The Hunger Games
SynopsisPlot
Winning means fame and fortune. Losing means certain death. The Hunger Games have begun. . . . In the ruins of a place once known as North America lies the nation of Panem, a shining Capitol surrounded by twelve outlying districts. The Capitol is harsh and cruel and keeps the districts in line by forcing them all to send one boy and one girl between the ages of twelve and eighteen to participate in the annual Hunger Games, a fight to the death on live TV. Sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen regards it as a death sentence when she steps forward to take her sister's place in the Games. But Katniss has been close to dead before-and survival, for her, is second nature. Without really meaning to, she becomes a contender. But if she is to win, she will have to start making choices that weigh survival against humanity and life against love.
Story
About this book
The Hunger Games appeared in 2008 from Scholastic and takes place in Panem, a nation standing on the ruins of North America. A wealthy central city, the Capitol, governs twelve surrounding districts. Every year each district must supply two tributes aged twelve to eighteen, one young man and one young woman drawn by lottery, for a televised contest in which only one competitor is meant to leave alive.
The narrator is sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen, who steps forward to take her younger sister's place after the lottery names her. Katniss has spent years hunting to feed her family, and those habits matter once the contest starts. Inside the arena she must weigh staying alive against loyalty, compassion, and the alliances forming around her. The event airs live, so her decisions play out before an audience.
Collins has cited Greek mythology, Roman gladiatorial games, and present-day reality television among her sources for the book's themes. Reviewers and fellow writers responded warmly, with particular attention to its plot and characters. It won the California Young Reader Medal and was listed by Publishers Weekly among its best books of 2008. The hardcover, released on September 14, carried cover art by Tim O'Brien.
