The Hunger Games Box Set: Foil Edition Paperback – September 30, 2014

This paragraph will explain premise of the Hunger Games. If you consider that spoiler territory, skip to the next paragraph and feel confident that no further plot points will be discussed. In case you were curious what the Hunger Games actually are, it is an annual event where 24 minors from a dozen third-world districts are selected to battle to the death for the entertainment of the wealthy citizens of the Capitol. The fallen are a grim reminder of a decades old failed rebellion against the Capitol, the victors given wealth and celebrity status as a symbol of the Capitol's kindness.Suzanne Collins' Hunger Games trilogy is not only a dark reflection of pop culture, but an examination of the modern world through the eyes of a teenage girl, Katniss Everdeen. The first book may function as a stand-alone adventure, a complete tale in its own right that does not require further reading, but the continuations are so worthwhile that the reader is truly missing out by ending it there.In my opinion, Catching Fire (the second novel in the trilogy) is the weakest, but it answers some questions, fills in some gaps, explores the social and political ramifications of the events in the first book and establishes itself as profoundly important when reading the third and final novel, Mockingjay, which is possibly the strongest of the three. Mockingjay has one of the strongest conclusions I've ever read and provides a true sense of closure that could not have been reached any earlier in the saga, but more importantly, the follow-up novels feel like necessary additions rather than a cash-grab.It is not a light-hearted story. The novels respectfully portray the effects of Post Traumatic Stress and the characters live in a cruel world. The themes explored in the Hunger Games get progressively darker and more complex, but never is the violence glorified. It may take a certain level of maturity to truly grasp the larger concepts at work, but the reader may become more mature for having read this. I consider that an achievement in of itself considering the target age group. The literary style is appropriate for younger readers but is thought-provoking enough to for adults to find themselves engrossed in.Katniss Everdeen is a strong female lead, one whom is written so well that the book is almost gender-neutral--but there is a love triangle, for those who might care about that sort of thing. She is capable, yet flawed, and her awareness of her shortcomings makes her all the more human. For those who have watched the movies but have not yet read the book, departing from the third-person perspective of the films into the first-person point of view in the novels will complete one's understanding of the characters and the world they live in.There is little that I would change in these novels had I any measure of creative control. The Hunger Games I leave in peace, Catching Fire took a little while for that sense of imminent danger to manifest, ends on a cliffhanger and Mockingjay began with a time-skip of a couple months which felt a little jarring. Also in Mockingjay a couple minor characters had conspicuous absences throughout the majority of the book, but all the important pieces were in play. These minor complaints are merely nitpicks, easily forgivable in this stellar series.

First of all, I'd like to make it clear that I will be reviewing aspects of the Kindle edition and also the Hunger Games trilogy itself.This series was recommended to me by a friend and I was told it was a definite must read. I chose to purchase the Kindle edition because it offered all three books for around $17. I figured this would be my best bet money wise and I also loved the fact that I would have all three books immediately in my hands. When purchasing from the Kindle store, you are promised to have your book within a minute of clicking the purchase button. My decision of purchasing the trilogy through Kindle was greatly based on the price comparison of the hardback trilogy and the Kindle edition trilogy. According to Amazon, the Kindle edition of the Hunger Games is $16.85 so roughly $17 and the hardcover trilogy is almost $31. In my eyes, there was no doubt about the Kindle edition being the more reasonable purchase.I'm still quite unsure and confused on how Kindle formats their book, in regards to font sizes and page numbers. I understand that Kindle users have the option of changing their font size to increase or decrease the character size. When a user increases the font size this also changes the number of pages they have to read in order to finish the book. A second issue dealing with the font size is that sometimes out of the blue, the font will just change when you change to the next page. This has never been a major problem for me but it threw me off guard and was a little unsettling for my eyes. The page numbers in Kindles can be very confusing and I for one haven't figured out the method yet. This usually wouldn't be a big deal but when you try to compare the Kindle edition to the actual hardcopy of that book, it can be very frustrating trying to match up the page numbers. Although, there were a few minor problems with the Kindle edition of the trilogy, I'm still very happy that I made the purchase. I loved the fact that I received all three books at the same time and I could carry all three of them around with me within a device that was a centimeter thick.As for the Hunger Games trilogy itself, I had absolutely zero complaints. As I began the first book, I was sort of confused but still very intrigued. Not until I heard someone else talking about the book, did I realize it was based in the future. The basic story line of the book is that the USA had destroyed itself and all that was left was a land called Panem. This consisted of 13 districts and a Capitol city. The people that lived within the Capitol were the wealthiest of all the people. The 12 districts that housed mostly underprivileged people had a different lifestyle all together. They had to work within their district's industry and many times went without food and any type of comfortable living. Each year, the Capitol would put on the Hunger Games in order to punish the districts and remind them how they ruined civilization. A girl and boy from each district were randomly chosen to fight to the death within a challenge-filled arena. Katniss and Peeta's lives were forever changed when they were chosen as tributes for the annual Hunger Games. You get to know the characters in great detail throughout the book when they are faced with adventure, challenge, death and even romance.As the series goes on, you learn more and more about the characters, the Capitol and the real reasons behind the Hunger Games. At some points, you may find yourself wanting to jump into the book and join the rebellion against the hated Capitol. The romance that was once a huge factor in the games begins to die down but the action and mystery only increases.Suzanne Collins does an absolutely amazing job of painting the romance, gruesome deaths and cut-throat action into the pages of the Hunger Games trilogy. Once I started the first book, I was fully intrigued and it was very hard for me to set my Kindle down. I would recommend this book to any person of any age. I know you can't always rely on the movie being as good as the book but I cannot wait until the movies comes out to see if I painted the same thrilling picture in my head.

I read this book in my late teens and am now in my early 30s. I loved this series then, but it means so much more as an adult. A truly heartbreaking, gritty story that capsulates so much of the problems with humanity, greed, and power-hungry people versus the rest of us. It's beautiful, heartbreaking and everything I needed.