the hunger games

[The Guy]

i just finished book 1, and i thought it was pretty good. i usually read, ya know, "Real Books" but for a novel you can buy at the grocery store, i was pleasantly surprised. a movie adaptation will be released in a couple weeks, and im really looking forward to it. anyone else?

[chrisgraff]

Almost halfway through the book. Good stuff!

[GAD]

Loved the first one, hated the second one, and liked the third.

The writing bugged me at times, but remembering that it's being told fromthe point of view of a 16/17 YO girl helps.

Looking forward to the movie.

[The Guy]

ive heard that ^ about the second book, and the third actually. i havent been through those yet. i was reading book 1 when i should have been studying last week, so im not even gonna bother getting them until the semester is through!

[Glenn D.]

Tried to read it. I couldn't find anything about it to get me past the first 50 pages. Unsupported plot, poor charaterization, trite dialogue. I've ready too many good SF and fantasy books over the last 40 years to waste time on this one.

[tele_phil]

I usually read all the books my kids read because they want to talk about them. The Hunger Games series was pretty good overall. The writing style is "formulaic mind candy" for the most part which is true of many "best selling" authors in recent years. It is still much better than many books targeted at teens.

[Smakutus]

On the third book right now... I think the movie will be better.

Jeff

[TELECOLLECTOR]

Originally Posted by Glenn D.

Tried to read it. I couldn't find anything about it to get me past the first 50 pages. Unsupported plot, poor charaterization, trite dialogue. I've ready too many good SF and fantasy books over the last 40 years to waste time on this one.

BINGO.

I read quite a lot and I am truly ashamed that I plodded all the way through all three books.

That from a viewpoint of a 57 year-old man. Obviously the primary targeted audience are adolescent girls.

Definitely not cerebral SF.

[The Guy]

it isnt cerebral anything, i dont think anyone would say that it is. its the written equivalent of something like avatar, which means it isnt for everyone. but it was an easy, entertaining read. i can only read so many "cerebral" books before i want something a little easier to ingest.

[Lotis]

I read all 3 and enjoyed them all.

[BedroomRockStar01]

< English undergrad degree and a total literary snob, and I still enjoyed them. Well, I liked the first one, and the second one for the most part. The third one was disappointing and felt very rushed.

I'm looking forward to the movie. Jennifer Lawrence was fantastic in Winter's Bone. It's nice to see an actress who can, you know, act. And I'll watch pretty much anything Woody Harrelson is in.

As for the sci-fi guys, I don't think this book was meant to be anything more than a young teenage read that happened to cross over with a broader appeal. If you're a serious sci-fi reader, I'm not surprised you weren't satisfied by this one. You have to take it for what it is, and for what it is, it serves its purpose.

[mudster]

Good stuff for a children's book. Not as satisfying as a more adult read, but still well done. The first book is probably the best?

[epluribus]

Originally Posted by Glenn D.

Tried to read it. I couldn't find anything about it to get me past the first 50 pages. Unsupported plot, poor charaterization, trite dialogue. I've ready too many good SF and fantasy books over the last 40 years to waste time on this one.

Got through the first, might read the other two. But boy, the first fifty, that's being generous...took her a long time to get the story cranked up. Likewise found the details and vivid sense of place/situation to be alarmingly thin, not to mention rather wooden characters. That the dystopian underpinnings were so thin compared to the genre was a tough one to swallow when attempting to suppress one's disbelief. It read like Hannah Montana decided to re-write The Tenth Victim. Gasp.

So how come I liked it so much?

--Ray

Anxiously awaiting the movie. Anybody else follow the bit about Woody Harrelson showing Jennifer Lawrence how to "act backwards?"

[wundergussy]

I read each because it's the hottest thing going at the school at which I work (everyone, including non-readers, are reading it). They are fine, but the author owes the Battle Royale author some cash.

[jjguitarranch]

I read all three. I liked the story but I didn't like the writing. I'm a sucker, I'll be checking out the movies...