Two weeks ago, I had finished reading the book, “The Hunger Games” by Suzanne Collins. It was a great book to read. I enjoyed the plot and even the setting of the book. I would recommend everyone to read this book. It shows what could happen in the future if democracy were to fail. It also discusses about the new technology. I would like to have that type of technology today except for the super weapons. One of the technologies allowed people to have food whenever they like. I would totally love that in my house. Besides this book, there is also a series and I hope to find the time to read that as well.
The book was rather suspenseful. “The Hunger Games” takes place about 100 years after the United States had fallen apart. Instead of a democracy, it becomes more of a totalitarian government. The U.S. is separated into twelve districts. Every year, two children (ages 12-18 and of opposite sex) are chosen at random from each district to act as a tribute, where they have to kill each other in an arena until one stands. One year, the main character’s sister, Primrose is picked to be a tribute but the main character, Katniss volunteers to take her place. The other selected person in her district, Peeta also is selected to be a tribute as well. During the fights for survival, Peeta and Katniss acted as lovers but Peeta really liked her. In the end, this act helped them both survive.
Although this was an amazing book, it had a dull birth. It turns out that Suzanne Collins had got this idea from different sources. The main spark of writing the book was when she was surfing the channels and she happened to cross by a reality show of two people competing and the Iraq War. She basically blended the ideas and created the idea of children fighting to death. The Greek myth of Theseus also inspired her book and that is what Katniss, the main character is currently similar to. She also learned to feel the fear the loss of a loved one from her father because he served in the Vietnam War. The author's life isn't really reflected in the story. It was more of an idea that came up. I guess this also answers my next question what was the purpose of his writing this book. The reason why Suzanne Collins wrote her book was because she wanted to get the idea out of her mind and express it in her book and also to entertain her readers. She did not really have a life story reflected upon this book. It was more of an idea that had come up and was configured into a book.
The final question that I would like to answer is if there were any flaws in the book. Well, it was such an amazing book that I had barely saw any of them but I had found some in the end. The first flaw that I would like to point out is that it is rather slow. I understand that yes, not everyone dies all at once but its just too much. There are parts such as when she was running to her sister when she was picked. There was just too much detail. Yes, it was a major section in the book but it is just too emphasized. I think that everyone gets the point. The second point that I would like to point out is the cliches in the beginning of the book. In the beginning of the book, it states: "When I wake up, the other side of the bed is cold My fingers stretched out, seeking Prim's warmth... This is the day of the reaping." (Collins 9) I guess that this quote might be able to prove both my points. Within the quote, it shows that the introduction was slow and there was too much description. The story continues on for two pages in my book about how she got out of bed and soon left for the woods to hunt with a friend. It became rather boring when I had first read it. Now moving back to the point of cliches. I thought it was sort of a cliche because it started out in a fine moment, meaning like that they didn't really do anything. There was the reaping, but the reader does not know what it is. They should at least explain it somewhere close to that time. Maybe I thought that it was a cliche because I have read too many books or watched too many movies where they start off as the main character sleeping and waking up. Other than that, I find the book perfectly fine the way it is. This book is actually a great book but only if you continue to read on the series because the ending wants you to read the next book.
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