Book Review: Mockingjay

This book review of Mockingjay, the third and final installment in the Hunger Game trilogy, is a week in the making.  To be honest, I have started it 5 times, and deleted it 5 times.  Why?  Because my feelings on this book have been evolving.

My initial reaction, after reading the final sentence of Mockingjay, was anger- pure fire and brimstone kind of anger.  I felt robbed of the happy ending I so badly wanted.  Gloom and doom are not my kind of books.  What kept me reading was the hope that Katniss would finally be able to find happiness in her broken world.

I fumed.  I stewed.  I grumbled to anyone who would listen.  (sorry for that!)  I was disgusted.

But a couple days later, an insightful friend said something that changed my entire opinion of the trilogy.  “It really couldn’t have ended any other way.”

I thought about this, far longer than I probably should have, and in the end I realized she was right.  Katniss couldn’t change her personality, the war for Panem had to be ugly, and death was a certainty.

 

From this view point, I began to appreciate Suzanne Collins on a new level.  She stayed true to the story, even to the point of killing off characters that I had grown to love.  She destroyed a relationship that I rooted for.  She tortured my favorite character.  She was right to do so.

I have discovered that the beauty of the Hunger Games trilogy did not come while I was reading it, but in the week since I finished.  My thoughts linger on Panem, on whether or not their efforts actually made a difference.  Could this world be fixed?  That is a question that is left for the readers to ponder.  A true stroke of genius on Mrs. Collin’s part.

My anger has subsided, while my appreciation grows by the day.  To a hopeless romantic, I will never be able to say that I loved the Hunger Games.  But as a writer...this trilogy was spot on. Life has a way of NOT ending up like fairy tales and Suzanne Collins reminded us of that.

Star rating for Mocking Jay: 4 stars for making me invest in this book.

Star rating for The Hunger Games Trilogy: 5 stars for sheer brilliance and for making me continue to wonder about the fate of Panem.

Book Review: Catching Fire

CATCHING FIRE

It is rare when I can actually say I love a sequel more than I love the original.  Imagine my delight when I picked up Catching Fire, the second installment of The Hunger Games.

If you read my review of The Hunger Games,  you will know that I was not thrilled with the idea of a 12 year old girl being forced to fight to the death, for entertainment.  Nor was I a fan of the gruesome final death that occurred in the games.  But despite my unease with the storyline, I was conflicted in writing my review.  I have deep respect for Suzanne’s Collins; for her willingness to step outside of the box and send shockwaves around the globe.

Although The Hunger Games  didn’t leave me begging for more, I was determined not to give up on the series.  To my amazement, the longer I had to wait for Catching Fire  to arrive from the library, the more anxious I became.  Part of it was the fact that I’d been told the final books became far more disturbing and I was worried about what I might find within the pages.  And partly because I needed to know if my suspicions about the book would be confirmed.

I became engrossed immediately, which was a pleasant surprise considering it took me four tries to get into The Hunger Games.  Right around the middle of the book, a big twist is thrown at you.  Not a big shock there!

 

The ending was a bit too predictable for my liking, and very rushed, but over all I enjoyed the book.  It was fast paced, kept my attention, and yes I lost several hours of sleep over it.

 

Now on to Mockingjay to finish the series.     

      

book