Catching Fire

by Suzanne Collins.People, I am in agony. (Long SIGH). Just finished reading this about an hour ago. It took me that long to collect myself enough to turn on my computer. It is going to take me so much longer to get the story out of my head. The closest I can come to describing how I feel is to invoke memories of how YOU felt after the 4th Harry Potter book came out, you were drawn into the story, and then it ended without any satisfactory resolution. If anything, you felt more compelled to read the 5th book than ever, even though it wouldn't be published for another year or so. That is how I feel right now. I desperately want to dive right into the next book.

I started reading The Hunger Games on Thursday, finished it Friday. Bought Catching Fire Saturday night (I knew if I bought it in the morning my Saturday would be a wash) and couldn't put it down today.

Its so tough to write about how I'm feeling, and a brief synopsis of the story without giving away spoilers. I need someone to talk to about this. About what has been going on and what we think the 3rd book will bring us. I have read reviews on Catching Fire that were a bit derogatory when comparing it to The Hunger Games. I completely disagree. I think that the games and arena pictured in Catching Fire were appropriate given the tributes who were present. And anyone who doesn't think the traps and snares and trials throughout were as intense as the first book has become completely desensitized in my opinion.

Angst.

I am so looking forward to reading the third and final book in this trilogy.

The Hunger Games

by Suzanne Collins

Oh. My. Heck. I just finished devouring this book and I'm starving for more. Thankfully, it's part of a trilogy and the second book comes out in a few days. I'm pre-ordering it on Amazon.

Here's the blurb on the book cover:

"In the ruins of a place once known as North America lies the nation of Panem, a shining Capitol surrounded by twelve outlying districts. The Capitol is harsh and cruel and keeps the districts in line by forcing them all to send one boy and one girl between the ages of twelve and eighteen to participate in the annual Hunger Games, a fight to the death on live TV.

"Sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen, who lives alone with her mother and younger sister, regards it as a death sentence when she steps forward to take her sister's place in the Games. But Katniss has been close to dead before - and survival, for her, is second nature. Without really meaning to, she becomes a contender. But if she is to win, she will have to start making choices that weigh survival against humanity and life against love."

The book was incredible. It's intense. The characters are so well-developed. Each page begs to be turned. There's adventure, romance, suspense, and societal commentary. It seeps with questions about integrity, freedom, ethics... I recommend this book wholeheartedly.

Ender's Game

I just finished reading Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card.

I've been meaning to read this book for the past 10 years and just haven't gotten around to it. Boy, was I missing out! This book is definitely one to read and remember.

Ender is a boy named Andrew Wiggin, who lives with his family thousands of years in the future. Aliens have attacked earth twice over the recent centuries, and the earth's government is concerned that a third attack is imminent. As a result, they scan young children to monitor whether they would make good leaders to champion what well may be the last stand to preserve humanity and life as we know it on earth. Ender is believed to be someone who would be a good leader and so is taken away from his family to attend Battle School somewhere in space. Here the students are divided into teams to learn skills and strategies as they compete against other teams to win "battles."

The book reads really easily---even though it takes place thousands of years in the future it flows easily and the focus of so much of the story is on the human interaction of child to child or adult to child, and how our relationships with each other shape our choices and determination to either assimilate with the majority for the sake of peace, or to stand tall individually because in the long run being true to ourselves will give us internal peace.