Maria Fernanda Moguel Fernanda Moguel itibaren Hamamköy Köyü, 35780 Hamamköy Köyü/Ödemiş/İzmir, Türkiye
If I could have written any book myself, this might have been it. A towering achievement of imagination and accessibility.
3 stars-very deep...
I liked this book, but at the same time I found myself disturbed by it. I've never read a book that focused on children killing each other before. But I think the fact that it was YA is what really made it hard for me to swallow. If it had been written for an adult audience, perhaps there could have been more attention given to the human state, depravity, and moral struggles faced within a dystopian world... But being YA, none of those things are truly given any time or perspective and so the "young" reader is left with a tale about kids doing whatever is necessary to survive with hardly any moral conflict getting in the way. Whether that means killing your friend or a stranger (for that is the Hunger Games), it comes down to survival- your survival... at all costs and with no remorse or regret. As I said, had the story been written to a more mature audience where certain themes could be examined more thoroughly, I feel as though the story could've had a 1984/Brave New World/etc redemptive quality to it. But without it, and with kids the target audience, reading about kids turning cold killers in order to survive (and it's presented in almost an amoral way), The Hunger Games was good, but a disturbing read for me. That it's summer reading for many schools across the country also leaves me a little uncertain as to the message our young children are given. Are they really getting the dystopian themes and applying it to history and the human condition (and hopefully enlightening them for a better future that would avoid such a scenario), or are they just learning that when the food runs out and push comes to shove, you better be the one pushing the hardest and without a moment’s hesitation? Just a thought…