So here’s something different – a review on a New York Times best-selling book “Hunger Games” by Suzanne Collins. It’s been a while since I last sat down and spent some time immersing myself in a graphic-less novel.
Hunger Games was recommended by my 16 year-old sister, Bella, as one of the best books she’s ever read. Intrigued and fascinated at the chance to dwelve into the insightful mind of this modern decade teenager, I seized the chance to see light and understand the motives of what could perhaps be the next wave in the book-to-movie genre that’ll be taking over the late Harry Potter series.
The Hunger Games trilogy is set in a post-apocalyptic era governed by the dictatorship of the Capitol – a brutal governance of oppresion that controls 12 main districts that surrounds the Capitol. An annual event called “The Hunger Games” is held once a year, where 2 representatives, male & female, in every district is randomly selected to participate in a battle royale – an endless bloodbath in which only one survivor is announced as the victor.
The catch? Each district will draw two representatives at random, but only those between the age of 12 to 20 are to be selected.
The concept behind the story reminded me of an old japanese film I remember watching when I was younger called “Battle Royale”, which I must admit I was largely addicted to!
Having only read the first of this three-book series, I’ve already found that the story encompasses more depth in the story-telling than the Young Adult genre it was classified under.
On top of the book’s main theme of compassion, guilt and love, Hunger Games offer a thrilling excitement of blood and gore, lust and self-deprecation, and ultimately a sense of dissonance which enthralls the overall reading experience.
After having read through the book, I was not surprised when I came to realise why my sister Bella fancied the book so much. The protagonist was a 16-year old girl, with a younger sister which she loves very much, and a mother who she protects with all her heart despite their differences. I’m sure she was more able to relate to more than I was!
The book was definitely a good read, with an exciting though slightly predictable plot-line – one which may not be entirely for everyone.
The film adaptation of “Hunger Games” is set to be released on the 23rd of May 2012.
I’m not going to lie. One of the main reason I chose to read the book was so I could attempt to compare between the two.
But having watched the recent trailer, I have a strong feeling the film may dissapoint and won’t live up to the expectations that the book has delivered (as it happens with many film adaptations of novels). Moreso, the target demographic of the film seem to be leaning towards capturing certain audiences from the Twilight saga that coincidentally will be ending very soon.
Having said that, I live by the idiom “Never judge a book by its cover” – or in more modern lingo “Never judge a movie on its trailer”.
Watch the trailer above and let me know how you feel about it the comment section below.