Any other Hunger Games fangirls here?

[Hane]

I am halfway through the trilogy and loving it. Because I'm, like, twelve.

[Deleted03]

meeeeeeeeeeee!!!

I read it once and had to read it again... they put some screen tests things and I was mad that the flowers she puts on Rue are not yellow!!!! lol I am teh crazy :P

[Rosa]

Everyone we know. We keep lending out our copies and getting them back in like 3 days because people are staying up all night reading.

[Guest Anonymous]

Loved the first one, the second one was good, the third one ... I don't know. The writing seemed to get snarled up and not make sense at the end. If I could go back in time I would read the first one and then stop.

[maybeizfundie]

Oh yes. And they are definitely read-all-night books.

[Rosa]

Lissar, I have to agree about the third one being weaker - I think her wider world wasn't thought out clearly enough, so once she got outside the walls, things kind of stopped making sense. It makes sense that the capital & Districts would *think* they are the only ones out there, but to me it doesnt' make sense for that to actually be true. (Hope that wasn't too close to spoilery).

But emotionally I thought Book 3 made a lot of sense. The characters stayed true to themselves and grew at the same time. It was just that the plot seemed to get out of control.

[Deleted03]

I don't know... I liked the third book... a lot... I had read the summary on wikipedia in an effort not to read the book (I just can't stop myself when I start reading) and I think the book was way better than the very critical summary. Yes the ending is a little weird but I think it's just as much confused as she is...

[lilwriter85]

Loved the first one, the second one was good, the third one ... I don't know. The writing seemed to get snarled up and not make sense at the end. If I could go back in time I would read the first one and then stop.

I felt the same way about the books. The third book was my least favorite but I love the series overall. I hope the movie will be good.

[lilwriter85]

Everyone we know. We keep lending out our copies and getting them back in like 3 days because people are staying up all night reading.

Yep the fanbase is growing. Several of my friends are now getting into the books. The series is doing pretty well in ebook sales. One friend of mine bought a paperback version of the first book before she flew to England. She read most of it on the plane and then finished it in England. She had her Kindle with her and she bought the two books in Kindle format right away.

[QueenMother]

My then 15 year old niece had just finished the trilogy and passed them to me to read. I could not put it down and finished all 3 in 3 days time. I LOVE the Hunger Games and cannot wait for the movies to begin!

[Shoobydoo]

I read all three books in three days, but I only really liked the first one. I felt like she set up good characters in the first one and then spent the next two books taking a chainsaw to them.

She reduced Katniss into a gibbering melancholy lump; everything she hated about her mother in the first book, and what she did to Peeta was completely over the top.

It just left a bad taste in my brain.

I was also mad when

Cinna was killed

, but that at least is more logical than

Katniss losing all the characterization from the first book.

Spoiler tags used for people who haven't finished the books yet.

[Rowan]

Also a fan - I worked at a bookstore for years and heard about them but didn't get around to reading them until after my store closed. Don't know what took me so long!

When I was sitting waiting for the HP release, Hunger Games was one of the more popular topics of conversation.

[MaireadPearl]

I'm a big Hunger Girls fan. I found the series a few months before the third book came out. I read the first two in two days and then pre-ordered the third book. Before that, Harry Potter were the only books I pre-ordered.

The first one is my favorite. I'm excited for the movies.

[Deleted03]

I read all three books in three days, but I only really liked the first one. I felt like she set up good characters in the first one and then spent the next two books taking a chainsaw to them.

She reduced Katniss into a gibbering melancholy lump; everything she hated about her mother in the first book, and what she did to Peeta was completely over the top.

It just left a bad taste in my brain.

I was also mad when

Cinna was killed

, but that at least is more logical than

Katniss losing all the characterization from the first book.

Spoiler tags used for people who haven't finished the books yet.

She has PTSD, for me it was a great book bringing that topic up for teens. How could she not have that? In one very good movie on South Africa aparteid and the jailed activists, you have that scene where the woman is finally released from prison... they let her leave, she's 5 feet from the door and gets arrested all over again... best psychological torture ever. And that's what happens to Katniss. Everyone wants her to be the perfect symbol for a rebellion she did not even ask for, while all she wants is forget it ever happenned. that would confuse anyone I think. For me her reaction just made the books a little more realistic...

[Shoobydoo]

She has PTSD, for me it was a great book bringing that topic up for teens. How could she not have that? In one very good movie on South Africa aparteid and the jailed activists, you have that scene where the woman is finally released from prison... they let her leave, she's 5 feet from the door and gets arrested all over again... best psychological torture ever. And that's what happens to Katniss. Everyone wants her to be the perfect symbol for a rebellion she did not even ask for, while all she wants is forget it ever happenned. that would confuse anyone I think. For me her reaction just made the books a little more realistic...

I feel like there's a line between complete realism and what makes a good story, though. It might have a realistic reaction, but I found it extremely frustrating to read, especially since it didn't seem like there was any real closure to the situation. Yes, she has PTSD, but this topic wasn't actually addressed in a way that was helpful. She never got better. None of her actions could have been helpful examples for teens suffering from similar problems. Things just got worse and worse, and the situation did not end with Katniss getting better, it ended with the world around her starting to suck less. She tried to take control of her situation and failed miserably. You may enjoy that kind of darkness and realism in a story, but as I said before, it leaves a bad taste in my brain.

[Hane]

Thanks, everyone, for covering up the spoilers--I'm about a third through the last book.

I'm wondering whether the stories will fare even better on film than in book form--action/adventure tales often do.

[Rosa]

They're written very cinematically, I think. That's a good sign for the movies. But it's hard to get good child actors, and I think having older actors may spoil some of it. We'll see.

There's also a lot of backstory that they're going to just have to leave out, I think - and the structure of the books, the way the main characters learn things & process them, is really important - there's no character growth visible in a few of the older characters, but Katniss and the reader learn new things about them and their histories, which gives the story movement and gives them a kind of offstage character arc instead of being steady caricatures. So it will be more action-y and less about the emotional consequences of war, violence, change, etc.

[Deleted03]

I think the actors they chose look way too old and the guys are also way too muscular. Peeta is supposed to be somewhat muscular so ok, maybe but Gale is just too muscular... they're both supposed to have muscles because they've been working - hunting and hauling bags of flour - not because they work out all day long in a gym...

I am very concerned about the movie because everything happens in Katniss's head. Everything she feels, everything she learns...

[lilwriter85]

I think Jennifer Lawrence may be able to pull off playing Katniss. The castings for Peeta and Gale are questionable.

[lilwriter85]

A big reason they probably casted people over 18 was to avoid child labor laws which can cause production to go longer and raise up costs.

[Shoobydoo]

I'm a little concerned about how they're going to be adapted. With some of the violent scenes in there it could easily get pushed up to R for gore alone. Wouldn't that block out a lot of the intended demographic? They're going to have to be careful how they handle some of it. It's kind of amusing how you can get away with writing something that would get classed right out of that age group on film.

Also, you're welcome for the spoiler tags, Hane. It's standard practice on some forum's I've read when discussing things that might spoil other people and since some people haven't finished reading them yet I figured I'd use them just to be on the safe side.

Edited for riffles

[aquitana]

My ten-year-old daughter devoured all three, and then I began reading them both because I like science fiction, and to find out what the books were about since I had heard they were violent.

Now we're both hooked.

I do think the 3rd book wasn't as thought out as the rest, maybe she rushed to finish it? It was difficult explaining some of it to my tween. I explained the PTSD as what soldiers feel when they come back from Iraq and Afganistan, so I got a small anti-war message in there.

I can't wait to see Woody Harrelson as Haymitch and Lenny Kravitz as Cinna.

I think Jennifer Lawrence is a good choice. She's a good actress and has played tough characters before. I'm glad they didn't choose a super delicate, more pretty, pretty glamorous type.

It's fine with me if they water down the violence to make it PG-13. I'd love to take my kid and a friend or two of hers. And I don't like really violent movies anyway.

[lilwriter85]

My ten-year-old daughter devoured all three, and then I began reading them both because I like science fiction, and to find out what the books were about since I had heard they were violent.

Now we're both hooked.

I do think the 3rd book wasn't as thought out as the rest, maybe she rushed to finish it? It was difficult explaining some of it to my tween. I explained the PTSD as what soldiers feel when they come back from Iraq and Afganistan, so I got a small anti-war message in there.

I can't wait to see Woody Harrelson as Haymitch and Lenny Kravitz as Cinna.

I think Jennifer Lawrence is a good choice. She's a good actress and has played tough characters before. I'm glad they didn't choose a super delicate, more pretty, pretty glamorous type.

It's fine with me if they water down the violence to make it PG-13. I'd love to take my kid and a friend or two of hers. And I don't like really violent movies anyway.

Suzanne Collins drew on issues of PTSD and anti-war and violence from her father's experiences. Her father served in Vietnam and she said a lot of elements in the story come from things her father told her. You did a good job explaining to your daughter about that.

[LadyBBR]

Loved the books so much I'm not sure if I'll go see the movie. Movies of books are such a totally different story and I feel upset, angry, disappointed every time!

[Feberin]

I think Jennifer Lawrence may be able to pull off playing Katniss. The castings for Peeta and Gale are questionable.

I agree! I'm eager to see the movies and LOVED the first two books. I have mixed feelings about the third and really agree with Shoobydoo's last spoiler tag.