My Honest Opinions on: 'The Hunger Games'


PagesofAngels's avatar
I'm not one for fads. Usually if everyone else is doing it, I'll avoid it at all costs. This is exactly what I've done with 'Twilight' and I would've done the same with 'Hunger Games' had it not been for my 8th grade English teacher who was a flipping fangirl for the stuff. She made us read the first book cover-to-cover in class. I wasn't comfortable with being forced to read a book I had sworn to avoid, but that didn't stop me from being open about it. I remember opening the cover and thinking "This shouldn't be too bad. Heck, I'll give it a shot." Well I gave it a shot, read it completely through, and I've hated myself for it since then!

Now before you start flaming me, let me point this out: I don't hate Suzane Collins. She is a good writer and I'm happy for her that her book has done so well. All I'm saying is that I despise the 'Hunger Games', not her (how can I hate someone I've never met). Ok, moving on. Like I've pointed out, the book was not badly written. It had good descriptions/word choice/detailing/etc. but there was one tiny little thing that crawled under my skin and gave me a rash from first chapter to last chapter (there were other things, but this is what it all boils down to): Melodrama. I cannot STAND melodrama in books or in real life!

Basically I felt that the whole thing was played a bit too seriously. The poor characters didn't help much either. Peeta, good gosh! I can't even name a personality trait from him! He's just the pretty boy who's simply there to be the love interest. Katniss has one personality trait and one only: she's brave. That's it. She's never scared, sad, lonely, or anything. She was very monotone throughout the whole thing and I don't ever recall her having any other emotion besides brave/determined. Even if she changed emotions at some point it was not stated/described enough for me to pick it up. I can name several moments were the emotion of fear could've/should've been present in her character: when she volunteers as tribute, when she goes live on camera for the interviews, when she's sizing up the other tributes, when the countdown to the game starts, when she sees someone die...should I go on? The only moment I recall where her demeanor changed just a bit was when she was hallucinating from the bee stings, all the rest of the time her emotions are flat lined on brave. Because of this, she came off as totally over-the-top to me.

Speaking of over-the-top, I found myself literally laughing out loud when *SPOILERS* Rue kicks the bucket. ... Oh. Boy. Where do I begin? First off, none of the other tributes have a big dramatic death scene. Rue having a death scene is understandable, as she knows Katniss better than they do. But by how much?! They know each other for like a day and as soon as they meet they become "insta-friends". Don't get me wrong, I know it's human psychology for someone to build a bond with a person they've known only a short time in an emotionally charged environment, but I swear they meet and they're like "you're my BFF!" Not only that, but Rue is barely in the story and she only serves as a plot device to get the story moving by upsetting the crowd with her death. This is why she's only in the story as a character for about three chapters (mentioning her once at the very beginning does not count) and while she's there she and Katniss do absolutely nothing. They meet, they're insta-friends, and then Rue gets a spear to the ribs. The fact that she's described as little and cute, has a best friend instantly, and that everyone in the flipping country is upset when she dies reminds me of something.....*cough*Mary-Sue*cough cough* They play up her death as big and dramatic as well, with Katniss holding her in her arms and decorating her body with flowers before sending her away. These aspects I have no problem with in any other book, as they can make for good drama...but having these things done for a character we barely know just makes me roll my eyes. Having a dramatic death scene the scale of Rue's is perfectly fine...if we actually give a crap about that character and as long as it's not blown completely out of proportions.

As I was saying, when this scene popped up I was wetting myself with laughter. I remember thinking "This is silly, but at least it can't get any worse." Then Rue asked Katniss to sing to her and I lost it. How cliché can you get? Even if this scene were for a character I cared about, it still wouldn't fly. This made the scene so over-the-top and unrealistic it was hysterical and made me lose what little (oh, so little) hope I had for the rest of the book. Bottom line is this: I found the book to be so melodramatic it was humorous and the characters all annoyed me.

If you like the books then good for you, I'm just sharing my honest opinions. This, in all honesty, is how the story came across to me. Everyone has different interpretations of creative works of art; this is mine. My only lament for being open with my opinions is that no one else seems to despise the 'Hunger Games' like I do. Oh well. Thanks for letting me share my opinions with you.

~~PagesofAngels
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Starlit-Sorceress's avatar
I didn't care for the romance, and it was weird in the later books when Katniss started going crazy.

I agree that Rue's death scene was a little manipulative. I almost felt the author reading over my shoulder going, "OMG isn't this so SAD???"

But if I was Rue, I would have wanted Katniss to sing to me, so I can't blame her for that.
Karvick's avatar
I feel the key to this is simple:

Battle Royale was actually trying to make a point, regardless of it being the book, the manga or the films. Hunger Games just has that feeling of bad knock off and franchise money grabbing attached to it. As a result the core message of the story gets lost.

If your too young to have heard of BR and you like it then good for you but I think most people will agree that there are many other books out there that deal with these themes so much better; BR being the one that stands out the most due to cult status.
trivialtales's avatar
I watched the movie... With rifftrax on...

I might read the book someday, but probably won't.
ToxicKittyCat's avatar
High Five! I've read entire trilogy, because each ended with a cliffhanger (anger), and trust me, book I is better than 2 and 3 (book 3 is most poorly written and characterised book I had read recently).
It's fine, but narrative is painful it takes me 2 weeks to finish this thin book (while completing 600 p Deathly Hallows 2 days). Peeta is pain in the... And Gale was NEVER described. And you call this love triangle!
There's action in 1,2 but 3... No. On contrary entire book is about Katniss in hospital. There's no subplots, depth to other characters, 3 and 2 have terrible pacing, no descriptions of environment, world building is shallow and there's no conclusion what so ever. It's overrated.
Rjnox's avatar
When I finshed the first book of 'the Hunger Games', I couldn't wait to get the next one. In my opinion Suzanne Collins' writing style was/is really exciting. But the second and third part of this triology aren't nearly as good as the first. And sometimes the plot became pretty implausible. Nevertheless, I think it's worth reading them.
electricjonny's avatar
I just finished the audiobook, and it may have been the style the narrator used, but I too found things a bit over dramatic or just straight up unbelievable.

But then there were words or descriptions used that just felt like they were there to sound smart.  Or something.  I'm not that big of a fan of Suzanne Collins, and less now after reading the book.  She just doesn't strike me as that great of a writer.



But, the movie seemed pretty faithful to the book.  So plus there, but that's another matter :lol:
ragin227's avatar
I thought the hunger games were good, but like a lot of people here they didn't completely blow me away. Maybe they should have but they didn't, I wouldn't read them over and over again. But with the kind of attention they've been getting I thought I would want to do that. I agree that Peeta was a very annoying character, and the whole thing got a bit too into the love triangle for me. I mean seriously, am I just unromantic, or does Katniss have more important things to worry about than who's hearth she breaks? I only really liked the first book, and even that I wouldn't read again
twipplestoast's avatar
The writing for me felt much too basic for someone older to really enjoy. It felt directed more towards the 12, 13 year olds. To be honest, I had a bad taste in my mouth from it's announcement simply for the fact of children killing one another to apease the adults. However, I gave it a shot, thinking because of all the buzz it must have been a great series. But I was left feeling like I had wasted my time reading it. The deaths seemed meaninless and it didn't leave you feeling any better about yourself. It was quite the oposite; it made you feel depressed. At least me.

If you're going to kill a character at least get the audience attached to that character, and for goodness' sake, give their death meaning. I didn't shed one tear when any of the characters died, and please, don't get me started on the love triangle. We have way more than what need be told. Overall, it's just a very overrated series.
Knoire's avatar
Ahem. Battle Royale
did it way better
the end

Seriously, though, I agree that the Hunger Games made itself much more important than it really was. WHAT IS THE BIG DEAL ABOUT THE BOOK? I read it, vaguely enjoyed a chapter or two, but mostly was bored by the whole thing, and never thought about it again.

Also, the characters in Battle Royale were all given backstories. I mean, ALL OF THEM. It really made you think about the value of life as you see these characters, these PEOPLE, being mercilessly killed off. THG doesn't give a shit about any of its characters.

Ok, rant over, but I'm glad to see someone who's not oggling over Peeta *shudder*
AprilMcGuire's avatar
BR, eh? I didn't know BR was inspired by Spartacus. Hmmm.......
Sarcasm-for-morons's avatar
Amen to that. I read the hunger games a while ago, after watching the movie, and I didn't get what was so great about it. The book was average in every conceivable way, which means good enough, but not outstanding. The only thing I liked was the premise, which BR had already done before.
...I read BR when I was nine. (the manga) it scarred me.
Knoire's avatar
I read it at 13 and it scarred me too! But I just reread it a few days ago and my jaw is still dropped! Fantastic manga, I can't wait to read the novel
Sarcasm-for-morons's avatar
It was. I was almost in tears at the ending, cliche though it was. I've never read the novel, but also hope to. :)
RookieOwl's avatar
I'm really neutral about it, have read the three books.
The first of course isn't the best, second was kinda too much love drama to my taste, but at least the best of the three, the third....... :wtf:

Honestly I HATEHATEHATEHATEHATEHATEHATE love triangles, the kind of girls who can't choose over two guys always have made me go mad (on any medium, real or not) I was all the way like "FOR F*CK SHAKE GIRL CHOOSE A SIDE DON'T BE A *insert insult here*"

Peeta was cute, but kinda useless, Gale was kinda too cold.

Still it got some of the good on me (I'm too sensible, the kind of person who always cries at deaths, so yeah)

Predictable? Man I'm 14 and I can already tell you how things are going to end (when you become a comic geek, you start getting really good at guessing plot points) but the thing is not about what is going to happen but about HOW is going to happen.
I don't get all this "I'm not into fads." If you want to do something, do it. By not doing something, you're just going with the other crowd who don't want to do it just 'cause it's popular or famous or whatever. You want to be "different"? (Or so I assume.) Who cares if other people are doing it? Try it for yourself and see. Don't judge a book by its over, right? (Let's not go all technical on me and apply this to all legal and illegal things, mkay, thanks.)

Before I read THG, I read all the spoilers, Wiki info, so I knew the story from end to end. And I lol'd, 'cause I didn't understand why it was so big and why everyone liked it, and I went along with the "this is a BR ripoff" wagon.

So I'm the opposite. Melodramas are my thing. But man, I've seen so many bad melodramas in dramas and mangas and fanfics, that THG was okay. I've read so many bad books....... it's kind of sad. I liked the book. It was a fun read, entertaining, and I thought Peeta going crazy was awesome.

What is with this "predictability"? Well, I guess, only if you're bored do you go predicting the end of the book. I didn't think the end of this trilogy would go all non-YA on me, though. And I think I assumed a lot of the emotions in the books, 'cause I don't expect a writer to describe all the emotions for me. In fact, I'd rather not, because that's like telling me what to feel at every scene, and I hate being told what to do. I pick up emotions from the descriptions, so I thought Katniss was a good character, she described things well and conveyed her emotions.

Rue's death, pfft, of course. But I'll take the way it was hyped.

Have you watched Battle Royale? Not read, but watched. That was a bad movie, lool, but I guess the director wanted to make the entire book, just didn't work out. Ah, this was totally off topic, sorry. ^^; This movie actually made me not want to read THG. (Long story short, was at the bookstore at my college, saw it, and picked it up while I was waiting for a friend. Then I went to the library!)

As for your teacher making you read a book. That's a bad teacher. That's just going to make you hate the book more. UGhhhh. I totally get that. I wish you'd decided to read this on your own, and hopefully you wouldn't have hated it as much? (This is why I don't form opinions, because I know I'll be forced to do something, and it'll make me resent the person and the object more than I should. But that's just me being lazy, too. Not lazy enough to rant for this length, though... *ramble ramble*.)
BlackAriode13's avatar
I kind of feel like you're describing the movie, not the book. Even so, while I like the Hunger Games (honestly couldn't put the first book down), there are a few parts where it tips over into melodrama.
AprilMcGuire's avatar
I, too, tend to avoid trending titles. However, I am a sucker for post-apocalyptic fiction. So I gave THG a try. Without going into a battle, I will say that there are some big holes in your interpretations.

¶1 Your teacher wasn't alone with sharing THG with your class. THG went into classrooms nationwide. Did you know that the series was inspired by Spartacus? That is history. Common themes in The Hunger Games: Political Oppression, Poverty, Violence. All things that are discussed in the classroom. She wasn't simply a "fan girl", she was trying to engage a classroom into reading something that she can relate to lessons.

¶3 I will admit that Katniss was a bit on the bleak side. But when you live in a shitty shack in one of the worst areas and your mom is useless and your dad died and every year you might lose someone you care for... you expect someone to be bubbly and joke and smile? I sure don't. You can't always just throw lushes at someone and expect them to change like a lightswitch, either. Sometimes doing that provokes the bleakness to harden and get worse, because deep down you know that all of the lavishness and luxaries thrown your way are for the worst possible reason. The one thing that probably should have come hardest for her, was TO be brave. Because all the odds were stacked up against her since birth, but for the few she cared for, she had to turn that on. I don't think a lot of people would even be able to do that. If you're going to dissect a character and comment on it, dissect it. Don't simply look on the surface, read between the lines. As for Peeta, "I can't even name a personality trait from him! He's just the pretty boy who's simply there to be the love interest." No, that would be Edward Cullen. Peeta was kind. It's not nothing to be kind. It doesn't matter sometimes what situation you grow up in when it comes to being kind, like Katniss' sister. Kindness is being nice and gentle despite what you're thinking and how you're perceiving a situation. So, kind people generally don't act out or be rash or say crazy things to be memorable... unless pushed, that is. And unless I'm mistaken, Peeta had some outbursts as a result of being pushed. He rose to the occasion when it was necessary. If you (again) had paid attention, you would have known that character for much more than being "the love interest".

¶4 I can't believe you missed this one!! Rue was how old? 12? 12. Twelve years old and having to be put into a gladiator-style fight against kids who are much older, and much stronger and more hardened than she is. C'mon! If that doesn't squeeze at your heart, I don't know what will. She simply represented Innocence. You don't need to know her life story or favorite color to get sappy when Innocence dies in a book. She was an idea, the symbol for the worst that the government was doing, corrupting and killing. I don't even have much to say on this paragraph other than that, it's one of the easiest concepts to understand. There was nothing Mary Sue about her.

¶5 She was twelve. Music was a meaningful thing to her where she came from, and she was still very much a child who enjoys simple things like that. For a twelve year old to just suddenly become serene and ask for a song to play while she dies is pretty strange to me, that shows a lot of courage.

Okay, so that's it. Melodramatic, yeah I guess it is. But the plot and story that shaped the book calls for it. I don't care either way if you like the series (or book one, as you haven't read all of them) or not, but I had to correct your observations. I'd say, when you've read more and understand the underlying themes and necessities of a story, to come back and read the entire series again.
You might enjoy it the second time around when you catch all the aspects and not just the surface ones.

Happy trolling. :)
TojiX's avatar
Hear hear finally someone who knows what he/she is talking about, while its not "War and Peace" I find the book very interesting. Specially the symbolism put into it, and elements drawn from Roman history (Roman societal structures, Gladiators) and also from Greek mythology, if you haven't read the story of Theseus read it you'll find that most elements form the Hunger Games are inspired (not copied) from his Epic. While this is not my thing though at least it is a better alternative to sparkling vampires, specially for my daughters. Though I found the movie agonizing to watch, it makes me sleep everytime.
AprilMcGuire's avatar
lmao. I quite liked the movie. I loved the effort they put into it for adapting a book. They really went all out in getting designers to design the Capitol and a rigorous process for finding the right actors. I'm a big sucker for effort in set/character design. :) And I will probably check that out, for Theseus. I'm glad to get a positive response on this comment! I'm pretty sure the OP didn't read it at all, haha. :)
TojiX's avatar
No complaints in the production design, but for some reason it just felt like watching the Star Wars ep1: Phantom menace.
jeun-chan's avatar
I feel with you on the avoiding the fads. The more populair they are the less I want to read them. So far I succesfully avoided Eragon, Dan Brown, Twilight, Hungergame, and 50 Shades of Grey.
TojiX's avatar
Then you are missing out on something, yeah I agree I don't like fads, but I'd rather find things out for myself. Its like when everybody is using the foot bridge or the pedestrian lane, but you'd rather j-walk to be different from everyone else.
jeun-chan's avatar
Sad thing is the complaints people have about most books that are trending always tend to be the same complaints I have about them. Sure I still might have enjoyed them like 10 years ago, but nowadays I would just find it a waste of money and time. And people who publish their stories really should not be writing worse than amateurs on the web.
Xanedil's avatar
I liked what she was going for at the beginning.

I think if you talk to anyone who's read the book all the way through that their favorite part (or most tolerated part) was the first act, and for that part, I will agree. I liked the world that Collins created. Yes, we've seen it before, but I thought that the message in it was sound and that it was a legitimately interesting setup.

As for the second half, I didn't care for it. Battle Royal pulled it off much better, and the inclusion of the teen drama was absolutely revolting. I disagree with your assessment of Katniss though, I thought she showed more character attributes than bravery and was an overall passible protagonist.

As for Rue's death, I'm with you there. Every time a book tries to pass off an overdramatic death/event, I'm on the floor. I think Rue's death was supposed to get the reader by reminding him/her that the Capitol is willing to sacrifice innocent children in the name of their sick game, but it just comes off as preachy and unnecessary, not to mention characters I was legitimately interested in got offpage or quick, glazed over deaths.

I don't despise it but I do think it is grossly overrated.