Future of Reality TV (Not!)
I’m on chapter 10 of this bestseller that’s been making noise for quite some time now for being a tight-plotted, fast-paced YA (young adult) fantasy book (now a series, with the release of it’s sequel Catching Fire and a 3rd book under way).
Not out of unwillingness to finish this book, as I am guilty of several others I own, I haven’t pushed farther than the 10th chapter. My schedule so far is not keeping up with this book’s pace, because it sure is a very enjoyable read. There is a possibility that I will change my mind about this when I get to the end, but most of those who have read this one made book 2 a best seller and one of the best books of 2009.
Ok, about my post title. Here’s the deal, real fast, before I start looking for best eye cream for dark circles in preparation for the sleepless nights I’m planning to spend to finish reading:
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 her sister is chosen by lottery, Katniss steps up to go in her place.
You read that right. They throw children into an “arena”, have them kill each other in however way they can, until there is only one surviving. ‘Survivor’ has nothing on this game/show. It sounds terrible, really, and that’s partly the reason why I’m apprehensive to read this book. But I’m assuming there’s a moral lesson to all of this. There’s got to be, right?