The last book review for this year! *wipes corner of eye* Tears apart, I am quite happy to announce the finale with “The Hunger Games” by Suzanne Collins. It is a dystopian trilogy and I have only read the first book so far. Dystopia is a conceptual view of a society characterized by a drastic change in environment or government, towards the negative extreme. Living conditions are pathetic due to deprivation or oppression. “The Hunger Games” takes place in post-apocalyptic North America called Panem. It is divided into thirteen districts identified only by numbers, governed by the Capitol. Each of the districts is assigned an occupation like 11 for agriculture and 12 for coal mining. District 13 dares to rebel against the Capitol and is wiped off the map. As forethought to quell any future thoughts of rebellion, the Capitol designs a competition in which a boy and a girl, aged between 12 and 18, are chosen from each district, to fight for survival by killing off each other. They call this ‘The Hunger Games’ and turn it into a televised event, like the reality show these days, with mandatory participation from each district. The underlying message – we are in control of your life and you can do nothing about it.
Although I found the language a bit simple, the writing is fast paced and engaging. Things happen quickly enough to keep the adrenaline pumping and yet this works against the book too. Sometimes a bit of high tension drama is needed to get the readers curious about how things unwind. Katniss is a very strong female character and I have to admit I kept imagining Jennifer Lawrence in every scene :) She has been taking care of her family since her father’s demise by hunting for food in the forests and cutting deals in the black market. This gives her a strong background, defines her no nonsense personality and makes her a tough competitor with the much needed survival skills. I also love that she is not a damsel in distress. Rather she takes care of Peeta, her companion from District 12, and is openly shown to be more capable than him owing to her brought up. She is sensitive towards the people she loves and does not appear shallow or self centred.
The problem with reading books from a specific genre is to constantly remind ourselves to look at things from the perspective of the target audience. In this case - young adults. May be I have had too much of Game of Thrones, the book seemed too tame for a dystopian world. However, I am not talking about the violence aspect of it. An oppressive government is all about mind games. The whole point of taking in kids is to create terror in the minds of the people. But everybody in the book seems to be indifferent about it, almost accepting it as a way of life. Even within the game, I expected situations that would push contestants to extremes, thereby bringing back the primal instincts of mankind – kill to survive. The competition is ironically named ‘The Hunger Games’ but there is never a lack of food. There are man-made calamities like fire and thunder but no real predators or reptiles. Water is almost always found. Although, I’ll say the wolf mutations made to resemble ex-contestants was inspired.
I am okay with the violence toned down. What about moral ambiguity? The author plays way too safe by justifying every one of Kat’s kills. It is garbed as an indirect insect attack, served as moral justice or simply treated as mercy killing. The other contestants are conveniently wiped out and we do not even get to know how. Kat is extremely lucky being saved twice. My heart went out to the quick witted and elusive Foxface who met an unfortunate death. I have no second thoughts about Kat’s capability, but I would have really liked to see what she would have done, had she been forced to choose between Peeta and Rue or between Rue and herself. At the end of the day, I would like to take away something from the book that will compel me to think beyond my comfort zone.
Despite the above, I was still with the book. But the climax was a huge letdown for me. A faceoff between Cato and Katniss would have brought home the point that we have conveniently forgotten through the course of the novel. Be it utopia or dystopia, children are pure and innocent, and using them as sacrificial lambs is inhumane. Will the survivor ever be able to live a life weighed down by the deaths of 23 others like him? Add to it, the totally unnecessary love angle. How do spectators even connect with the idea of love when kids are being murdered so brutally? I would have liked to see Kat as an independent girl who fights for a cause, rather than be reduced to a Bella Swan whose priority in life, after witnessing cruelty at such close range, is choosing between two boys. I got to know that the district gears up for a rebellion after the sequel. Yet, what a shame that the first book ended on such a low note.
Although I found the language a bit simple, the writing is fast paced and engaging. Things happen quickly enough to keep the adrenaline pumping and yet this works against the book too. Sometimes a bit of high tension drama is needed to get the readers curious about how things unwind. Katniss is a very strong female character and I have to admit I kept imagining Jennifer Lawrence in every scene :) She has been taking care of her family since her father’s demise by hunting for food in the forests and cutting deals in the black market. This gives her a strong background, defines her no nonsense personality and makes her a tough competitor with the much needed survival skills. I also love that she is not a damsel in distress. Rather she takes care of Peeta, her companion from District 12, and is openly shown to be more capable than him owing to her brought up. She is sensitive towards the people she loves and does not appear shallow or self centred.
The problem with reading books from a specific genre is to constantly remind ourselves to look at things from the perspective of the target audience. In this case - young adults. May be I have had too much of Game of Thrones, the book seemed too tame for a dystopian world. However, I am not talking about the violence aspect of it. An oppressive government is all about mind games. The whole point of taking in kids is to create terror in the minds of the people. But everybody in the book seems to be indifferent about it, almost accepting it as a way of life. Even within the game, I expected situations that would push contestants to extremes, thereby bringing back the primal instincts of mankind – kill to survive. The competition is ironically named ‘The Hunger Games’ but there is never a lack of food. There are man-made calamities like fire and thunder but no real predators or reptiles. Water is almost always found. Although, I’ll say the wolf mutations made to resemble ex-contestants was inspired.
I am okay with the violence toned down. What about moral ambiguity? The author plays way too safe by justifying every one of Kat’s kills. It is garbed as an indirect insect attack, served as moral justice or simply treated as mercy killing. The other contestants are conveniently wiped out and we do not even get to know how. Kat is extremely lucky being saved twice. My heart went out to the quick witted and elusive Foxface who met an unfortunate death. I have no second thoughts about Kat’s capability, but I would have really liked to see what she would have done, had she been forced to choose between Peeta and Rue or between Rue and herself. At the end of the day, I would like to take away something from the book that will compel me to think beyond my comfort zone.
Despite the above, I was still with the book. But the climax was a huge letdown for me. A faceoff between Cato and Katniss would have brought home the point that we have conveniently forgotten through the course of the novel. Be it utopia or dystopia, children are pure and innocent, and using them as sacrificial lambs is inhumane. Will the survivor ever be able to live a life weighed down by the deaths of 23 others like him? Add to it, the totally unnecessary love angle. How do spectators even connect with the idea of love when kids are being murdered so brutally? I would have liked to see Kat as an independent girl who fights for a cause, rather than be reduced to a Bella Swan whose priority in life, after witnessing cruelty at such close range, is choosing between two boys. I got to know that the district gears up for a rebellion after the sequel. Yet, what a shame that the first book ended on such a low note.
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