Review: The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

The Hunger Games by: Suzanne Collins
(Scholastic Press 2010, 384 pg)
Cost: Free, ebookfling.com


Blurb:

Katniss is a 16-year-old girl living with her mother and younger sister in the poorest district of Panem, the remains of what used be the United States. Long ago the districts waged war on the Capitol and were defeated. As part of the surrender terms, each district agreed to send one boy and one girl to appear in an annual televised event called, "The Hunger Games." The terrain, rules, and level of audience participation may change but one thing is constant: kill or be killed. When Kat's sister is chosen by lottery, Kat steps up to go in her place.

Review:
It took me a while to get around to reading this book but I really wanted to get it done before the movie comes out along with all the spoilers on the story line. 
I enjoyed the book. It was great. Of course I was expecting that after practically everyone I know asking me if I have read it yet and suffering through their shocked exclamations after they found out I hadn't. The general public reads one book and suddenly they become book snobs. (I kid, I kid)
As young adult books go, this one hit all the right spots. It was charming in its innocence, with a dash of rebellion on the side. A budding romance keeps the reader wondering and the action scenes were exciting but not too graphic. The story reminds me of a book I read a long, long time ago by Stephen King's alter ego, Richard Bachman, called The Long Walk. The two books have a very similar theme, though I read The Long Walk at an impressionable age which probably accounts for why I'm not as impressed with Suzanne Collins book. It seems The Hunger Games is making quite an impression for a younger generation today based on the popularity of the book. Whatever gets kids reading I applaud.
I'll eventually get around to reading the other two books in the series. Eventually. But at least for now I can scratch that title off my 'read-it-because-everyone-else-has' list and move on.


At A Glance:
1= Could not finish the book
2= A struggle to read to the finish
3=Meh. Average with all the elements I like in a book but nothing notable
4= I ended it with a smile on my face
5=Excellent. I want to read everything this author has ever written and when I finish all the books on my wishlist I will reread it.