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A review by kacey7
The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
5.0
I have this distinct memory of the first time I heard about this book. It was the end of eighth grade, and like all the fellow cool kids, I was spending free time in class discussing books with a friend. She mentioned that she was reading a book about a dystopian world where a bunch of kids are thrown in an arena to fight to the death. Of course my first thought was, I have to read this. I made my mom drive me to Barnes and Noble that weekend, and history was made.
This is an iconic series for me - one that defines a huge part of my adolescence. It’s up there with Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter and Percy Jackson as fantasy series that changed my life. I wasn’t sure how I would feel reading this at 25 versus my first read at 13. But despite knowing every single thing that happens, I found this just as riveting as the first time around. Is it perfect? No, it’s not, but it’s flaws hardly make a dent in the impact it had on a YA fantasy genre.
And what’s remarkable to me, is that despite the many YA fantasy books I’ve read since this came out, it still stands the test of time. Do you remember how many dystopian books came out after this? And none of them were as good as The Hunger Games. Maybe I’m just biased, but I really adore this series.
The romance is a bit forced sometimes, but you also have to recognize that Katniss just isn’t a romantic person. I always had a love-hate relationship with her because of how cold and distant she was from everyone and everything. Getting older though, I now see her as a victim of circumstance more than anything. Fighting to survive and experiencing those things would change even the strongest of people. Now I just feel a lot of admiration for her.
Long story short, age has changed how I view this series, but not in a negative way. If anything I’m able to see the symbolism in a clearer light, and understand the painful connection to reality this fantasy book holds.
Audio: 3.5 stars. I liked the audiobook, but the narrator sounded a bit too old to be reading from Katniss’ point of view. I’m very picky with narrators, and she just wasn’t my favorite.
This is an iconic series for me - one that defines a huge part of my adolescence. It’s up there with Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter and Percy Jackson as fantasy series that changed my life. I wasn’t sure how I would feel reading this at 25 versus my first read at 13. But despite knowing every single thing that happens, I found this just as riveting as the first time around. Is it perfect? No, it’s not, but it’s flaws hardly make a dent in the impact it had on a YA fantasy genre.
And what’s remarkable to me, is that despite the many YA fantasy books I’ve read since this came out, it still stands the test of time. Do you remember how many dystopian books came out after this? And none of them were as good as The Hunger Games. Maybe I’m just biased, but I really adore this series.
The romance is a bit forced sometimes, but you also have to recognize that Katniss just isn’t a romantic person. I always had a love-hate relationship with her because of how cold and distant she was from everyone and everything. Getting older though, I now see her as a victim of circumstance more than anything. Fighting to survive and experiencing those things would change even the strongest of people. Now I just feel a lot of admiration for her.
Long story short, age has changed how I view this series, but not in a negative way. If anything I’m able to see the symbolism in a clearer light, and understand the painful connection to reality this fantasy book holds.
Audio: 3.5 stars. I liked the audiobook, but the narrator sounded a bit too old to be reading from Katniss’ point of view. I’m very picky with narrators, and she just wasn’t my favorite.