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david_slack110507 's review for:
The Hunger Games
by Suzanne Collins
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
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
4.5 stars, rounded up to a 5, but honestly, it could be deserving of that entire 5-star rating given how much I enjoyed reading this first book in the original Hunger Games trilogy. This took me a while to read because of similar reasons to the ones I covered in my review for The Night Swim but I really found myself to be enjoying the book whenever I read it and got me thoroughly invested in the book, which I have been struggling to feel with certain books lately, specifically my recent audiobooks.
I've seen the Hunger Games movies, so I knew what to expect in terms of plot progression and plot points, yet that didn't dampen my enjoyment of the book, as shown by my rating; I really loved it. Something that I really liked about this first book was how well it establishes the world of Panem and the Districts and the characters within that world. Lore and important information needed to understand the world are implemented well without feeling like exposition dumps, and so many of the characters in the book, even those that don't have much time on the page, are shown to be complex and developed such as Katniss's mother and the relationship between Katniss and her giving her depth when she has such little time actually present in the book.
The book is also really successful at showing just how cruel the actual Hunger Games are and how those depicted as evil within the games such as the Careers are really just pawns in the Capital's game that are portrayed as evil but are just children trying to survive, and in the Careers' case, children taught to strive at winning the Games as the best potential achievement in their life, another example of great yet subtle world building. Rue's death, despite knowing that it was going to happen, was still extremely emotionally impactful and was arguably the most emotional moment for me, as it actually nearly brought me to tears, showing just how great Suzanne Collins' writing is.
I already love so many of the book's characters, specifically in terms of their characterisation in the book in comparison to their characterisation in the movie adaptations, specifically how great of a character Katniss is and how interesting her perspective is. I am hoping to finish the original trilogy and maybe even Sunrise on the Reaping by the end of summer because this series has already gotten off to a good start and I am extremely excited to get around to reading Catching Fire given how that is my favourite movie out of the movie adaptations so I hope the book matches the movie's quality.
I've seen the Hunger Games movies, so I knew what to expect in terms of plot progression and plot points, yet that didn't dampen my enjoyment of the book, as shown by my rating; I really loved it. Something that I really liked about this first book was how well it establishes the world of Panem and the Districts and the characters within that world. Lore and important information needed to understand the world are implemented well without feeling like exposition dumps, and so many of the characters in the book, even those that don't have much time on the page, are shown to be complex and developed such as Katniss's mother and the relationship between Katniss and her giving her depth when she has such little time actually present in the book.
The book is also really successful at showing just how cruel the actual Hunger Games are and how those depicted as evil within the games such as the Careers are really just pawns in the Capital's game that are portrayed as evil but are just children trying to survive, and in the Careers' case, children taught to strive at winning the Games as the best potential achievement in their life, another example of great yet subtle world building. Rue's death, despite knowing that it was going to happen, was still extremely emotionally impactful and was arguably the most emotional moment for me, as it actually nearly brought me to tears, showing just how great Suzanne Collins' writing is.
I already love so many of the book's characters, specifically in terms of their characterisation in the book in comparison to their characterisation in the movie adaptations, specifically how great of a character Katniss is and how interesting her perspective is. I am hoping to finish the original trilogy and maybe even Sunrise on the Reaping by the end of summer because this series has already gotten off to a good start and I am extremely excited to get around to reading Catching Fire given how that is my favourite movie out of the movie adaptations so I hope the book matches the movie's quality.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Gore, Torture, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, Classism
Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Drug use, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Abandonment, Alcohol
Minor: Confinement, Cursing, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Cannibalism, Toxic friendship, War