The Hunger Games

The Hunger Games is also a book that I started reading after I saw the movie. I remember getting really excited about the movie, because it was highly rated by the critiques. However, I must admit it was a disappointment for me. That’s why I decided to read the book, which was a good choice. First thing that is great about this book is the topic. It’s brilliant, original and interesting. But that doesn’t mean it doesn’t have its flaws. It does, because no matter how unique the topic is, it is also very frightening. Imagine you are selected as a contestant in a deadly competition and there is a high possibility that you are going to die. It is just horrible. I don’t know if I have that bravery in me to kill others to survive. But, we know that humans are capable of almost anything to do when it comes to surviving. There are lots of studies and cruel experiments on that certain matter, which brings me to this question: Is it really a book for youth readers? Is it appropriate for them to read such a book in which involves so much violence? I wouldn’t recommend this book any reader who’s under 13 to be honest. On the other hand, the book has a lot of features that attract youngsters since there’s love and action in it.

One other thing that is frigtening about this book is that they actually throw this competition to entertain people. Killing people serves the purpose of entertainment. However, the idea is very similar to our daily reality shows, isn’t it? I am not talking about ‘killing people’ theme of course, but putting a camera in someone’s house and  recording them 7/24. We see those kind of reality TV shows in especially in United States very often and they are seen by majority of people. Yet, I don’t think our TV shows will get so cruel in the future.

I realize that I critisized the book a lot, but I actually like the book, as I stated in the beginning of my article, it is very original. If I need to be more specific, I like Katniss very much in the book. Her volunteering for the game is so sad but very honorable at the same time. And she has a completely different attitude from the other players. She has a heart, she cares about people, if she’s sure they are good people. I think that what makes the story interesting. You want her to survive, yet she encounters lots of obstacles, you get curious more and more as you read on.

We see a different perspective on family with this week’s books. For example, Katniss cares about her family so much, she even volunteered for the game in order to save her little sister. As much as I found that from the discussions in the classroom Pigeon English, Tuck Everlasting and Lord of the flies have also themes that take note of family. There are different types of life and death situations in them, where teenagers have to be more mature than they are to deal with the obstacles in their lives.

To sum up, I enjoyed the book, but I have doubts that it is a book for young readers. Storyline is very original, and I think that the author has a very brilliant point of view. But I also admit it is not my favorite book so far due to the reasons I mentioned above.