THE HUNGER GAMES BOOKS by Suzanne Collins
The Hunger Games is a dystopian series set in a fictional post-apocalyptic nation of Panam in North America. In this world, society is divided into twelve districts, each with a unique industry that serves the elite of the Capitol City.
The backdrop of the series is a history marked by armed rebellions against the Capitol, which were brutally quashed. As a haunting reminder of the past and a tool of oppression, the Capitol forces each district to send a teenage boy and girl to compete in the annual Hunger Games— a heart-wrenching and brutal spectacle broadcast as a form of reality television. While the games provide entertainment for the rich and powerful, they also serve as a stark reminder to the districts of their subjugated status.
Themes of oppression, control, survival, love, and loyalty are woven through all five books, which includes two prequels that delve deeper into the history of this futuristic world.
The Hunger Games is a dystopian series set in a fictional post-apocalyptic nation of Panam in North America. In this world, society is divided into twelve districts, each with a unique industry that serves the elite of the Capitol City.
The backdrop of the series is a history marked by armed rebellions against the Capitol, which were brutally quashed. As a haunting reminder of the past and a tool of oppression, the Capitol forces each district to send a teenage boy and girl to compete in the annual Hunger Games— a heart-wrenching and brutal spectacle broadcast as a form of reality television. While the games provide entertainment for the rich and powerful, they also serve as a stark reminder to the districts of their subjugated status.
Themes of oppression, control, survival, love, and loyalty are woven through all five books, which includes two prequels that delve deeper into the history of this futuristic world.
THE FOREST OF HANDS AND TEETH
By Carrie Ryan
MY REVIEW: Not every great book has a great title, but it helps. I know, I know, you aren't supposed to judge literature by anything so trivial, but we all do it right? And let's face it, The Forest of Hands and Teeth is a great title and terribly evocative of the book's plot. Do you already know it's about zombies?
In this particular zombie apocalypse story, humankind has seemingly been reduced to a single medieval outpost surrounded by an endless forest filled with what the villagers call "The Unconsecrated," a gruesome hoard of cannibalistic zombies. The villagers' only protection is a high chain link fence built long before anyone was born by ancestors no one knows much about. There are two gates leading to fenced-in paths, but no one knows where these paths lead or who built them. In fact, it's been such a long time since the apocalypse took place, that no one in the village even remembers what the rest of the world is like... And absolutely no one is encouraged to find out. This dystopian order is enforced by The Sisterhood, a highly secretive all-female religious order who controls everything from vocation to reproduction. Enter Mary, our protagonist who is already a thorn in the side of nearly everyone in the village because she asks too many questions and, in typical teenage fashion, resists the edicts of The Sisterhood and the controlled order of the village.
But The Sisterhood has a citadel full of secrets, the biggest being the presence of a girl named Gabrielle, an apparent refugee from parts unknown who arrived at the village using one of the enclosed pathways. But before Mary can unlock the enigma of the newcomer, The Sisterhood sacrifices her to The Unconsecrated outside the fence. Gabrielle turns into a zombie unlike any other in the Forest of Hands and Teeth. Fast-moving and apparently more cunning, she leads the mass of undead on a successful incursion into the village.
In an almost Faustian turn of events, Mary, the girl who wanted to see the world and escape her repressive society gets both of her wishes, but at a terrible cost. There are moments in the book, especially toward the end, where the action drags, but overall the book is well-paced and engaging. One point of irritation is that the book raises more questions than it answers as an obvious set-up for the volumes to follow.
By Carrie Ryan
MY REVIEW: Not every great book has a great title, but it helps. I know, I know, you aren't supposed to judge literature by anything so trivial, but we all do it right? And let's face it, The Forest of Hands and Teeth is a great title and terribly evocative of the book's plot. Do you already know it's about zombies?
In this particular zombie apocalypse story, humankind has seemingly been reduced to a single medieval outpost surrounded by an endless forest filled with what the villagers call "The Unconsecrated," a gruesome hoard of cannibalistic zombies. The villagers' only protection is a high chain link fence built long before anyone was born by ancestors no one knows much about. There are two gates leading to fenced-in paths, but no one knows where these paths lead or who built them. In fact, it's been such a long time since the apocalypse took place, that no one in the village even remembers what the rest of the world is like... And absolutely no one is encouraged to find out. This dystopian order is enforced by The Sisterhood, a highly secretive all-female religious order who controls everything from vocation to reproduction. Enter Mary, our protagonist who is already a thorn in the side of nearly everyone in the village because she asks too many questions and, in typical teenage fashion, resists the edicts of The Sisterhood and the controlled order of the village.
But The Sisterhood has a citadel full of secrets, the biggest being the presence of a girl named Gabrielle, an apparent refugee from parts unknown who arrived at the village using one of the enclosed pathways. But before Mary can unlock the enigma of the newcomer, The Sisterhood sacrifices her to The Unconsecrated outside the fence. Gabrielle turns into a zombie unlike any other in the Forest of Hands and Teeth. Fast-moving and apparently more cunning, she leads the mass of undead on a successful incursion into the village.
In an almost Faustian turn of events, Mary, the girl who wanted to see the world and escape her repressive society gets both of her wishes, but at a terrible cost. There are moments in the book, especially toward the end, where the action drags, but overall the book is well-paced and engaging. One point of irritation is that the book raises more questions than it answers as an obvious set-up for the volumes to follow.