Catching Fire

The Hunger Games is the first book in a trilogy of the same name. Suzanne Collins wrote the series with Catching Fire being the second book and Mockingjay the final. The story is scary in that it feels like it can happen in the real world as well.

The first book was published in 2008, but I only came across the series end of last year while I was roaming through a bookstore in Sydney. When I got back home I immediately got hold of all 3 books and started reading.

The story is set in a post-apocalyptic world where a central government rules over 12 districts. The president not only has an iron fist but also keeps everyone in check with The Hunger Games. Participants are randomly selected from each district and then made to fight each other in a greatly popular and highly publicized game. There can be only one survivor and they win food and prestige for their district. The poor are exploited since they can enter their name for the selection process more than once in exchange for extra food.

The main character is Katniss Everdeen who volunteers to take her sister's place in the games. The books follow her through the games and it's consequences.

When I first read the blurb for the books, I was reminded of Battle Royale, a Japanese book (also adapted into a manga and movie). In this story, a group of students is forced to fight each other to the death on an island. This is meant to keep the population in check since the class of participants are chosen randomly and at any time during the year. The Hunger Games trilogy takes a slightly different route, but with great effect. How the characters handle the situation is so real that I had to take a break from the books every now and then.

What made it so more real is that reality shows such as Survivor and Big Brother are a step below The Hunger Games. The amount of publicity and television coverage the games garner is tremendous. What also struck me is the fact that many people only saw the games as something on television - that children were being killed wasn't real to them. Like a puppet theater arranged by the government. Very scary.

The books are planned to be made into a film, but I'm not sure if a movie can truly capture the trilogy. My imagination went wild thanks to the great writing. I hope the film can do The Hunger Games justice.