Sunrise on the Reaping by Suzanne Collins

 

What book would you like to see a prequel for?

It’s the fiftieth annual Hunger games and Haymitch Abernathy has been selected from District 12.  As part of the 50^th anniversary celebration, they are selecting twice as many children from each section, so District 12 is sending four tributes this year.  Haymitch wants to get back to his beloved girlfriend, mom, and brother, but he also wants to take down the Capital and the Hunger Games.  Will he succeed?

My thoughts on this novel:

·       Sunrise on the Reaping was an entertaining action novel reminiscent of the first two books at the Hunger Games series.  It was very readable!

·       I do wish there would have been more differences to make this book more unique like the Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes.

·       I liked the cameos of characters from the original novels that popped up such as Plutarch, Mags, Wiress, and Effie.

·       Haymitch loves Lenore Dove, a descendant of Lucy Grey (not explained how), but their romantic relationship isn’t fully developed.

·       This story explains why Haymitch breaks down and is the way he is.  It would have been interesting to tell the story of his life between the games and mentoring Katniss. 

·       I liked the new character of Masilee.  She is a wealthy mean girl from District 12 who shows her humanity and spunk during the games.

·       This story will make an entertaining movie.

Overall, Sunrise on the Reaping by Suzanne Collins is an enjoyable story very similar to the first two Hunger Game novels.

Book Source:  Preordered from Amazon.com

The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins

The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes is a prequel to the wildly popular Hunger Games series.  I LOVED the Hunger Games series and read through it quickly.  The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes takes place well before the Hunger Games and focuses on President Snow as a youth and the beginnings of the Hunger Games.

Coriolanus Snow is eighteen and trying to keep up appearances that the once mighty Snow family is still powerful.  The true story is that after his parents’ death, and the terrors that the war brought on the capital, the Snow family is barely hanging on.  Coriolanus lives with his only remaining family members, his Grandmother and Cousin Tigris.  When he is chosen as a mentor for the 10^th annual Hunger Games, he is hopeful that he will find a way to win a scholarship to college to maintain his family’s hope and power. 

He is not happy to be assigned the female tribute from the 12^th District, Lucy Snow.  Lucy though has a mind of her own and sings beautifully.  Coriolanus tries to determine how to work the system to allow his tribute to win and finds himself with feelings about the system and his tribute that he should not have.  Will Lucy Snow win the Hunger Games?  How will Coriolanus bring the Snow family back to power?

I thought the Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes was an interesting novel and gave us a brief glimpse of the history of the war and how the Hunger Games were put together.  The Hunger Games at this point were very primitive held in a falling apart coliseum within the Capital.  This was the first year with mentors and they used high school seniors from connected families.  They are just starting to figure out how to get the audience vested in the characters and spice things up.

It was a slow read for me.  I was intrigued by the story, but I feel that it may have been more interesting through Lucy Snow’s eyes or even Tigris’s eyes.  I felt that both of those characters had a deep emotional story that was not able to be seen in this novel.

I enjoyed Coriolanus’s friendship with Sejanus. He looks down upon Sejanus as being originally from District 2, but he also has a lot of money so he cannot be ignored.  Sejanus gave the book heart with his feelings about what was happening to them as mentors and to the tributes.  Coriolanus flirted with feelings for his friends, but it was interesting to see how he was able to make cold and calculated moves to further his own ambition.

Favorite Quotes:

“If the people who were supposed to protect you played so fast and loose with your life. . .. then how did you survive?”

“Well, you know what they say.  The show’s not over until the mockingjay sings.”

“Was that what Dr. Gaul had meant by ‘social contract’?  The agreement not to rob, abuse, or kill one another?  It had to be.  And the law required enforcement, and that was where control came in.  Without the control to enforce the contract, chaos reigned.  The power that controlled needed to be greater than the people – otherwise, they would challenge it.  The only entity capable of this was the Capital.”

“Unless there’s law, and someone enforcing it, I think we might as well be animals.”

Overall, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes is not on par with the Hunger Games trilogy, but it is an interesting look into the building of that world.

Book Source:  Purchased from Scholastic

2011 Audiobook Challenge Wrap-up and 2012 Audiobook Challenge Sign-up

 This year I joined The 2011 Audio Book Challenge hosted by Teresa's Reading Corner.  My goal for the year was to listen to twelve audiobooks.  I met that goal and listened to a couple of extra for a total of fourteen audio books this for the year 2011.  The audiobooks I listened to were as follows:

1.  Rescue by Anita Shreve
2.  Cleopatra by Stacy Schiff

3.  An Object of Beauty by Steve Martin

4.  The Cinderella Deal by Jennifer Crusie
5.  Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen

6.  The Disappearing Spoon by Sam Kean

7.  Maybe This Time by Jennifer Crusie
8.  A Reliable Wife by Robert Goolrick
9.  The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

10.  Burnt Mountain by Anne Rivers Siddons

11.  Silver Girl by Elin Hilderbrand

12.  The Help by Kathryn Stockett
13.  The End of Normal by Stephanie Madoff Mack
14.  Matched by Ally Condie

I listened to a lot of fantastic audiobooks throughout 2011.  I wanted to pick out a clear favorite, but I enjoyed too many of them in different ways to pick one best audiobook.   I did love learning about the history of the legendary Cleopatra in Stacy Shiff's fantastic biography.  I also loved the light hearted romance in The Cinderella Deal by Jennifer Crusie.   The Madoff scandel was brought to life in the fictional account of a wronged wife in Silver Girl by Eline Hilderbrand, and in the painful, but beautiful memoir The End of Normal by Stephanie Madoff Mack.  I enjoyed starting a new trilogy with Matched by Ally Condie and I'm almost finished with listening to the second book in the series (Crossed) right now.  The Help was a wonderful audiobook.  I loved the actors who read the parts for each of the main charactesr and brought the story to life.  Juliet Stevenson is a marvelous actress and also a wonderful audiobook reader.  Her audiobook reading of Sense and Sensibility is not to be missed. 

What didn't I like?  While The Disappearing Spoon was fascinating subject matter, I think I would have much prefered to read the book rather than listening to it.  I needed a periodic table of elements at hand to go along with a lot of the stories.  Maybe This Time by Jennifer Crusie just didn't have the same magic for me as The Cinderella Deal did.  Burnt Mountain by Anne Rivers Siddons wanted to be a good audiobook, but abrupt changes in genre brought the book to a rather messy conclusion.

Seven of the audiobooks I listened to I check out from the Kewaunee Public Library, five I received as review copies from Hachette Audio, and two I received from Penguin Audio.  Thirteen of the audiobooks I listened to on CD, while one I listened to as a digital audiobook on my droid.  I really liked the digital audiobook experience and hope to check it out more this year.  Unfortunately, while my library does offer digital audio to check out, most of the books I look up have a VERY long waiting list.

I am joining the 2012 Audiobook Challenge once again hosted at Teresa's Reading Corner.  I am going to aim for 12 audiobooks again this year, which is the level "Going Steady."  It looks like it will be a fun challenge again this year with a few new and intriguing features.  I'm currently listening to Crossed by Ally Condie and A Christmas Homecoming by Anne Perry.  What are you listening to or planning to listen to this year?

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins (audiobook)

I read and greatly enjoyed The Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins last summer and in fact placed it on my top ten reads list of 2010. I enjoyed it so much that I wanted to share it with my fellow FLICKS Book and Movie Club members, especially with a movie version coming out next March. I also have been secretly pondering how to introduce science fiction to my book club that favors romantic tales. I think of The Hunger Games as “sci-fi lite” and also thought they would enjoy the love triangle. Our meeting is next week at my house; I can’t wait to find out what the ladies thought of this pick!


I listened to the audiobook version of The Hunger Games in preparation for my book club meeting as read by Carolyn McCormick. I thought she was a great reader of the novel. It was a thrilling book to listen to. It was just as thrilling the second time through, especially as I couldn’t remember some the details or had merged some of the details from the later books into the first book. Listening to the novel constantly kept me on the edge of my seat. I think it will make a fantastic movie if they do it right!

Speaking of the movie, I am concerned how they will get Katniss’s inner thoughts on film. Much of what goes on during the games is her inner dialogue – how will that transfer to the big screen? Also I’m a bit scared to see the “mutts.”

Is anyone else looking forward to the movie? Excited? Concerned? Please comment!

If you are looking for a new way to enjoy The Hunger Games, or want to see what all of the fuss is about, I highly recommend the audio book version. For more about this book, please see my original review.

This is my ninth item for the 2011 Audiobook Challenge.

Audiobook Source: The Kewaunee Public Library

Laura’s Top Ten Books of 2010

I read a lot of good books in 2010. I like to call 2010 the year that disappeared. With my horrific morning sickness at the beginning of the year, the birth of Penelope Rose on October 15th, and having a baby to nurse along with a 4 & 2 year old, I haven’t had as much time to socialize as I usually do. I did have a lot more time to read instead of sleeping!

Overall I read 95 books in 2010 and listened to 9 audiobooks. My number of books was up for the before stated reasons, but my number of audiobooks was down. I was in a number of challenges this year including The All About the Brontes Challenge, The Classics Challenge, The Stephanie Plum Reading Challenge, and the Everything Austen Challenge II. I was also in two book clubs, my Kewaunee Library Book Club and FLICKS Book and Movie Club.

I read a variety of books through the year, but I didn’t read as much non-fiction or sci-fi as I would usually like too. This is probably because between reading advance review copies of books, books for challenges, and books for my book clubs, I didn’t have much time to read personal picks. I need to work on this.

My top ten books are my favorite ten books that I read this year. They were not necessary published in the year 2010 and do not include books I read and enjoyed for a second, third, or fourth time (such as Pride and Prejudice, Outlander, Child of the Northern Spring) as it is obvious that I love those novels. If you are interested, check out my top 10 from 2009, 2008 and 2007.

Without further ado, my top ten favorite books of 2010 (in no particular order):

1. Room by Emma Donoghue – Room was a horrifying and heart-warming tale rolled into one told through a very unique prospective, that of a five-year old child. Jack has lived in a small room trapped with his abducted mother throughout his five-year life. The room encompasses his life, but things are about to change as Ma plans their escape. I literally couldn’t put this book down!
2. The Millennium Trilogy by Stieg Larsson – I know I’m cheating here by counting a trilogy as one selection, but I loved the entire trilogy and read it this year. Larsson weaves a unique tale set in Sweden, with a very unique heroine, Lisbeth Salander. Hero Mikael Bloomberg is a crusader who stops at nothing to get the story for his Millennium magazine and to right wrongs even if it means bringing down the Swedish government.
3. The Hunger Games Trilogy by Suzanne Collins – I loved this young adult trilogy set in a post-apoplectic world. The world has ended as we know it and the U.S. has been divided into thirteen districts. The districts are controlled by the capital and are kept under strict control. Each year each district is required to send two children to compete in the televised “Hunger Games.” There can only be one winner left alive at the end of the games. Katniss Everdeen is trying to keep her sister and mother alive in District 12 when her sister is chosen for the games. Katniss steps in to save her and her life is forever changed.
4. The Greatest Knight and The Scarlet Lion by Elizabeth Chadwick – These two novels are among the best historical fiction novels that I have ever read. I love the hero William Marshal. His story is a riveting tale that I had never read about before. Chadwick is a master storyteller that is vividly able to bring the past alive. I look forward to reading more of her novels!
5. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak – This book is uniquely narrated by death during WWII and tells the story of one girl and her struggle to survive during WWII in Germany. The German people not painted as only evil, but rather shades of gray.
6. Cleopatra’s Daughter by Michelle Moran – I honestly didn’t know that Cleopatra even had a daughter! Moran’s novel is an intriguing look at the life of the famed Queen’s children after her death.
7. A Reliable Wife by Robert Goolrich – A stark fascinating novel set in the depths of winter in Wisconsin. A mail order bride has arrived, but is she all that she seems to be? Lovers of gothic tales such as those written by the Brontes or Daphne Du Maurier will love this novel.
8. The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas – Although it has been almost two hundred years since this novel was written, it is still an action packed novel that kept me up in the night trying to find out what happened next. It is the ultimate novel of revenge.
9. The Season of Second Chances by Diane Meier – I loved this book. It was a unique story with a unique heroine, Joy Harkness, that has moved to a small town into a large Victorian mansion that needs a lot of fixing up. The characters are wonderfully drawn and the writing is superb.
10. Life of Pi by Yann Martel – Why do we believe? This tale of a boy and a tiger on the high seas was thought-provoking.

Books that I love tend to keep me thinking about them late into the night. I read a lot of good books this year and had a hard time narrowing them down. Special honorary shout-outs go to Spoken from the Heart by Laura Bush, Alone by Richard Logan and Tere Duperrault Fassbender, The Brave by Nicholas Evans, By Fire, By Water by Mitchell James Kaplan, and The Polski Affair by Leon H. Gilden. Also I have a special mention of Black Hills by Dan Simmons. This book had some of the best and most memorable scenes in fiction that I read (or listened to in this case) this year, but was brought down overall by some scenes that should have been cut (Brooklyn Bridge) and a too frisky General Custer.

Did you enjoy any of these novels? What were your favorite books in 2010?

Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins

Mockingjay is the third and final novel of The Hunger Games trilogy. It was a fantastic conclusion to the series. I had a hard time putting it down and find myself constantly thinking about the story.

In Mockingjay, the revolution has finally broken out. Katniss finds herself having to deal with the destruction of her home, the loss of Peeta, and the fact that she has long been a part of the revolution without knowing about it. Katniss embraces her role as “the Mockingjay” and helps the rebels to break the Capital’s hold through their own use of propaganda, as well as being a physical warrior. Katniss faces tough emotional and physical challenges and healing in this novel. The novel also has almost non-stop action sequences towards the end and was riveting. I don’t want to get too much more into detail for the plot summary as I don’t want to ruin the novel for others!

Overall, I thought The Hunger Games Trilogy was quite brilliant. The Hunger Games trilogy combined the best of many of my favorite sci-fi novels and short stories including 1984, Fahrenheit 451, "The Lottery", and "The Lady or the Tiger". Overall themes included the role of media and perception in how the world runs the senselessness of war, the repeatability of history, etc. It gave me a lot to think about and I’m still thinking out it.

A couple of quotes that really seemed to spell out the meaning of the book to me included the following:

Katniss - “Frankly, our ancestors don’t seem much to brag about. I mean, look at the state they left us in, with the wars and the broken planet. Clearly, they didn’t care about what would happen to the people who came after them.”

Haymitch - “We’re fickle, stupid beings with poor memories and a great gift for self-destruction.”

I think both quotes are fantastic. Although this novel is about war and the rebellion “freeing” the District people from the capital’s rule, it becomes much more complex than that. How do you know if your government is any better than the previous government? How do you stop the cycle of violence? How do you treat all people with respect and not hold grudges against your enemies? It was very thoughtful and compelling reading.

The Ending (SPOILER ALERT!!!!!!)


I loved the ending of the novel. While it was very sad and unexpected, I like how Katniss realizes she is a pawn and takes destiny into her own hands by killing off President Coin. She realizes Coin is no better than Snow with her willful destruction of the children in front of the capital as well as her use of a new “hunger games.” The ending seemed realistic to me. Katniss is a solitary creature and is finally able to deal with all of the horrible events of her life by returning home. I was glad she ended up with Peeta. As I continued reading Mockingjay, I realized Gale and Katniss were too much alike, and Peeta was the one person who was able to help her to be a better person and to relate to the terrible traumas they had both endured together in and out of the Hunger Games. While neither of them will be the person they were before, they can help each other to remember and be better people through their children.

SPOILER END

I am excited by all of the talk of The Hunger Games becoming a movie. I think this trilogy will be great on the big screen.

I highly recommend Mockingjay and the entire trilogy to those who haven’t read it. It is an action packed read with a great love triangle, but also a compelling thought provoking tale of human nature.

Book Source: The Kewaunee Public Library

Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins

Catching Fire is book two in the Hunger Games series. I loved the Hunger Games and waited eagerly to get Catching Fire from the hold system at the library.

Catching Fire was worth the wait. It only took me a day to finish the book, and I had a hard time putting it down!

Katniss and Peeta have returned to District 12 as victors of The Hunger Games. While Katniss is happy to be back with her family and her best friend Gale, nothing is as it should be. Katniss now lives in Victor’s Village with her mother and sister Prim with Peeta and Haymitch for neighbors. She still sneaks out to the forest to hunt, but is often alone now that Gale must work in the coal mines full time. Gale is not happy about Katniss and Peeta’s romance and has been designated as Katniss’s “cousin” by the Capital press.

President Snow suspects that Katniss and Peeta’s romance is not real on Katniss’ part and is watching Katniss’ every move. As Katniss and Peeta make their victory tour through all of the Districts, they unwittingly start to spark unrest and possible revolts. With the threat of death to her family and Gale, Katniss must prove that her love for Peeta is real and must survive through riveting life and death situations.

There is much more to the novel, but I don’t want to ruin the entire plot! I love this sci-fi, young adult novel. It has action, romance, and also many thoughts to ponder. It is interesting to me how the Capital is full of decadence to the point were the people of the capital take medicine to vomit their food so they can enjoy as much as they like while keeping a trim figure. Meanwhile, people in the Districts are starving. This is probably how America as a whole is viewed by Third World Countries.

I also enjoy the “big brother” feel to the novel where President Snow and select few at the capital seem to be in control of everything. They watch everyone’s moves and try to keep tight control, while keeping their own elite Capital people ignorant. The mass of people are kept in ignorance and fear and the Capital uses that to their advantage. The only problem arises when people start to take control for themselves. It is very interesting, similar, yet different to Orwell’s 1984. I will think more about this when I read Book 3, Mockingjay.

Speaking of Mockingjay, I can’t wait to read the third novel! I’m already on the waiting list at the library! And my last parting thought is “PEETA!!!”

Book Source: The Kewaunee Public Library

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

I’ve heard a lot of hype about this book so I decided it was time to check it out for myself! While it was kind of slow at the beginning, by the end, I could not put the book down.

The Hunger Games is set in a post-apocalypse North America. The country has been split into 13 Districts, with the 13th District being destroyed for rebellion at some point in the past. The Districts are ruled over by a heartless Capital that keeps them hungry and demands a sacrifice of one girl and one boy chosen by lottery each year for a televised event, The Hunger Games. The premium reality show, the Hunger Games ends when only one of the 12-18 year olds is left alive.

Katniss Everdeen is a sixteen year old girl who lives in District 12 with her mother and young sister, Prim. Her father was killed in a mining accident when she was 12 and she has had to fight to survive by honing her hunting, gathering, and bartering skills. Katniss is horrified to watch as Prim is chosen for the Hunger Games. Katniss volunteers in her place and is then surprised when Peeta Mellark, is chosen as her male colleague from District 12. Peeta had showed her unexpected kindness in the past and Katniss does not relish having him now as a competitor and enemy.

Determined to win at all costs and return to her mother, Prim, and friend Gale, Katniss must learn how to navigate the Hunger Games while winning approval from the public that is ever watching.

I loved this young adult sci-fi novel. With shades of “The Lottery” and “The Lady or the Tiger,” The Hunger Games shows us just how far people could go to keep in power and to provide ruthless entertainment. Katniss is a great heroine and I loved her witty battle to survive the elements and her competitors. I also loved the unexpected love triangle between her, Peeta, and Gale and I can’t wait to see if this is further developed in the next two novels. I know I’ll be reading Catching Fire as soon as I can get it from the library.

I highly recommend The Hunger Games. It is a great adventure story as well as being a commentary on modern society.

Book Source: The Kewaunee Public Library