The Hunger Games

The best story I have ever read or heard is undisputedly The Hunger Games, by Suzanne Collins. But before I continue – to those of you (the few, the unfortunate) who have not yet had the chance to read this AMAZING book, you have been forewarned: wild spoilers roam unchecked and unhindered ahead.

The first thing that attracted me to The Hunger Games was the refreshingly original storyline. With modern fantasy of the day slowly degenerating into four or five stories retold a quintillion times over, it was a treat to read a book with a completely different storyline. (Take Eragon for example – great book, a bestseller, but clearly Star Wars set in Tolkien’s Middle Earth with dragons instead of Force abilities and terrible, horrendous geography.) Who ever thought to write a book where kids kill each other for the sake of entertainment? Since I read much of the popular teen fantasy and sci-fi books out there, it was great to have a book like The Hunger Games. Also, I liked the way that Collins described Katniss Everdeen, the main character. Another failing of the fiction genre as a whole is its annoying habit of making main characters into almost god-like people, who automatically and irrevocably attract the opposite sex, are easily forgiven, everyone loves them, and they solve their problems with a snap of their finger. BO-RING! I never feared once that Katniss would fall into this territory.

So if you’re looking for a compelling read with a dark, original storyline, terrible tragedies, and even worse meaningful names (yes, I see you Panem, as in panem et circenses and Katniss, a real plant with the common name of arrowhead), I suggest you read The Hunger Games. I guarantee you will not put that book down and you will read and read and read even if you hate reading until you finish it. It is that good. I swear.