Mockingjay By Suzanne Collins

The final installment of the Hunger Games trilogy.  The mockingjay is a symbol from the first book as a pin given to Katniss for luck from a friend.  This was the one item she brought with her to the arena.  It becomes a symbol of the revolution as Katniss joins them.  She finds herself living in a secure facility with her family and Gale, her childhood friend.  Gale is Peeta's love rival.  How will things turn out for our revolutionaries?  Will they succeed in overthrowing the government?  Who will Katniss choose Gale or Peeta?

SPOILER WARNING FROM THIS POINT ON

Katniss is more of an inactive character in this book.  Not by her own choices, she is our main character but she does not actually do much until about the halfway point.  She is a symbol of the revolution and so the leaders don't allow her to do hardly anything.  She is only provisionally allowed outside the complex which is essentially a giant underground city.  Peeta and Katniss avoid each other until near the end of the novel.  Gale is hopeful that he has a chance, but we all know that he doesn't.  Poor guy, he means well and by rights should be the one she chooses as he is more well-rounded than Peeta.  True love of course wins out in the end.

The third book was a series of unexpected events.  We find out that the revolution was already strong before Katniss joined.  Our heroine is forced to sit pretty as they use her only as an image.  She finally refuses to be inactive and does something.  Many good characters die but their deaths are not touching at all.  They are poorly done since Katniss and the reader is already emotionally unconnected to most of the characters at this point.  The first book did an amazing job of showing us Katniss' world and her human relationships, but all of that is lost in what appears to be a forced ending.  There is not much logical reasoning behind the plot.  Certainly, we expect a resolution where the government is forced to change and falls which does happen, but not in the ways that we expect.  Both leaders the president and the revolution's leader are killed since both are deemed evil by Katniss.

The entire book was disjointed.  I'm not sure at what point it went wrong, but even though this is a book about war but it just isn't easy to follow or understand what the author wants us to think.  The love triangle is part of the plot and while there is resolution it is tacked on as an afterthought when Katniss is basically a hollow shell.  The author manages to kill each of our characters although it appears that most are like Katniss still alive to suffer through the aftermath.  I suppose this is realistic but from the beginning we expected our heroine to be just that heroic.  Not to be easily defeated even by the reality of war when she has already faced murder for the sheer shock value of entertainment.  I was extremely disappointed with the journey of our main character.  It was painful to read but I had to find out how it all ended.  I thought since the first book was so phenomenal that there had to be a pay off somewhere, but there wasn't really.

Plus my favorite character Peeta is just as equally ruined.  He spends most of his time not even being in control of himself having been drugged and caught by the government.  It could have been handled much better, but it just makes us more frustrated because there seems little point to have him treated in such a way except that then we are forced to consider Gale as a romantic partner for Katniss.  The logic is lost from the first two books and our main character is changed into some sort of half alive zombie.

Read it if you have to know how the dystopian government is defeated, but there is not much else to gain.

Catching Fire By Suzanne Collins

The second book in the Hunger Games trilogy.  We find our heroine is forced to pretend to having a good romantic relationship with Peeta for the cameras.  They find their popularity has sparked a special version of the Hunger Games.  Past winners have been selected to participate in a special edition of the Hunger Games.  This means she and Peeta must face the arena again.  Only this time there is an even smaller chance that they can both survive.

SPOILER WARNING FROM THIS POINT ON

The two find themselves fighting even harder the second time in the arena.  This one is much deadlier with a timed danger in each section following the lay out of a twelve hour clock.  Each section is deadly for an hour in clockwise rotation.  They must keep moving or risk death from the arena before the other tributes even have the chance to kill them.  Only this time the tributes are less inclined to risk death.  Some team up to find a way to thwart those in charge of the Hunger Games.  They figure out a way to penetrate the barrier and are able to escape at the close of the book.  The ending is satisfying but the plot doesn't quite uphold the same standards of the first book in the trilogy.  There are less emotional connections between Katniss and the other characters.  The same level is not reached because our characters have been hardened by their first round in the Hunger Games.

The plot is still entertaining as we wonder what risks are posed to the characters lives, but this book is certainly a transition into the scenarios of the final book: Mockingjay.  There is less insight into the workings of Panem.  We are not presented with much new information into the workings of the dystopian world as less time is spent outside the arena.  Catching Fire is more of a thriller as the focus is on the fighting and dangers in the arena.  The second installment is a good read but expect a lot loss thought provoking content.  Honestly, you could skip the second book and not miss much in the trilogy except to know that it sets up Katniss' resolve to bring down the oppressive government.  Neither Katniss or Peeta dies but they don't resolve their conflicted relationship.

This book left little impact to the point that I had to look up the title because I had forgotten it.  Although the title basically explains the purpose of the second book which is for the idea of revolution to catch fire.

The Hunger Games By Suzanne Collins

For those who haven't yet read the book, the movie version is due to hit theaters March 23.

Katniss Everdeen lives in a poor district known mainly for their coal mining.  She supports her mother and little sister by sneaking outside the boundary fence to hunt.  She is a fighter born of her circumstances.  She lives in the Twelfth District of Panem a post-apocalyptic version of the United States.  A strong character from the beginning she risks her own life by placing her name in the lottery extra times to earn more food.  The first year her sister is placed in the lottery her name is drawn, in order to protect her Katniss takes her place.  She becomes the girl tribute for her district in the Hunger Games.  A televised competition held each year for the entertainment of the Captiol City.  There is only one rule: There can only be winner.  How will she fare in this deadly game?  If she wins the rewards are greater than she could hope for.

SPOILER WARNING FROM THIS POINT ON

Katniss is from the start an easily likeable character.  Her circumstances are difficult and she does what she must breaking the laws to provide for her family.  Her friend Gale helps her out as they hunt together looking out for each other.  She has a unique connection to the baker's boy (her fellow tribute from District 12), Peeta who once helped her.  She ends up allied with him during the Hunger Games.  They are an unlikely duo since he admits to being love with her.  However, Katniss only wants to survive to save her family.  In the end, she doesn't have to kill him, they are both allowed to survive as the winners.  Katniss is an able hunter which allows her to kill those that threaten her chances, but she maintains the compassion she reserves for her friends and family aiding those that ally with her.  Possibly the most touching scene is her kindness to Rue after she is killed, she refuses to let her body be taken until she performs her own funerary rites.  Katniss is easy to understand but sometimes hard to accept her reasons.  She allies with Peeta but only to win and so uses him which leads to conflict in their relationship.  Peeta is truly an open book and would even have died to save Katniss so her betrayal ruins what could have been a lasting relationship.

I think that this is the best book of the trilogy.  The plot doesn't drag and the fight scenes are not traditional.  There are some brutally violent characters but our main character relies more on strategy than outright force to eliminate her rivals.  She remains grounded not wanting to kill anyone except to protect her own life, there are some that seem to relish killing the other tributes.  The book explores the differences of class structures and a government abusing its power.  Katniss is a realistic character that I believe would represent most people if they had to face the same situations.  Her concern is her family's safety and then she helps others.  It would have been interesting to see her as a physically weaker character, but since she is a skilled hunter we have a fairly accurate idea of the final outcomes.  Peeta is that weak character but his weakness makes it hard to relate to him, he doesn't have a particularly active role in the book.  We don't get to hear his thoughts on the events taking place, but I think he is the best character truly fitting the role of noble hero/idiot.  He risks his life for Katniss and can't stop himself from loving her making the other books less satisfying when we lose more of his presence.  Overall, this is a delightful dystopian world where we feel fulfilled seeing our heroes rise above their tormentors.  A conventional underdog story with less conventional scenarios leading to an enjoyable read.

Mastiff by Tamora Pierce

Another delightful addition to the Beka Cooper Triology.  This time Beka has to solve a giant conspiracy and kidnapping.  The usual detective work is left to a group of misfit characters.  Beka, a guardswoman (equivalent to a police officer and detective) is tasked with finding the prince.  Luckily, her faithful partner Achoo (a scent hound) is the best tracker around and her human partner, Tunstall.  Only this time, Beka is paired up with a mage who tend to be stuck-up jerks.  Time is running out before the young prince is lost forever.  

Overall, the book falls nicely into the quirky medieval fantasy.  The setting is approximately 18^th century England with the added bonus of magic.  Our main character may be the quirkiest of all with her own abilities to talk to dust spinners and the ghosts of the dead that ride on the backs of pigeons.  Having grown up reading Tamora Pierce’s novels, I was not disappointed with her blend of magic.  This time her message is a clear commentary on the evils of slavery which is well done for a teen audience.  This is truly a book for someone that enjoys a unique twist of fantasy or crime novels.  I always strive to read the more unconventional because I have read too many books where the plot is too easily figured out.  The outcome is slightly predictable but the journey is not.