The Hunger Games, Book 2
Because there are so many books I want to read, and because time is so limited, it’s uncommon for me to re-read books. Some books stick out so strongly in my memory, though, that I feel drawn back to them. I first read this series about a decade ago, and I sort of knew I’d return to it someday.
My kids are now old enough to appreciate the story—and I’m aware enough to talk with them through some of the hard parts—so during snow days after Christmas, we began the series again, this time listening to it on audio. My kids are both now caught up in the world of Katniss Everdeen, and they were 100% shocked by the turn of events in this second installment.
In my review of Book 1: The Hunger Games, I mentioned asking the kids to predict what might happen in Book 2. They thought that Peeta and Katniss would marry, and that the Capitol would send their children into the arena to fight to the death. I’ll have to admit, that’s probably what I thought too when transitioning from Book 1 to 2 the very first time I read them. Suzanne Collins expertly handles the twists and turns of Pan Am’s 75th Hunger Games, the Quarter Quell, that will offer the Capitol and its 12 Districts something special in the arena.
My 12yo son really loved the first book, though he claimed that “40% of it is kissing.” The beginning of this second book, I’ve got to admit, bored him, and he told me: “40% has turned into 80%!”—and it’s basically true. The early chapters about Katniss and Peeta’s return to District 12 as Victors really emphasizes “the star-crossed lovers” angle, even while Katniss is out smooching with Gale. In my son’s words: “Sus.”
The beginning of this second book was slower than I recalled, but I kept telling my kids: “Just wait. You’re going to be shocked at what happens next.” And they were. I can still see my 11yo daughter’s face when Caesar Flickerman made the announcement about this year’s tributes. Worth the wait!
Not only did the surprise about the tributes catch them off guard, but the entire new arena fascinated them. Suzanne Collins’ imagination is running on all cylinders with that domed arena filled with jungle, beach, and island—so much so that I think the arena is the best “character” in the book.
We finished the second half of this book all in one sitting last Saturday, basically from when the tributes enter the arena till the end. At the climax, my kids weren’t quite sure what happened, so I had to pause and explain it to them. It wasn’t necessarily a failure in Collins’ writing to make things clear, but that my kids couldn’t picture the purpose of the electricity—and Katniss’s delusions didn’t help at all, thinking she sees the Capitol set off “fireworks.” Still, they understood it when I explained it, and then they enjoyed seeing it in action in the film a few days later.
We’ve already begun listening to Book 3: Mockingjay, and the kids are excited to see what new twists and turn this book will take. We saw on Book Notification that Collins released a prequel to the series in 2020 about President Snow, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, so we might have to check that out when we’re done with the series. Looking forward to it, and glad I could enjoy these books again, now together with my kids!
©2024 E.T.
Read More Dystopian and Post-Apocalyptic Novels:
- The Last New Yorkers by George Allen England (1911)
- Brave New World by Aldous Huxley (1932)
- Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury (1953)
- The Last Ship by William Brinkley (1988)
- Minority Report and Other Stories by Philip K. Dick (2004)
- The Road by Cormac McCarthy (2006)
- The Hunger Games (series) by Suzanne Collins (2008)
- Son of Heaven (series) by David Wingrove (2011)
- Contamination (series) by T.W. Piperbrook (2013)
- Yellowstone (series) by Bobby Akart (2018)
- The Giver by Lois Lowry, adapted by P. Craig Russell (2019)
- Fairy Godparents: Raising a Fairy Child by Indahari Setyo (2020)