Review: The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

I have FINALLY, a week after the fact, recovered enough from the read-a-thon to actually WANT to spend time in front of my blog again. Which means I can get to reviewing the books that I read during the read-a-thon. (Plus it's NaNoWriMo, so I have to procrastinate.) Yay!

Title:The Hunger Games

Author:Suzanne Collins

Rating:

What I Have to Say: I feel like "whirlwind" and "rollercoaster ride" are two very overused phrases when it comes to reviews. It's thus a good thing that I don't want to use them here, because they are far from describing the sheer awesomeness of this book. They're just not enough. It was more like Charlie's ride in the elevator at the end of "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory." It starts going up, and it's interesting and cool and getting more and more exciting. And just when you think it can't be more awesome than that, the elevator explodes out of the ceiling into an infinite space and new realms of unknown coolness and awesomeness.
In other words, this book was GOOD. VERY GOOD. The futuristic dystopian world that Suzanne Collins has created so believable and horrifying that at times I forgot she was talking about a place that doesn't actually exist. And thank god. It is frightening and violent and gripping and disgusting and yet you just can't keep turning the pages. Because even though you know that what comes next will probably make you cringe, you have to know. This book sucks you in and doesn't spit you out until well after it's over, after you've spent several days or even weeks thinking about what you've just read.
It also manages to contain within all that gore and non-stop action a teenage love story that breaks all norms and doesn't fit in with the typical YA romance. It is something entirely new and entirely different that fits perfectly with the book and the world and the plotline that Suzanne Collins has created.
I know everyone has already read this or at least read a thousand reviews of this, so I won't bore you by saying the same things all over again.
Just remember this - this book surpasses genre. It is YA, yes. It is dystopian fiction, yes. But oh, it is also SO much more than that. Be prepared for the game of a lifetime.
Think Battle Royale but less complex and, dare I say it, far more gripping and awe-inspiring.

Summary: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.