Book Thoughts: "The Hunger Games," by Suzanne Collins

I've had a couple of people prodding me to read this series, and I thought the premise sounded interesting so I gave it a shot.

Glad I did.

At the risk of perhaps reading too much into the book, I think it could really work on several levels. On the surface, it's a young adult book that reads quickly like a young adult book, along the lines of Harry Potter. It's the story of a young girl, Katniss, who finds herself thrust into a gladiator like reality show setting in a future North America, where the government has collapsed and power has been consolidated into a single Capital city that rules the outlying districts with an iron fist. Katniss is unwittingly paired with a boy from her district, who serves as a great foil for Katniss and her somewhat "Survivorman" like character. The book doesn't contain a ton of characterization, instead opting for pace and movement in the story, but the eventual pairing of these two almost polar opposite characters is a master stroke, creating a lot of tension and a lot of genuinely touching moments throughout the story.

On to some of the perhaps more latent themes. The book is awash with appropriate allusions to the Roman Empire: games, spears, gold, excess, ruthless violence, imperial rule, even the names of many characters smack of Rome. It's a nice touch that does a good job adding atmosphere to the story.

Which begs this question: Seeing how the story takes place in a future version of our country, does Collins see us heading that way, toward Rome? Is the book a commentary on our society's thirst for "reality" competitions, in which emotions are laid bare for all to see and direct inter-personal conflict is encouraged for entertainment value? Is it a comment on the climate of fear instilled in us over the last 10 years from our government? Does the story have something to say about the overwhelming tsunami of violence that our culture often immerses us in? Watch a hockey game, and the crowd cheers when a fight breaks out. An auto race, heck, everybody loves a fireball like crash. We overdose on evening crime dramas and cop shows, where the only way to raise the ratings bar is to try to shock the audience even more.

I think the story does have something to say about these issues, and it's a fascinating analysis to think through. In the end, part of the beauty of Literature is that each reader can decide for his or herself. However, I would like to say that even though this is a "young adult" book, the themes explored here are varied and deep. Loss, love, abandonment, fueled by characters that have actual rational thought behind them, unlike the useless waste of trees and ink that is the horrid angsty teen sob story bathed in lust called the "Twilight Saga." The Hunger Games has much more to offer any reader, young or old.

I look forward to the next two books sitting on my shelf.