The Hunger Games

If you haven't noticed, a lot of young adult books have been making their way to the big screen. Twilight, Harry Potter, The Lightning Thief, The Chronicles of Narnia etc. This just shows how intense and entertaining teen books can be. There is a great series right now that I believe is up there with Twilight and the Harry Potter books. Supposedly, the book is going to be made into a movie--I hope they don't screw it up. The Hunger Games trilogy is something I was introduced to in one of my ILA classes at Wright State. My professor did a booktalk on it and said that we all HAD to read it. I was a little skeptical about the plot line and did not read it till a few months later. I LOVED IT. It totally got me hooked on dystopia fiction. The author, Suzanne Collins, has not yet released the third in the series, but I know it will be great. I loved the second one as well. The series includes, The Hunger Games, Catching Fire, and The Mockingjay. Here is a summary/review I gave the first book, The Hunger Games on goodreads.com:

In the future, North America has been split into 12 districts, making up the country of Panem. The Capitol, full of futuristic fashion and technology, is the home of the rulers of Panem. To prevent uprisings from the Districts, where poverty and strict regulations exist, the Capitol has devised an event called The Hunger Games. Every year, one boy and one girl from each district is chosen from a lottery of names to represent their district in the Games. The chosen boys and girls are thrown into a horrifying arena where they must try to survive and fight one another to the death. The last person alive is the winner. The Hunger Games are televised 24 hours a day as viewers watch this horrifying event. The main character Katniss has taken her sister's place in the games. Will she be able to make it out of the Games alive, or will her family have to watch as she meets her untimely death on TV?

This book was the best page-turner I have read in a long time. I loved the main character Katniss. She is such a strong heroine, and her sarcastic voice had me laughing out loud several times while reading. There's action, adventure, romance, mystery, and horror in this amazing book. Along with the characters, readers question what is right and what is wrong as Katniss enters the Games. The ending is a cliffhanger so be ready to go out and hunt down the second book as soon as you finish the first one. I recommend that young adult and adults go out and read this book immediately!