In the ruins of a place once known as North America lies the nation of Panem, a shining Capitol surrounded by twelve outlying districts. The Capitol is harsh and cruel and keeps the districts in line by forcing them all to send one boy and one girl between the ages of twelve and eighteen to participate in the annual Hunger Games, a fight to the death on live TV.
Sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen, who lives alone with her mother and younger sister Primrose, regards it as a death sentence when she steps forward to take her sister's place in the Games. But Katniss has been close to dead before — and survival, for her, is second nature. Without really meaning to, she becomes a contender. But if she is to win, she will have to start making choices that will weigh survival against humanity and life against love.
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Where to start? I started reading this book because my sister saw the preview for the movie, and then saw this book sitting on my bookshelf and she decided to pick it up. She read it, then my aunt read it, and I read it on my kindle. We continued to read the rest of the series, but I have yet made it to the third book.
With that being said, I must say that this was one of the best books that I have read in a long time. This was fresh, and the characters were so easy to fall in love with. Katniss, is by far my most favorite character ever. She was everything a heroine needs to be, sarcastic, funny, brave, and willing to put others before her self. Her love for her family was truly amazing. I was able to relate to her feelings about Prim, because my sister is the same age, and I would have done the same thing if I was in her situation. Peeta, ohh Peeta, I love me some Peeta. At first I was unsure how I felt about him, but by the time I finished the second book, I was in love with him! He is kind, creative, has an undying love for Katniss, and is unbelievable with his words. Gale. Gale is another story completely. He is strong, brave, and everything that is like Katniss. If Katniss could have a male twin, it would be Gale. Even though he is everything like her, I still believe that he is not the right one for her. He is everything she is, but nothing that she needs.
I loved that this book was fresh and how the story was told. It flowed so easily, and it was page turning. I was reading it one night while taking a bubble bath, and before I knew it my feet was all wrinkley due to being in the tub so long. Honestly, if you are going to read this book {and I highly think you should, trust me it will change your thinking and outlook} make sure to be careful where you read it at, because when you enter the games there is no coming back until the anthem blares.
One more final note – The cast that was picked for the movie, was a dead hit to the characters that I pictured. There was no way that I could have picked a better cast. The only ones that I did not picture like the ones chosen, was Haymitch, Effie, and Cinna. I am just glad that they did not pick Kirsten Stewart or Miley Cyrus as Katniss.
