Discussion: The Hunger Games Trilogy by Suzanne Collins - Page 3

Redcard · 02-16-2012, 11:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bill_mchale

The cost of violence perhaps? The entire shape of Katnis's life is dictated by her participation in the Hunger Games and the events that follow, particularly her choices in the the last book.

--
Bill

Yeah, but my mom's a school teacher. She says the kids still want to be like Katniss. While I can buy the "tragic hero" lesson.. it misses.

And the movies will likely reinforce it even more in them.

bill_mchale · 02-16-2012, 11:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Redcard

Yeah, but my mom's a school teacher. She says the kids still want to be like Katniss. While I can buy the "tragic hero" lesson.. it misses.

And the movies will likely reinforce it even more in them.

The problem is looking at suffering from the outside (even a fairly intimate portrayal as in the Hunger Games) is very different than living it. For example, we don't mind that Katniss ends up with

Spoiler:

because we never really got to feel the loss.

Shoot, I remember reading Ender's Game when I was 13-14, and I really wanted to be Ender....

--
Bill

Redcard · 02-16-2012, 01:35 PM

Very true. I just think that the author didn't really didn't sell me on this story. I dont' know, I found the plot and such so unbelievably wacky.. and then the concept that these are children's novels? I just can't get a good take-away from it.

I did burn through all three books though. I just.. I don't know why, they just didn't feel like good reads. There was a problem I had, but I can't really put my finger on it.

Redcard · 02-16-2012, 01:52 PM

You know, thinking on it more, I think I figured out what I disliked/hated. I don't think I cared for the "Twilight-esque" love triangle that got wedged into the story. I won't say who or what that triangle involved, or how it ended up, but I just resented that it seemed like she stopped the story midway through to introduce a Teen Nickolodean moment for Katniss to decide who to take to the prom.

And I suspect that that is why adolescent girls like this book, because, adolescent girls ALWAYS seem to go for love triangles in stories.

(Examples:

Jacob and Edward in Twilight series
Harry or Ron in the Harry Potter series
or heck, here's a website that is written by a twilight fan:
http://readingaftertwilight.wordpres...ove-triangles/
)

Belfaborac · 02-16-2012, 02:02 PM

I enjoyed the series a lot and found all three books more or less equally good. At least I can't remember thinking one was better or worse than the others, but then I burned through them very quickly, so it might as well have been a single volume. Not great literature I guess, but thoroughly enjoyable and the lack of a traditional sugar-drenched ending was a definite plus.

I would look forward to the movie, except I'm thinking there's a greater than 70% chance they'll mangle it badly. In particular by adding bucketfuls of sugary romance and a textbook, dreary, happy ending, thereby thoroughly f**king up what makes the series stand out. Hoping to be pleasantly surprised though.

scrapking · 02-16-2012, 03:51 PM

I apologise if my comments repeat others. I would normally scan the comments to make sure they're not redundant, but a few messages in there were already spoilers so I can't afford it as I'm at the midpoint of the second book.

I have found the books to be enjoyable and engaging, but poorly written and/or edited. The perspective (first-person, present tense) was very difficult to get into for me, and felt like it was used to mimick the immediacy of an IM conversation. The story evolved as if a sports play-by-play announcer was talking about their day.

Editing errors abounded. The books have "Peackeepers" and "Gamemakers", but I read at least one instance of "Peacemakers" in the first book without any suggestion that this was a third profession to aspire to.

Mysteriously, for the first 7 chapters or so, the final meal of the day is (without exception that I noted) referred to as "supper". After that it changes to "dinner", and is referred to by every character that way for the next several dozen chapters (with a single exception that I noted). No explanation is offered for this change. I know some people use the two words interchangeably, but it's ubiquitous for chapters at a time, then changes and the change is suddenly ubiquitous for chapters at a time. Bizarre.

In one scene Effie is described as sponsoring her young charges in the games, I believe it was in the first-person narration rather than in spoken words, and it's a poor choice of words given "sponsors" have another (already established by that point) definition in the book.

I could go on (I've been annotating up a storm as I read, if anyone's interested in other observations along these lines), but suffice it to say I've found quite a number and those are just a few off the top of my head (I'm at work and my Kobo's at home).

However, I still really enjoy the worldbuilding, characters, and story so I intend to read it to the end. I had originally planned to read just the first book (as I wanted to read it before the movie came out), and then go back to Harry Turtledove's so-called "Southern Victory" books. However, I'm instead going to read the Hunger Games books through to completion before reading anything else, as I'm worried I'll have a hard time getting back into the writing style if I step out of it for a time. It took me until chapter 5 before I was able to look past it the first time. My girlfriend, BTW, had the exact same experience as it took her 4-5 chapters to get past the writing style, but she went on to love the books despite it all.

whitearrow · 02-16-2012, 11:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Redcard

and then the concept that these are children's novels?

They aren't children's novels. The Hobbit is a children's novel. The YA market is aimed at teenagers, and IMO it's great to see YA books with themes and ideas in them.

Redcard · 02-17-2012, 11:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by whitearrow

They aren't children's novels. The Hobbit is a children's novel. The YA market is aimed at teenagers, and IMO it's great to see YA books with themes and ideas in them.

Okay, let me rephrase then.

These are YA books?

(And if they are YA books, why are they on 6th grade reading lists?! 12 years old is NOT young adult)

What themes are in here? Other than, war sucks? All I see is a girl being told that no matter what happens, she'll be involved in a love triangle, and her life will suck for fighting the system.

Maybe I'm just blind, but all Kat got for fighting the system was

Spoiler:

If you leave the third book out, and rewrite it, and go off the first two books.. I can see there being a lot of good themes to go with. Empowering themes. But the second you put that third book in there and count it as part of the trilogy, you've basically ruined whatever the first two books had set up.

bill_mchale · 02-17-2012, 11:23 AM

Redcard,
Did it ever occur to you that a great novel does not have to be about empowerment. I can think of several great works, the basic theme of which is that "war sucks". I can think of some other themes as well though. The third book, I think, is relevant to all those people who automatically assumed that everything would be great in the Middle East after the Arab Spring. Certainly another theme is how superficial rich societies can be.

--
Bill

bill_mchale · 02-17-2012, 11:25 AM

scrapking,
I am not sure this is the case (and it doesn't necessarily excuse the bad editing), but some of the stylistic issues might have been the deliberate choice of the author to highlight that Katniss really is from a different culture that we know, and that she is not particularly well educated by our standards.

--
Bill

Redcard · 02-17-2012, 02:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bill_mchale

Redcard,
Did it ever occur to you that a great novel does not have to be about empowerment. I can think of several great works, the basic theme of which is that "war sucks". I can think of some other themes as well though. The third book, I think, is relevant to all those people who automatically assumed that everything would be great in the Middle East after the Arab Spring. Certainly another theme is how superficial rich societies can be.

--
Bill

It did, yes. But the first one was about empowerment.

The second one was about empowerment.

The third one was about Team Peeta vs Team Gale.

If you look at the publication times of the books and compare them to the theatrical release dates of the twilight movies, you'll see precisely what happened when the editor got ahold of the third story.

I just would have liked the third book to mesh more with the story being built in the first two, that's all.

scrapking · 02-17-2012, 02:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bill_mchale

scrapking,
I am not sure this is the case (and it doesn't necessarily excuse the bad editing), but some of the stylistic issues might have been the deliberate choice of the author to highlight that Katniss really is from a different culture that we know, and that she is not particularly well educated by our standards.

That's an intriquing theory, and worthy of some discussion and consideration, at least as far as the writing style goes. But as you say, nothing excuses bad editing.

kiwidude · 02-22-2012, 07:47 AM

I really enjoyed the first two which I devoured with relish, but definitely fall into the "series let down by the third book" camp.

And I don't mean the actual ending itself. It was more that the third book was fairly repetitively one mental breakdown after another. The main character became just a spectator, and all the potentially interesting action just got "reported" to her after the event. Very unlike the first two books where she was placed right in the middle of the action. I kept waiting for it to pick up the pace and describe more about what was "going on" - and it rarely did. Even silly things like describing her new weapon which only responds to her voice - and then not making any use of that point.

It just felt to me like the author ran out of ideas for how to put meat on the bones of what was happening in the world.

I read they are intending there to be four movies. They are going to have to be very "creative" with splitting them up to spin that last book into one entertaining movie let alone towards two!

Belfaborac · 02-22-2012, 08:24 AM

Shouldn't be a problem; being "creative" is what Hollywood is best at. As in: "let's just ignore the books and make the movies the way we want, so they'll appeal more to the lowest common denominator".

nursedude · 02-22-2012, 08:42 AM

I am just wrapping up the series and have to agree that the first book was riveting. It has been a long time since I had to finish a book in one sitting but that really was the case with book one. The second and third have been okay but have been easier to put down and come back to.

I found the violence not too bad. Lord of the Flies was much worse and way darker (IMHO).

02-16-2012, 03:51 PM	#36
scrapking Evangelist Posts: 467 Karma: 1073260 Join Date: Jan 2012 Location: Victoria, BC Device: Kobo Vox, Kobo Glo	I apologise if my comments repeat others. I would normally scan the comments to make sure they're not redundant, but a few messages in there were already spoilers so I can't afford it as I'm at the midpoint of the second book. I have found the books to be enjoyable and engaging, but poorly written and/or edited. The perspective (first-person, present tense) was very difficult to get into for me, and felt like it was used to mimick the immediacy of an IM conversation. The story evolved as if a sports play-by-play announcer was talking about their day. Editing errors abounded. The books have "Peackeepers" and "Gamemakers", but I read at least one instance of "Peacemakers" in the first book without any suggestion that this was a third profession to aspire to. Mysteriously, for the first 7 chapters or so, the final meal of the day is (without exception that I noted) referred to as "supper". After that it changes to "dinner", and is referred to by every character that way for the next several dozen chapters (with a single exception that I noted). No explanation is offered for this change. I know some people use the two words interchangeably, but it's ubiquitous for chapters at a time, then changes and the change is suddenly ubiquitous for chapters at a time. Bizarre. In one scene Effie is described as sponsoring her young charges in the games, I believe it was in the first-person narration rather than in spoken words, and it's a poor choice of words given "sponsors" have another (already established by that point) definition in the book. I could go on (I've been annotating up a storm as I read, if anyone's interested in other observations along these lines), but suffice it to say I've found quite a number and those are just a few off the top of my head (I'm at work and my Kobo's at home). However, I still really enjoy the worldbuilding, characters, and story so I intend to read it to the end. I had originally planned to read just the first book (as I wanted to read it before the movie came out), and then go back to Harry Turtledove's so-called "Southern Victory" books. However, I'm instead going to read the Hunger Games books through to completion before reading anything else, as I'm worried I'll have a hard time getting back into the writing style if I step out of it for a time. It took me until chapter 5 before I was able to look past it the first time. My girlfriend, BTW, had the exact same experience as it took her 4-5 chapters to get past the writing style, but she went on to love the books despite it all. Last edited by scrapking; 02-16-2012 at 03:55 PM.

Similar Threads
Thread	Thread Starter	Forum	Replies	Last Post
First look at Katniss Everdeen of Hunger Games (Movie)	RVS78	Lounge	17	11-23-2011 07:14 AM
Australian Kindlers - Suzanne Collins' Hunger Games trilogy available	caleb72	Reading Recommendations	0	05-07-2011 04:39 AM
Mockingjay - Suzanne Collins	leebase	Reading Recommendations	6	08-30-2010 07:35 PM
Catching Fire - Suzanne Collins	leebase	Reading Recommendations	13	08-26-2010 12:24 AM
The Hunger Games - Collins	leebase	Reading Recommendations	9	08-09-2010 01:31 PM

02-16-2012, 01:35 PM	#33
Redcard Addict Posts: 235 Karma: 1202269 Join Date: Mar 2008 Device: Kindle	Very true. I just think that the author didn't really didn't sell me on this story. I dont' know, I found the plot and such so unbelievably wacky.. and then the concept that these are children's novels? I just can't get a good take-away from it. I did burn through all three books though. I just.. I don't know why, they just didn't feel like good reads. There was a problem I had, but I can't really put my finger on it.

02-16-2012, 01:52 PM	#34
Redcard Addict Posts: 235 Karma: 1202269 Join Date: Mar 2008 Device: Kindle	You know, thinking on it more, I think I figured out what I disliked/hated. I don't think I cared for the "Twilight-esque" love triangle that got wedged into the story. I won't say who or what that triangle involved, or how it ended up, but I just resented that it seemed like she stopped the story midway through to introduce a Teen Nickolodean moment for Katniss to decide who to take to the prom. And I suspect that that is why adolescent girls like this book, because, adolescent girls ALWAYS seem to go for love triangles in stories. (Examples: Jacob and Edward in Twilight series Harry or Ron in the Harry Potter series or heck, here's a website that is written by a twilight fan: http://readingaftertwilight.wordpres...ove-triangles/ )

02-16-2012, 02:02 PM	#35
Belfaborac Wizard Posts: 1,498 Karma: 5199835 Join Date: May 2010 Location: Norway Device: Sony PRS-505, PRS-950	I enjoyed the series a lot and found all three books more or less equally good. At least I can't remember thinking one was better or worse than the others, but then I burned through them very quickly, so it might as well have been a single volume. Not great literature I guess, but thoroughly enjoyable and the lack of a traditional sugar-drenched ending was a definite plus. I would look forward to the movie, except I'm thinking there's a greater than 70% chance they'll mangle it badly. In particular by adding bucketfuls of sugary romance and a textbook, dreary, happy ending, thereby thoroughly f**king up what makes the series stand out. Hoping to be pleasantly surprised though.

02-17-2012, 11:23 AM	#39
bill_mchale Wizard Posts: 1,451 Karma: 1550000 Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Maryland, USA Device: Nook Simple Touch, HPC Evo 4G LTE	Redcard, Did it ever occur to you that a great novel does not have to be about empowerment. I can think of several great works, the basic theme of which is that "war sucks". I can think of some other themes as well though. The third book, I think, is relevant to all those people who automatically assumed that everything would be great in the Middle East after the Arab Spring. Certainly another theme is how superficial rich societies can be. -- Bill

02-17-2012, 11:25 AM	#40
bill_mchale Wizard Posts: 1,451 Karma: 1550000 Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Maryland, USA Device: Nook Simple Touch, HPC Evo 4G LTE	scrapking, I am not sure this is the case (and it doesn't necessarily excuse the bad editing), but some of the stylistic issues might have been the deliberate choice of the author to highlight that Katniss really is from a different culture that we know, and that she is not particularly well educated by our standards. -- Bill

02-22-2012, 07:47 AM	#43
kiwidude Calibre Plugins Developer Posts: 4,720 Karma: 2197770 Join Date: Oct 2010 Location: Australia Device: Kindle Oasis	I really enjoyed the first two which I devoured with relish, but definitely fall into the "series let down by the third book" camp. And I don't mean the actual ending itself. It was more that the third book was fairly repetitively one mental breakdown after another. The main character became just a spectator, and all the potentially interesting action just got "reported" to her after the event. Very unlike the first two books where she was placed right in the middle of the action. I kept waiting for it to pick up the pace and describe more about what was "going on" - and it rarely did. Even silly things like describing her new weapon which only responds to her voice - and then not making any use of that point. It just felt to me like the author ran out of ideas for how to put meat on the bones of what was happening in the world. I read they are intending there to be four movies. They are going to have to be very "creative" with splitting them up to spin that last book into one entertaining movie let alone towards two!

02-22-2012, 08:24 AM	#44
Belfaborac Wizard Posts: 1,498 Karma: 5199835 Join Date: May 2010 Location: Norway Device: Sony PRS-505, PRS-950	Shouldn't be a problem; being "creative" is what Hollywood is best at. As in: "let's just ignore the books and make the movies the way we want, so they'll appeal more to the lowest common denominator".

02-22-2012, 08:42 AM	#45
nursedude Zealot Posts: 131 Karma: 17102 Join Date: May 2010 Location: Ontario, Canada Device: Kobo (Original), KT, iPad 1, iPhone 4S, iPad 3rd gen	I am just wrapping up the series and have to agree that the first book was riveting. It has been a long time since I had to finish a book in one sitting but that really was the case with book one. The second and third have been okay but have been easier to put down and come back to. I found the violence not too bad. Lord of the Flies was much worse and way darker (IMHO).

Advert

Advert