(DLA Las Piñas HS LRC) October Book of the Month - The Hunger Games

Cover art of the novel.

Were you able to watch The Hunger Games earlier this year?


The book of the month this October is The Hunger Games.

The Hunger Games is a 2008 young adult novel by American writer Suzanne Collins. It is written in the voice of 16-year-old Katniss Everdeen, who lives in the post-apocalyptic nation of Panem, where the countries of North America once existed. The Capitol, a highly advanced metropolis, exercises political control over the rest of the nation. The Hunger Games are an annual event in which one boy and one girl aged 12–18 from each of the twelve districts surrounding the Capitol are selected by lottery to compete in a televised battle to the death.

The movie starring 22-year old Jennifer Lawrence (also of X-Men: First Class fame last year as Raven Darkholme or the blue-skinned mutant Mystique) as Katniss and 20-year old Josh Hutcherson (Detention, Cirque du Freak: The Vampire's Assistant, Journey to the Center of the Earth, and the Polar Express) as Peeta Mellark shown in theaters everywhere in the world sometime around March this year is actually a film adaptation of the acclaimed novel. The film was co-written and co-produced by Collins herself.


Poster for the film.

The book received mostly positive feedback from major reviewers and authors, including well-known horror author Stephen King. It was praised for its storyline and character development, though some reviewers have noted similarities between Collins' book and the Japanese novel Battle Royale (1999), which tells the story of junior high school students who are forced to fight each other to the death in a program run by the totalitarian Japanese government on the other hand.

Similarly as well, Battle Royale was also adapted into a film (even becoming a domestic blockbuster in Japan) directed by Kinji Fukasaku. In June 2006, it was reported that New Line Cinema intended to produce a new American film adaptation of Battle Royale.

However, in 2012, one of the two producers stated a remake would no longer be possible due to the release of the film adaptation of The Hunger Games, which was being criticized for its similarities to Battle Royale, stating that "Audiences would see it as just a copy of Games — most of them wouldn't know that Battle Royale came first. It's unfair, but that's reality." Nevertheless, he stated that he might return to the film in ten years to "develop a Battle Royale movie for the next generation."


The Hunger Games author, Suzanne Collins.

In spite of this, Collins says she drew upon Greek mythology and contemporary reality television for thematic content in writing The Hunger Games. The novel has won many awards, including the California Young Reader Medal, and was named one of Publishers Weekly's "Best Books of the Year" in 2008.

Since its release, The Hunger Games has been translated into 26 languages, and publishing rights have been sold in 38 territories.

The novel is the first in The Hunger Games trilogy, followed by Catching Fire (2009) and Mockingjay (2010). Be sure to read Catching Fire, the next book in the trilogy! Its film adaptation, The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, is said to be already in the works with Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, and Liam Hemsworth reprising their roles. It is scheduled to be released on the 22nd of November next year.

Catching Fire will continue the story of Katniss and the nation of Panem. Following the events of the first novel, a rebellion against the oppressive Capitol has begun, and Katniss and fellow tribute Peeta are forced to return to the arena in a special edition of the Hunger Games.

All of the books in the trilogy are available at the DLA High School LRC and are hits among the students! Just ask any of the resident librarians and staff if you are having any difficulty locating them at the shelves in the fREADom hub.


Article reference/s:

Suzanne Collins' official website and the New Yorker article on The Hunger Games.