely read it but tread with caution with your child as it is VERY intense.
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I thought this was a great series, with a startling premise, perfect for kids who are ready for something so complex and provoking.
ReplyDeleteHi Deb! My son loved it - he's read it a few times now - but for me, I grew really tired of Katniss by the third book. But that was just me. I did like that the reality of PTSD was introduced to get kids more comfortable with it and with the comparison and contrast between the Districts in the third book and the Capitol.
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