Let me start by saying this is NOT a book review. This is more of a commentary on an uber-popular series and the fact that I just don't get it.
After reading two of the finest books recently published; ONCE UPON A RIVER by Bonnie Jo Campbell and STATE OF WONDER by Ann Patchett I aimed to take a break from losing myself so completely in a book that I could barely breathe after finishing it/them so I decided to tackle this series that has taken the book world by storm. Maybe I am merely a woman of "un certain age" or perhaps I am just too damn picky, I don't know. I do know that a book of only 250 plus pages should have been finished by now. I just don't have the wherewithal to be excited about this novel. I get it, I get the premise and the authors attempt to make a commentary about modern society; Reality TV shows, the great sucking maw that is professional sports and our fascination with watching people implode publicly and with great fanfare. Yet as I am attempting to read this book the one thing that keeps running through my mind is ANIMAL FARM by George Orwell. I keep comparing this book to that seminal novel and in finding similarities and correlations I am continuously left feeling that this book is covering old ground and not introducing anything new or relevant.
I am going to guess that this series is so popular today only because ANIMAL FARM may feel dated to younger readers. However, when in sixty years they compile a list of classics I am going to guess THE HUNGER GAMES and it's sequels will not make the cut.
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