A book report

SPOILER ALERT. This post is about my obsession with the Hunger Games series, so if you have not and intend to or are in the middle of reading them, please don't spoil it by reading my book report.

A few months ago, right towards the end of my sister's living with us, I noticed she was deeply engrossed in a book called the Hunger Games. I asked her what it was about and was astonished when she said something like, "This society that 'entertains' themselves by hosting the Hunger Games where their children fight to the death until there is one victor." Right. . . Don't think I'll be reading that. She assured me that it was actually very interesting and thought provoking, even if a little morbid. One day I was bored and picked it up, and I was hooked. I read it hungrily (pun intended) and then devoured it's sequel Catching Fire. Then I waited anxiously for the final book Mockinjay to come out. Of course when it did I was being too frugal to buy it and the library never had it available. Just recently my parents began reading the series, and understanding my desire to read Mockingjay, they gave it to me for my birthday.

I knew once I started reading it I would have my nose in the book until it was finished, so lucky for me it was Thanksgiving break and I had plenty of time to read it. I read it in less than 2 days. It was, to say the least, spell binding. I must put in a disclaimer at this point that these books, written by Suzanne Collins, are published by Scholastic and geared towards young adults (of which I am not), hence the "easy read." But they are phenomenal (in my humble opinion).

I discussed my reading of the first two with my sister. But I don't really know of anyone who has read all three yet, so I found myself wanting to discuss the final book with someone! I finally went online and hunted down some online discussion so I could at least see what others were saying, and find that a lot of them had the same reactions and feelings as me.

So these books have literally possessed me, to the point that I wonder if it is "unhealthy" in some way. . . One of the critic's quotes (from the author of the Twilight series) said just what I was thinking... even after I was finished reading them I lay awake at night thinking about them. I even dreampt about them last night. . .

I can't exactly put my finger on what the possessive quality to them is. There is a lot of action, suspense, and in some ways a romance. Truthfully, I am a hopeless romantic, but not the cheesy Cinderella kind of romance. One thing about these books is that they have a very 'real' quality to them, not some Disney fairy tale story.

And now that I realize I'm going on and on, I just wanted a chance to put into writing some of my thoughts and feelings about these books. And since this is my blog and I can do whatever I want with it (mostly being journal about whatever is most on my mind) this is the best place. And noone has to read it if they don't want.
1) They portray some of the psychological torture that people in war-torn areas deal with.
2) I really wanted Katniss to end up with Peeta. He was one of the two (Prim, Katniss' sister being the other) pure characters, whose love and motives were pure and unselfish.
3) I was disappointed that in Mockinjay Peeta had suffered so much that he was not really there for Katniss. . .their whole relationship changed.
4) And then at the end, when they finally do end up together it was so anticlimatic that it almost wasn't real. One minute he was trying to kill Katniss, and the next it seemed they were together, partly because there was noone else to be with.
5) It seemed unrealistic to me that Katniss' best friend (and part of the love triangle) Gale would just suddenly abandon her at the end. One minute he would die to defend her and the next minute he walks away never to speak to her again.
6) And then Katniss is left utterly alone. Her sister is dead, Peeta is a tortured creature, and she is banished to live in the ashes of her old district. And her mother just leaves her to her own devices. Her mother had issues, but as a mother, I really can't see her mother just leaving her alone.
7) When I finished reading the book I had this feeling of sadness, hopelessness, despair. What was it all for? All her suffering and fighting. . .
8) As a spirit filled Christ follower and a child of Yahweh I know that the thing that screamed from the pages was the absence of God. If I had been Katniss in her world I would have tried suicide (which she did. . .) Because in a world devoid of God there really is no purpose, no reason to suffer or strive for any greater good. "The opiate of the masses" so to speak. Whatever it is, God is the only hope, the only real, lasting joy, the only true purpose in a world that often seems hopless, despairing, and pointless.
The end.