The Hunger Games (The Hunger Games: 1)

by Suzanne Collins
(2008 | 374 p)

In an undefined future, North America has undergone radical changes. For starters, there is no more North America. Instead there's Panem. Panem is, for the most part, not a lot of fun. It's divided between the Capitol and 12 Districts (there were 13 Districts before the Capitol saw fit to wipe the unlucky number out). The Capitol is a massive, glamorous city that serves as the playground for Panem's elite. The rest of the population lives in the Districts and do the grunt work that supports the lifestyle of those in the Capitol. Some Districts have a bit more privilege than others. Katniss Everdeen lives in District 12, they mine coal for the Capitol and are not afforded any privilege at all.

As with any dystopian society worth its weight, there are various population control measures at work in Panem. The Districts are kept strictly isolated from each other, for one. And the population is regularly starved to death. But the most twisted power enforcer ever comes in the form of an annual event called the Hunger Games. With much fanfare (and television coverage) each District is forced to select a boy and girl between the ages of 12 and 18 to take place in these “games.” It is a highly anticipated to-do for the residents of the Capitol -- and even celebrated in a few of the better off Districts where there are resources to produce well trained participants. Once selected, the children are thrown into a hostile environment and left to kill one another. The last one alive wins. The entire bloodbath is televised and required viewing for the entire population of Panem in an extreme case of reality television gone wrong.

So Katniss from District 12 is only 16-years-old and has been the sole provider for her mother and little sister, Prim, ever since her father died in a coal mine explosion. Since the Capitol never supplies enough food to her District, Katniss regularly sneaks into the surrounding woods to forage and hunt. She's also a fair hand at bartering. In a nutshell, Katniss is a survivor. When the selection time for the Hunger Games arrives, Katniss is horrified when Prim is selected and quickly volunteers herself to go in Prim's stead. Katniss is then shipped off to the Capitol with Peeta, the baker's son who was unlucky enough to draw the other lot. And that's the happy part of the story.

This novel had all the dystopian elements that I enjoy but, ultimately, was just too dark for me. I realize that this book is crazy popular and there's clearly something wrong with my literary tastes. I couldn't really move past the fact that children were butchering each other. Aside from the unsettling plot the writing and characters are well done. The story is fast-paced and well told. Katniss isn't a whiny push-over, which is generally all that I ask for in a heroine. Despite that, I still don't think I liked her very much. With so little to draw me back in, I doubt I'll be reading books 2 and 3.