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4.02 AVERAGE
4.02 AVERAGE
i was entertained… i feel like the pacing of peeta and katniss’ relationship was a bit weird towards the end and there was a few other things, where after thinking about it, i was a bit eh on my opinion of the book. it was my first time reading the series after watching the movies so many times, and in the end, i enjoyed my time throughout reading the book and am glad i did it. everlark we love you…
i would probably give the book a 3.5 or a 3.75 if i could.
i would probably give the book a 3.5 or a 3.75 if i could.
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Spoiler Warning! This isn’t a review so much as my reaction to Mockingjay and the series as a whole.
Mockingjay is the best book of the trilogy, hands down. I didn’t know anything about the plot before I started reading, but I did hear that the third book was very divisive, so I was worried that I would end up hating it. As I read it and really started to get into it, I was still afraid that suddenly the book would take a downward plunge and taint my view of the entire series (a truly awful ending is capable of such things). Instead the book just kept getting better. The biggest complaint seems to be that Katniss becomes unlikeable in this book, but I disagree. I think Katniss acts unbelievably human in Mockingjay.
We expect our heroes and heroines to be untouchable – they always want what is right, and they always find a way to prevail when the odds are stacked against them. They’re supposed to be able to carry the world on their shoulders, but instead Katniss completely breaks under the weight of it all. The thing is – the worse Katniss became the more I rooted for her. When she was acting callous while mentally falling apart I just wanted to see her get back up. She obviously has PTSD, and she lashes out at the people that care about her, but I think that’s what most of us would do (even though no one wants to admit it). She is not a soldier; nothing could have prepared her for the Hunger Games and everything that came after. Everyone with power wants to use her for their own agendas, kill her, or both. The extenuating circumstances make her reactions understandable. She’s only human, and as she points out herself, humans are capable of despicable things.
Second Spoiler Warning! I’m about to talk about specific plot points and the ending. If you haven’t finished the book and don’t want to know how it ends you should probably avoid the following paragraphs!
I loved that District 13 was awful. It would have been easy to make them a shining beacon for Panem, to divide the lines clearly between good and evil, but that’s not reality. I love escapism as much as the next person, but The Hunger Games has always been pretty bleak. Seeing two equally terrible factions fighting for control worked.
I like the ambiguous ending. Tying everything into a neat little bow would have done a huge disservice to the series.
The ending is not perfect though. There’s not a lot of tension, it just slowly winds down. It’s a travesty we didn’t get to see Katniss’s trial. There is so much potential in that scenario – the drama of seeing Katniss’s future hang in the balance. We could have seen key supporting characters arguing for or against Katniss, which would have been a good way to give them all a proper send-off. I’m not sure why Suzanne Collins skipped it. I know the books are from Katniss’s perspective, but she could have easily had Katniss attend the trial (even if she’s not allowed to testify on her own behalf due to being mentally unfit). I wouldn’t have minded briefly switching perspectives just to see it. I think it would have been fascinating to see how someone else views Katniss. Could you imagine seeing the final courtroom scene through Gale’s or Peeta’s perspective? Maybe it would have felt out of place since there’s no precedent for other narrators, but it seems like a missed opportunity to me.
Mockingjay is the best book of the trilogy, hands down. I didn’t know anything about the plot before I started reading, but I did hear that the third book was very divisive, so I was worried that I would end up hating it. As I read it and really started to get into it, I was still afraid that suddenly the book would take a downward plunge and taint my view of the entire series (a truly awful ending is capable of such things). Instead the book just kept getting better. The biggest complaint seems to be that Katniss becomes unlikeable in this book, but I disagree. I think Katniss acts unbelievably human in Mockingjay.
We expect our heroes and heroines to be untouchable – they always want what is right, and they always find a way to prevail when the odds are stacked against them. They’re supposed to be able to carry the world on their shoulders, but instead Katniss completely breaks under the weight of it all. The thing is – the worse Katniss became the more I rooted for her. When she was acting callous while mentally falling apart I just wanted to see her get back up. She obviously has PTSD, and she lashes out at the people that care about her, but I think that’s what most of us would do (even though no one wants to admit it). She is not a soldier; nothing could have prepared her for the Hunger Games and everything that came after. Everyone with power wants to use her for their own agendas, kill her, or both. The extenuating circumstances make her reactions understandable. She’s only human, and as she points out herself, humans are capable of despicable things.
Second Spoiler Warning! I’m about to talk about specific plot points and the ending. If you haven’t finished the book and don’t want to know how it ends you should probably avoid the following paragraphs!
I loved that District 13 was awful. It would have been easy to make them a shining beacon for Panem, to divide the lines clearly between good and evil, but that’s not reality. I love escapism as much as the next person, but The Hunger Games has always been pretty bleak. Seeing two equally terrible factions fighting for control worked.
I like the ambiguous ending. Tying everything into a neat little bow would have done a huge disservice to the series.
The ending is not perfect though. There’s not a lot of tension, it just slowly winds down. It’s a travesty we didn’t get to see Katniss’s trial. There is so much potential in that scenario – the drama of seeing Katniss’s future hang in the balance. We could have seen key supporting characters arguing for or against Katniss, which would have been a good way to give them all a proper send-off. I’m not sure why Suzanne Collins skipped it. I know the books are from Katniss’s perspective, but she could have easily had Katniss attend the trial (even if she’s not allowed to testify on her own behalf due to being mentally unfit). I wouldn’t have minded briefly switching perspectives just to see it. I think it would have been fascinating to see how someone else views Katniss. Could you imagine seeing the final courtroom scene through Gale’s or Peeta’s perspective? Maybe it would have felt out of place since there’s no precedent for other narrators, but it seems like a missed opportunity to me.
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
dark
hopeful
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes