I don’t read a large number of Young Adult novels. This is not because I don’t like them as a group (I have loved many of them, and return to several of them on a regular basis) but because the universe of interesting things-to-be-read is just so vast that they get crowded out of a primary place in my reading schedule. I also confess to a sneaking suspicion that however well-intentioned their authors are, there is something condescending about writing for those they consider ‘almost-adults.’ Is this a prejudice? Perhaps. Perhaps not a desirable thing in a High School librarian. I welcome comments.
Every once in a while I do run across a novel written for ‘young adults’ that I just find smashingly wonderful, and I am writing to share this most recent find. According to its book jacket, Suzanne Collins’s Hunger Games “delivers equal parts suspense and philosophy, adventure and romance, in this searing novel set in a future with unsettling parallels to our present.”
Well, yes…. that’s true, but conveys nothing of the thrill of the story, and the functional beauty of the language…
Katniss Everdeen is a sixteen-year old girl keeping her widowed mother and beloved younger sister alive by hunting game outside the legal limits of her District (one of twelve circling the Capitol District of Panem and supplying it with food and other goods.) Katniss reveals – conversationally, and over time, teasing the reader’s skillfully induced curiosity – that Panem was once North America, before civil war destroyed the 50 states and brought the Capitol into brutal and absolute dominance. Katniss is chosen by lottery to participate as a ‘tribute’ in the Hunger Games, an annual event held by the Capitol as a symbol of that dominance, and as the ultimate in ‘reality entertainment’ for a population that is desperately deprived: two ‘tributes’ from each District gather in a staged and filmed contest that ends only when one of them remains alive.
The Games themselves are brilliantly and compellingly set up: the tribute/contestants are prepped by stylists, strategists and trainers and gather sponsors based upon their (publicized) strengths and personal appeal. Once the games begin, they form alliances and compete for weapons and other resources provided by the Capitol. Each one is continuously filmed, and the entire population of Panem watches the games in real time, and in gruesome detail.
The references to Reality TV are obvious: the delicate balance of scripted crises and individual initiative is captured here with perfect pitch. But these Games plausibly evoke an incarnation that has evolved beyond Survivors, incorporating the brutality of the times as well as the political purpose they serve. There are wild creatures present that have developed as a result of genetic engineering and mutation, and a sophisticated relationship between the way that tributes behave on camera, and the kinds of rewards they receive as a result. The culture that exists as a result of the Games is imaginatively and wonderfully conjured up: tributes reflect the regional character of their districts; with some known for their ability to hunt and trap, and others good at manipulating edible and medicinal plants. Some Districts historically produce winners, with young people training for them year-round and hoping to be chosen. Watching the games assumes a primary place in the life of all Districts, and all manner of Capitol citizens dream of working on a winning tribute as a way of enhancing their careers. Panem is imagined in stunning depth and exquisite detail: crazy as it seems I kept thinking of Margaret Mitchell and Gone with the Wind, with the one obvious difference, of course, that Margaret Mitchell recreated the culture of the Civil War south; and Collins has created Panem.
And then there is the language. Katniss tells her story in short, direct, expository sentences that read as if she is carefully conserving her breath, expending it only on essential thoughts and descriptions. They give a powerful sense of her commitment to her own survival. Chapters are beyond eventful and end with compelling cliff-hanging sentences. Katniss and her fellow tribute Peeta develop an interestingly complex and problematic relationship, and the book ends in such a way that you just know a sequel is coming. I hope it’s already written and coming out soon.
And about the last post:
So what was it? Nobody has given a definitive answer: possibilities are a nail-holder or a so-called 'proprietary tool' that is created to assemble or otherwise manipulate a particular object. I had fun though, because, as I said, I was able to catch up with Thomas's Register, the most comprehensive resource for finding information on suppliers of industrial products and services in North America at: http://www.thomasnet.com/. I was also reminded of the limits of the Internet for finding comprehensive or reliable information: always a good thing. I posted the picture on Thomas's bulletin board, so I may still get an answer, someday.
