A Short Mockingjay Review (no spoilers)

Mockingjay is the third book in the series of The Hunger Games, by Suzanne Collins. Check it out here.

I said I would write a review on here ages ago now and I feel like now is the time to keep my promise. Mockingjay is overall a powerful, unique and tragic book, without being depressing to read. I'm definitely not saying that the book hasn't affected me, it has immensely. It is a incredibly sad story, just written in a optimistic way. This is mainly due to the fact that the characters do not dwell in their misery, therefore neither do we, as readers.

I'm not going to give away any of the plot in this post, as I was initially planning to, because I find that I mainly read reviews of books I'm planning to read, not ones I already have. So to be concise, here is a list of the main reasons that I love The Hunger Games series and you will too;

1. The characters are gutsy, vivid and unforgettable
2. It is a unique storyline which stays with you forever
3. It has tension, excitement, action, romance, politics, war, science fiction and even an interesting food aspect

In an interview, Suzanne Collins was asked this Question: What do you hope young readers take away from your books?


And she answered:
 One of the reasons it’s important for me to write about war is I really think that the concept of war, the specifics of war, the nature of war, the ethical ambiguities of war are introduced too late to children. I think they can hear them, understand them, know about them, at a much younger age without being scared to death by the stories. It’s not comfortable for us to talk about, so we generally don’t talk about these issues with our kids. But I feel that if the whole concept of war were introduced to kids at an earlier age, we would have better dialogues going on about it, and we would have a fuller understanding.


I really like her response to this question and I agree with what she says. It is a spectacular book for these reasons and more.

So, in conclusion,  if you're looking for an action packed, thought provoking, unforgettable read then delve in to the dark, compelling world of The Hunger Games and I promise you that you won't regret it!

P.S. Check out my video review/response to Mockingjay which DOES contain spoilers!!

Awesome Mockingjay Quotes

I will be doing a proper review of Mockingjay soon but for now here are some of the most epic quotes from it:

"President Snow says he's sending us a message? Well, I have one for him... Fire is catching!.. And if we burn, you burn with us!"

"Ask yourself, do you really trust the people you're working with? Do you really know what's going on? And if you don't... find out."




'That I knew that I have misjudged you. That you do love him. I'm not saying in what way. Maybe you don't know yourself. But anyone paying attention could see how much you care about him."




"That what I need to survive is not Gale's fire, kindled with rage and hatred. I have plenty of fire myself. What I need is the dandelion in the spring. The bright yellow that means rebirth instead of destruction. The promise that life can go on, no matter how bad our losses. That it can be good again. And only Peeta can give me that." 




"You love me, real or not real?"


"Real"




"I raise my left arm and twist my neck down to rip off the pill on my sleeve. Instead my teeth sink into flesh. I yank my head back in confusion to find myself looking into Peeta's eyes, only now they hold my gaze. Blood runs from the teeth marks on the hand he clamped over my nightlock.


"Let me go!" I snarl at him, trying to wrest my arm from his grasp.


"I can't," he says."




"Sometimes when I'm alone, I take the pearl from where it lives in my pocket and try to remember the boy with the bread, the strong arms that warded off nightmares on the train, the kisses in the arena." 




"...I ate your lunch."
Haymitch" 




"You're still trying to protect me. Real or not real," he whispers.
"Real," I answer. "Because that's what you and I do, protect each other." 




"I clench his hands to the point of pain. "Stay with me."
His pupils contract to pinpoints, dilate again rapidly, and then return to something resembling normalcy. "Always," he murmurs." 




"Closing my eyes doesn't help. Fire burns brighter in the darkness." 




"Because something is significantly wrong with a creature that sacrifices its children's lives to settle its differences. You can spin it any way you like... But in the end, who does it benefit? No one. The truth is, it benefits no one to live in a world where these things happen"






p.s Check out my video review of "Mockingjay" which contains spoilers!!! 

"Catching Fire" rambling review (SPOILERS)

I just had some cheese topped bread for lunch and it made me think of Peeta so I decided that I'm ready to do my review of "Catching Fire"! Yay! I really shouldn't technically be doing this as my only follower hasn't even read any of "The Hunger Games" YET so he won't be reading this and if he is then he is very, very bad! Oh, also if you are a non-follower reading this who also hasn't read this book then I strongly recommend it to you. It's a book who would be insane to miss out on!

Moving on... I finished "Catching Fire" a couple of days ago but haven't felt like writing about it until now. It was a powerful, honest book which I think I loved even more than "The Hunger Games". Throughout the book I could feel the rebellion building and building and I knew it was only a matter of time until the situation effectively exploded in to the inevitable bloodbath which I'm sure is coming in "Mockingjay".

The book pretty much starts off where it left off; the aftermath of Katniss' mini rebellion at the end of the Games. I found myself falling even deeper in love with Peeta in this book. He demonstrates such loyalty and love towards Katniss and I just adore his character. he is selfless, caring and humble and overall amazing. I have a tendency to fall in love with characters but I guess that's not really a surprise, they are fictional! Right now I am just terrified that he will die in "Mockingjay" and I really, really need to read it or I am going to loose my sanity. When I read that Katniss was going to have to enter the hunger games a second time I went in to a temporary state of shock. It was just so unexpected! Her reaction to it was extremely, extremely well written though; for example the way it didn't sink in at first etc. I guess one of the reasons I loved Peeta even more in this book was that he was determined to enter in to the games again just to protect Katniss. Awwwwhhh. Oh My God I love this book...

I loved Cinna's death too. No, that sounds awful! I hated that he died but I love his character and the way he died for Katniss and for what was right. It was really brutal the way he died, especially the way they did it just before Katniss entered the Games. I love Cinna for his quiet confidence, bravery and empathy :)

Now I'm going to talk about the end of "Catching Fire"...I loved it and even though I didn't expect it I did however know all along that Johanna was on Katniss' side. I'm not entirely sure why but this gut feeling was made stronger when Suzanne Collins wrote that Johanna looked at katniss with "approval" and also the way she shouted the abuse at the Capitol, whilst in the arena. Awesome moment! As I have said, I didn't see the ending coming but I knew that neither Katniss nor Peeta were going to die in the second games but I also knew the Capitol were definitely not going to let them live. But yeahhh man I WANT PEETA BACK! Arghhh

Just a quick note about Gale: I love him as well as Peeta, for his bravery and passion although I think his passion can make him slightly blind.

P.S I do actually have a few gut feelings/predictions about "Mockingjay" including the following:
1. Things will not be as they seem
2. Peeta may die :'(
3. Katniss will get pregnant for real with Peeta
4. Gale may die (if Peeta doesn't) in a very heroic, dramatic way because that is just SO him
5. Peeta will kill somebody directly
6. There will be a "final battle scene" as such

Happy Reading!

England really can rain when it wants to!

I'm writing this mainly for my friend and follower, Matt, because he told me to but also because I told myself I was going to keep this blogging thing up...so here goes.

Hmm, I guess I'll tell you about yesterday... I was sat in geography, in the morning, when I heard magical, lighthearted music drift in from next door.
"Could it be?" I thought to myself and after straining to hear it for about twenty minutes I decided that Yes! some kids were watching Harry Potter next door whilst I was revising COASTS! So not fair! Ahh but the day improved when I went to I.T and, due to my teacher being absent and the school internet system screwed, I got on to youtube with Matt (who I seem to mention a lot) and watched random crap. I annoyed my "acquaintance", Jack, too! Good times :)

I've been told to include that later on in the day me and my friends saw a squirrel with a conker in it's mouth. Cool stuff. Granted it was a funny sight but I really think you had to be there!!

Right, fast forward to today... yeah, all I have to say is drum sticks make good wands, I like using imperio on my classmates and England seems to have an endless supply of rainwater! I'm still wet :(

Ok, this post is boring... but you'll forgive me :D