Dare I say anything 'bout Atlas Shrugged? Naaah. This review is about the other women writer, Suzanne Collins.
The book is based in the future, in Panem, a place that was North America. The narrator is Katniss Everdeen, who lives in District 12, the district of the coal mines. All the districts live in near poverty, ruled over by the Capitol. Several years ago, District 13 rebelled against the Capitol and was razed to the ground. To prevent other such uprisings, the Capitol comes up with the Hunger Games. 2 participants (1 male and 1 female), between the age group of 12-18, from each district are selected via a lottery to participate in the Hunger Games every year. The participants are placed in an artificial arena and to win they have to kill off the others. While I can understand that that may not be something appropriate for the young adult -- I did not find the book offensive.
Image Courtesy: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hunger_Games
Katniss shares information in a very likeable manner -- she shares that she is unsure of her feelings for Gale, her friend of many years. She shares that she is indebted to Peeta when during a really rough winter, Katniss's family was almost dying of starvation, Peeta burns two loaves of bread and throws it out to her amidst his mother's hysterical cries over the burnt bread. Katniss's life changes forever when her sister's name, Prim, is pulled out of the lottery. She immediately offers her name instead. And thus Katniss is pulled into a rollercoaster ride. The other participant is Peeta. While you are sure that Katniss will naturally win, because she is the narrator - the author manages to maintain the suspense. The story couples a triangle love story (Gale-Katniss-Peeta) in a dangerous reality show where you may lose your life. I flipped out for this book. I was reading it late into the night -- and the moment I finished the book, I really wanted to read the other two.
Finally, after a looong time, I am back to reading :)
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