MockingJay
by Suzanne Collins
Format: Kindle
Price: $2.99 for the whole series!
Price: $2.99 for the whole series!
How I heard about it: um...duh
Basic Premise: In this third installment of the Hunger Games trilogy, the districts are seeking to overtake the capital and are lead by District 13, which was not annihilated as the Capitol lead the districts to believe, but instead has been steadily growing an arsenal of weapons for war against the Capitol, lead by the Mockingjay herself.
My Take: 2 out of 10 (scale here)
SPOILER ALERT. And EXTREME NEGATIVITY (and a small amount of snobiness) ALERT.
I warned you.
This was my second read. This book was originally released on August 24th of 2010. I had it finished by August 26th. And I HATED it. But, to be fair, I wasn't sure how much of it could fairly be attributed to Suzanne Collins, as I was reading so fast I was barely keeping up with the story. I knew I needed to read it again, but I couldn't bring myself to do it. So now, four years later, I decided to pick it up again. The film is due for release later this year, and I was hoping to take things a little slower and enjoy it this time around.
**COMMENCE RANT**
As it turns out, I was right the first time. The book, indeed, sucks.
In fairness to Collins, it's got to be hard to write a final book in a trilogy this popular, because you know there are certain things the audience wants to read. However, as a writer, you are compelled to write what you discover, not merely satiate the throngs of fans who want an neat, bundled happily-ever-after. But MY GOODNESS this book, especially on the heels of books one and two which were both so riveting, was just downright painful. It echoed oddly of Stephenie Meyer, whose 2,458 pages were without question the most painful in my YAL experience.
So what went wrong? What happened to make Mockingjay so atrociously different from the first two books? Well, for one, the pacing was completely different, and not in a way that worked. The first two books were methodical, rich in detail, and, for lack of a better term, believable. With this book, I often found myself wondering, "How did they get there so fast?" or "What prompted that move?" There were long stretches between some points of action and then just a few pages for what seemed as though it should have had an entire chapter. I got the sense that Collins was rush-writing - like she had a deadline and was hurrying to meet it and neglecting to adequately develop the characters and plot line, which is my next complaint. There was far too much emphasis on the movement of the districts in the war effort and not nearly enough on character development. Now, if we're honest, character development is not one of Collins' strong suits, but this book highlights it in a way the other two do not. I also just hated what happened. Peeta is my favorite character. Next in line is Finnick. I mostly want to strangle Katniss.
**CONCLUDE RANT**
Sigh. Hopefully it will make a better film than book. I will definitely be there opening weekend.
List progress:
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot
Parenting with Love & Logic by Jim Fey
Silver Star Jeannette Walls
Catcher in the Rye by JD Salinger
The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
Shepherding a Child's Heart by Tedd Tripp
Those Who Save Us by Jenna Blum
Mocking Jay by Suzanne Collins
Parenting with Love & Logic by Jim Fey
Silver Star Jeannette Walls
Catcher in the Rye by JD Salinger
The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
Those Who Save Us by Jenna Blum
Alex just finished the trilogy, and we were discussing the terribleness of this book last night. He often does not critique literature, so I was surprised he had such an opinion on the writing of this novel. You are not alone!
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