Hunger Games

I have been meaning to post about my latest reading spree for several days now. In case you are unaware, I have a slight addiction to reading. This addiction has affected my life in many ways. Once, when I was quite a bit younger, I was told to go to bed, and proceeded to disobey and finish reading an entire book with a flashlight under the covers. I then was eaten with guilt and woke up my parents to confess, but only after completing the final chapter. My sister still complains that once I discovered chapter books, she would beg me to play, and I would promise (blatantly lie) to stop reading once I finished the next chapter. She has always been smart, so she noticed that when I finally would put the book down my bookmark had moved much further than the width of a single chapter. Being second fiddle to a book was apparently scarring because she still talks about it.

Anyway, I have always struggled with obsessive reading, especially when I discover a new series. Something about the continuation of the story of a core group of characters makes me gorge myself on books and forsake all other pursuits until I reach the conclusion. The Hunger Games grabbed my attention immediately. I love Katniss and Peeta and Gale, and the adventure/romance/fantasy genre has always been near and dear to my heart. However, these books are dark, and by the time I reached the end of the series (which took less than 3 days) I was left with a melancholy feeling. I wouldn't recommend them to anyone younger than 13, and consider yourself warned, the gruesome nature of the books doesn't lend itself to a typical happy ending.

Overall, I'm glad I read the series. It was my last chance to read for fun before the semester reading load threatened to crush me under its weight. Sam just finished the first book, and I'm enjoying discussing them with him. Haunting, but timely, The Hunger Games has my nuanced stamp of approval.