saga to keep me entertained when the boys were overindulging in football, football, and more football. At first I was hesitant to get into it since I'm the type of reader that forgets the rest of the world exists when I get into a good book. However, I finally succumbed to temptation and dove into it not knowing exactly what to expect. The first book was a quick, easy read that was masterfully written. I enjoyed the way the Collins wove in description to her story without going over board (think Meyer's in the 4th Twilight Saga book...*shudder*). At any rate, I really got to know the characters pretty well and became attached to them. Sure, the descriptions of all the gore sometimes turned my stomach, but I was definitely caught up in it. It was compelling enough to be a page turner, but not so compelling that I had a problem putting it down to do something else for a while (this is a good thing for me). I also really enjoyed how Collins made it pretty clear that this was some version of a future America. It was both interesting and a little disheartening to see how poor and backwards the people of the districts were, especially in contrast to the amount of technology available in the Capitol. So when my sister offered to let me take the second book, Catching Fire
, home with me, I jumped at the chance. Taking that book turned out to be one of the best decision I made that entire trip. Through a series of weather-related delays, I ended up reading almost the entire book either on a plane in flight, in the airport, or stuck on the tarmac in a plane that had no available gate to go to. The second book was just as interesting as the first, complete with a second hunger games. Collins did a good job of showing how tumultuous the pre-revolutionary country was and how ruthless those in power could be. I also appreciated that some of my favorite characters were back, though I didn't really care for how dense Katniss (the main character) was when it came to the relationships in her life. Still, the story ended on a cliff hanger so of course I was begging for more.
Which brings me to the third book, Mockingjay
. Because I was finishing up my final papers for my degree, I was unable to dive into this book quite as soon as I wanted. Plus, I didn't actually have a copy and didn't really want to buy it. I also didn't get any responses to my desperate plea on Facebook for someone to loan me one. So I did what I do in any situation where I'm too impatient to wait for something to come out. I googled it. After reading the ending, I really wasn't all that interested in reading the third book. Still, the opportunity to read it presented itself to me last week when Spencer "checked in out" from his Kindle app on the iPhone. It was just too tempting not to read it, so I downloaded my own copy and spent a few days reading it. The story was just as well written as the previous books. There were no really slow parts, though I did not care for the direction Collins took with some of the characters. I didn't care for portions of the ending and I didn't think it really served her message. Spencer disagrees with me, but that's just his opinion. All in all, this was a fun, quick series to read. Well, maybe fun isn't quite the right word given all the death and gore, but I did enjoy reading it. I've heard they are thinking about making it into a move. I have no clue how they would do it without making it so gory and so violent as to drive off most audiences. I certainly wouldn't be inclined to see it, though I would be interested to see how the movie created the world of Panem and some of the crazy characters in it. Movie aside, if you're looking for an entertaining read, look no further.
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