The Hunger Games
The Hunger Games
by Suzanne Collins
Scholastic (e-book)
If you don't know that The Hunger Games is coming to a cinema near you, then you are a more focused individual than me. The first part of a trilogy of dystopian action adventures, the Games looks set to do for its creator, American young adult author Suzanne Collins, what Twilight did for Stephenie Meyer. North America no longer exists. In its place is Panem, a loose conglomerate of districts that circle the wealthy and powerful Capitol. The top entertainment attraction is the titular Hunger Games, in which groups of teenage boys and girls fight to the death live on television until only one victor is left standing. We have been here before - think Stephen King's The Running Man or the original movie Rollerball. Collins' hero is Peeta, her heroine Katniss. They are trained by former winner Haymitch Abernathy, now an alcohol-soaked shadow of his former self. As the death toll mounts, so does the heat between Peeta and Katniss. They earn a place in the hearts of the viewing public as a sort of Romeo and Juliet, only with more weapons. It is hardly original, but Hunger Games is great fun. I can't wait for part two.