As a diehard fan of THE HUNGER GAMES I was both excited and apprehensive about another book in this world, especially a book through the eyes of our resident monster, Coriolanus Snow. As I reread THG in anticipation, I got more hyped about it and while I don't mind, and even enjoy, a villain origin story, that's not really what this book is. I went into this book wanting to like it because of my deep love for the other books. This book focused on the 10th Hunger Games, what the Games were like then, the aftermath of war, and foreshadowed how we get to The Hunger Games as we know them in Katniss and Peeta's story.
Overall, I really loved this book. I'm going to talk in more depth and detail below so this part here is spoiler-free. What I loved about this book was seeing the beginnings of the Games and what the Capitol was like shortly post-war. The perspective of Capitol citizens and seeing that they also suffered brought a lot full-circle for me. You really get to see the horrors of war on both sides, the victors of the war might have been the Capitol but it's people starved and died along with those in the Districts. In war, everyone suffers and nobody truly wins.
*If you want to read more detailed descriptions of my thoughts, reactions, and themes of the book keep reading; it's still mostly spoiler-free but discusses more detailed plot and characterizations*
Without giving too much plot detail away, I want to tell you what I loved and what to expect. Snow's POV was interesting; if you're expecting a sympathetic viewpoint on him you won't get it. He is calculating and manipulative and the funny thing is, he doesn't even realize it, he thinks everyone thinks like he does. He has very few genuine moments of decentness but you can definitely see the inherent groundwork he has as a person plus his influences that made him who we know he becomes. My takeaway was this wasn't a story to empathize with him but it did make him human to me. It showed me how a very flawed, selfish, morally ambiguous person can have things happen to them that lead them down the path to infamous monster. The juxtaposition of this kind of person was in Sejanus, a District 2 made Capitol boy who knew right from wrong from the start and would not be swayed. I thought this duality of characterizations was brilliant because it made me see how as humans, we have inherent characteristics but we can also be influenced by those around us.
*If you want to read more detailed descriptions of my thoughts, reactions, and themes of the book keep reading; it's still mostly spoiler-free but discusses more detailed plot and characterizations*
Without giving too much plot detail away, I want to tell you what I loved and what to expect. Snow's POV was interesting; if you're expecting a sympathetic viewpoint on him you won't get it. He is calculating and manipulative and the funny thing is, he doesn't even realize it, he thinks everyone thinks like he does. He has very few genuine moments of decentness but you can definitely see the inherent groundwork he has as a person plus his influences that made him who we know he becomes. My takeaway was this wasn't a story to empathize with him but it did make him human to me. It showed me how a very flawed, selfish, morally ambiguous person can have things happen to them that lead them down the path to infamous monster. The juxtaposition of this kind of person was in Sejanus, a District 2 made Capitol boy who knew right from wrong from the start and would not be swayed. I thought this duality of characterizations was brilliant because it made me see how as humans, we have inherent characteristics but we can also be influenced by those around us.
The plot surrounding the Hunger Games and how vastly different they are from the Games we know was fascinating. The tributes are treated like literal animals, put in cages, not fed, and expected to 'perform.' The dissent from citizens was very tangible, nobody watches them, some of the Mentors see it for what it is in its barbarity, and their Head Gamemaker is instructing them to get ideas on how to make watching more interesting. The sparks of the showmanship and pageantry of the Games is started.
The origins of the Games was so interesting to read about! I could not believe the beginnings of what the Games were to what we know them from Katniss. The Head Gamemaker was forefront in the bid to shake things up. The discussion of how to make the Games more interesting and the psychology of digging into how peoples' minds work and excuses that are made under the guise of control for the good of the people was fascinating.
Having Snow's memories from the war added another layer of depth to this story for me. We see through him that the citizens of the Capitol suffered as well, they were starving and under siege, children were starving, everyone was suffering. It was an appreciative take on how in war, nobody wins, everybody suffers, and what have we gained. Seeing the Games from the Mentors' perspective when they are all also war-ravaged teens with PTSD from their own suffering brought this story full circle. We almost only see Capitol citizens yelling for blood so to see it wasn't always like this made me think of Katniss and her grace for her stylist team essentially saying, they just don't know any better. We get to see in this book the everyday citizens of an awful place are not representative of their leadership and didn't always agree with the savagery it becomes.
I was completely engaged with this book and wanted to keep reading, however Part 3 of the story dragged for me and all the extra details and scenes didn't add to the plot for me so that kept this from being a true 5 stars. I would love to talk more in depth about that plot line and other characters but I really wanted to make this spoiler-free! So I'll say this, I adored the tributes from District 12, I loved the parallels I could see between the plot in this book and Katniss and Peeta, and I really thought it was brilliant how Collins planted seeds of Snow's characterization and choices he made and why that very clearly led me to believe he could descend into the monster we know him to be.
Rating: 4.5 Stars | Genre: Young Adult Dystopia
Publisher: Scholastic Press | Source; Format: Bought, Physical
Okay you’re gonna make me read it now!!
ReplyDeleteI hope you do and then we can discuss!!
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