The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

Several months ago my friend, KT, told me about the plot of The Hunger Games and I decided it was not a book I wanted to read.  After that discussion KT told me in an email that she’d read the book.  A couple of weeks ago another friend, LL, sent me a list of books she’d recently read and included The Hunger Games.  LL told me she was interested in my opinion of it.  Several of the other books on her list went on my library hold list but not The Hunger Games.   Then one day while walking by the book section at Wal-Mart I noticed the book was on sale for $6.29.  “Oh why not,” I said to myself and tossed it into the cart. 

Earlier this week I read The Hunger Games in the marvelous setting of The Clearing.  It was a quick easy read as it is written for teenagers but that is the only good thing I have to say about it.

The plot revolves around children being picked at random from each district in the country to be thrown together in an arena.  The one who lives wins money and food for life.  Each contestant is injected with a chip so that television cameras can follow all the action and listen in on all conversations. 

I first thought about the Shirley Jackson short story called “The Lottery.”  But, the Jackson story has literary merit.  This book seems to have been written only to glorify killing and to promote a sappy love story.  While I strongly believe in freedom of the press, it is my hope that people will quietly quit buying this book and its successors so that they will just disappear.  My copy is going in the trash.