Firstly, I apologize for my lack of posts; I have been moving across the country. (More on that on a later date).
Secondly, I must admit I have this addiction, which becomes aggravated when I pick up a superbly original book, or in this case, a series. When this happens, I become so engrossed that I ignore everything (everyone) and can’t do anything until I finish (also why I didn’t post last week). It’s usually not a big deal, but when I am supposed to be moving and looking at houses, this addiction interferes with my real life. It is times like these that I am grateful for my husband who puts up with me, or lack of me, for three days until I finish whatever book I am obsessed with... [One time we had to go to a friend’s house for dinner, but I was so close to finishing a book, so I made him read me the ending as I drove—he was annoyed, but he did it].
I usually never take more than a few days to finish a book because something in me needs to know what happens (even if I am not particularly fascinated or even entertained by it). However, it is rare that I become so obsessed it is all I think about; the characters are so complex and fascinating that I want to know more about them, the plot is so entertaining that I can’t help but continue reading, and the ideas are so fascinating and original that I take days to digest all that I’ve read. It is also rare that a young adult series has this affect on me.
When I was twelve (okay maybe fourteen) I was lured in by the Harry Potter series because Rowling created a world I wanted to escape to. Despite the fact that a war brewed and an evil wizard killed without restraint, the fantastical world of magic appeals to children living such mundane existences with no such thing as magic, which is why I think children still love it. However, there was nothing particularly intelligent about the plot; it was still rather a basic “hero’s journey” and the characters rather typical. Especially, as the series ended, the plot became a cliché as if Rowling gave up and wrote the formula to please her obsessed fans (Anybody else roll their eyes at the nice and neat epilogue? Though, I admit I still read the 7th book in a day, and I will go see both movies this year).
The Hunger Games series is different.
It may not be a world I want to escape to, but it is a world I cannot stop thinking about.
Although it is labeled as “young adult,” there is nothing “young” in the ideas, in the story, or in the characters. I finished the series at 2am on Sunday night (I started Friday and there are three books), I reread the ending Monday morning, and, come today, I cannot stop thinking about it. The series opens in a dystopian, Orwellian America where the children in twelve districts of a corrupt capitol await a deadly raffle. To punish a rebellion that happened 74 years prior, each year the capitol chooses one boy and one girl from each district to play the Hunger Games. Twenty-four children total must fight to death in an arena filled with deadly obstacles as the districts watch live; there can only be one winner. However, this year will be different, setting a rebellion into motion with a young girl at the center: Katniss Everdeen. I do not want to give away any more specific details so that as you read, you can be just as fascinated by the plot’s numerous surprises as that is what makes the series such a fun read.
But what makes the series so smart, is Katniss. It is the first popular series with a strong, intelligent, and compelling female character who is not cliché or obsessed with a boy or made weaker by the presence of male characters. Although there is a romance, it is not the stupid cloying unrealistic romance that fuels lesser series with female characters. It is not the main concern of Katniss, only a fact of her life as a young woman reaching maturity. And, it is the real and painful messy love that is reminiscent of adult classics, yet the series maintains originality as Katniss never acts like a cliché or like the reader expects or like she thinks she will. And, these relationships only spur greater universal concerns and questions about love and life; they make the reader think about why we make the choices we do and what motivates our desires and goals.
Furthermore, the series central concern is with the horrors of human nature, asking similar questions that 1984 raises about the nature of power and control, about human complacency and defiance. The series asks: at what point would you fight back? How much pain could you go through? How much would you let yourself be changed by circumstance? Could you kill an innocent child to save yourself? Is there a right way to rule a society? And, much like in For Whom the Bell Tolls, in a rebellion, how can you tell which side is good or better? Although we may not live currently in a dystopian world, at times it feels we do have our own Hunger Games; there are times we have to make choices as a society where we must choose the lesser of two evils. And, the books make us think about our own world; there is a fine line between good and evil especially because these definitions are constantly shifting. The book also shows how politics in general is just a bunch of bull.
And, it is the way that Katniss explores these issues within herself that is truly grabbing. Although it may be typical of young adult fiction to feature a young character who must take on adult concerns too early, it is the way she confronts the above issues that makes this book a contemporary classic. The youth are the faces of a rebellion, and the way the book deals with these power-plays is truly fascinating.
As a hero, she is not perfect, and she compels the reader forward because she is confused and in pain but refuses to succumb to it. She is strong in order to protect those she cares about, but she is not invincible and her weaknesses are ours. She sometimes makes the wrong choices to do what she perceives is right because unlike other kids’ series, there is not a clear distinction between who is acting for good and who is acting for evil. [Just a sidenote: it always bothered me that Rowling made Harry such a Christ figure. Notice that he never actually kills anyone; even Voldermort’s death is mostly an accident.] The rebellion was not an easy automatic choice for her and the bad guy does not wear a black hat. Furthermore, her strengths are not the typical hero’s; she has emotions that often mess up her plans and those of others, and importantly, it is her compassion when others do not have any that makes her a great leader.
If you have read the series, or other young adult series, I would love to hear your thoughts! If you haven’t read it, you really should, and then we can talk about it.
[Also, if you have suggestions for my next addiction, I would love to have some. I miss Katniss and her story, so I need a distraction. My addiction is just a cycle…]
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