Thursday, August 26, 2010

"Mockingjay" by Suzanne Collins

Mockingjay (The Final Book of The Hunger Games)Title: Mockingjay
Author: Suzanne Collins
Publisher: Scholastic, 2010
Where I got it: I borrowed a loaner nook from work (we can do that—more perks to being a bookseller) and I downloaded it onto there. So, e-book.

If you've never heard of this series, and haven't heard anything about the anticipation for this book, you don't pay attention to the book industry. This has been one of the most eagerly awaited books of the year, probably right behind Steig Larsson's The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest. Long story short, everyone who keeps up with YA has read, is reading, or is planning to read this last book in Suzanne Collins' bestselling series.

I promise I will not give out any spoilers without making it completely obvious beforehand, but I do think you might be wondering why I am only giving it three stars.

But first: plot summary. By the way, **POSSIBLE SPOILERS FOR FIRST TWO BOOKS IN SERIES**. Katniss Everdeen, after being taken out of the custody of the Capitol, is taken to District 13, long believed to be obliterated. What she finds is a strictly organized society and rebel movement. Now the face of the cause, Katniss is the one crucial element the rebels and rebel leaders need for their plan in a Capitol takedown. Katniss needs to figure out where she stands, on all counts.

**END OF SPOILERS**

I think part of the reason I didn't particularly care for this one was the buildup and the hype surrounding the entire series. Yes, it is provocative and addictive, violent and slightly philosophical, but I was never really wowed by anything. There was way too much explanation in the beginning; all exposition, barely any showing as opposed to telling. It fell a little flat for my tastes, and despite the constant action I rarely felt energized. I wasn't attached to any of the new characters introduced, and I slowly stopped caring about a lot of the old characters too, which is never good.

I also thought it got way too preachy at the end. There was absolutely no subtlety; everything was spelled out in black and white, kind of like this comic by Kate Beaton. We understand, it's bad to kill children. You don't need to tell us fifty times in a few different ways.


As for the ending, well, I won't say much, but it's lackluster. I felt it climaxed too soon, and Collins was scrambling to tie up loose ends toward the end. I'm satisfied, but feel like it could have been more. Like most of the book, it fell short.

Now after all this criticism, don't think I hated it. No, I liked it well enough; there were certainly points where I couldn't put it down, one of which almost made me late for work today. If there's one thing Collins knows how to do, it's create suspense. She likes to end her chapters on crazy things that happen out of nowhere, forcing you to turn the page in order to find out how the heck they're going to handle each disaster.

I'm sorry to those of you who are offended by my less-than-stellar review, but I just don't think this book is as great as it's made out to be. It's certainly a worthwhile, thought-provoking and discussion-generating read, but it's not the best book I've read this year. Let's just say that if you had to pick one book to read this year, I'd suggest you not pick this one.

What do you think? Was I unfair, or do you agree?

6 comments:

  1. Your review makes me a little sad, only because I really loved the book so much. But I think it was fair; not everyone is going to love, love, love it, you know?

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  3. Emily, I knew it would make some people sad! That happens to me all the time when a book I love is given a low-star review.

    Mary, I had to delete your comment because of unlabeled spoilers, but I totally agree with everything you said.

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  4. Totally agree with you on the ending. I didn't mind the actual ending but it could have been written better. And some deaths I thought merited more attention and others that did get attention I really didn't care that much about.
    Alison Can Read

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  5. Hey, I had to agree with you. I read the first book just recently, and after I had finished with Patrick Ness' The Knife of Never Letting Go. So my expectations were not met. :| As a book, it's okay enough. But enough is the enemy of great. I'm just disappointed it wasn't better.

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  6. Abdulicious—oh man, that's rough reading this one after Ness. I read this one first, and I KNOW I would have been even more disappointed had I read The Knife of Never Letting Go first. That was an amazing book. Thanks for the comment!

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