Warning: As always, I try to stay relatively spoiler free.
But it doesn’t hurt to proceed with caution. (Also, if you haven’t read THE
HUNGER GAMES or CATCHING FIRE yet, you’re welcome to skip this, as it will
pretty much give both endings away.)
Rating: Five
Stars—ajklsdflk (when words fail to describe how wonderful a book is)
I’ll admit, the first time I read
Suzanne Collins’s MOCKINGJAY, right after it came out, I didn’t like it. I
didn’t like the way Katniss is broken and her country is fractured and nothing
is as it should be. But I think, deep down, I didn’t like it because it struck
so close to home, because it told the truth about Katniss’s psychological state
and her world when I wanted it to present a rose-tinted version for my sake.
So, when I finally worked up the
courage to reread it a while ago, I realized just how much my view point has
changed. This time through, I crazy loved MOCKINGJAY. It’s one of those few
novels capable of wringing a few (measly) tears from my cold, Vulcan eyes. And
I’m sure—at least, I’m pretty sure—that this one might be my favorite book out
of the trilogy. At least it’s the most powerful.
That said, let’s talk about why I loved
it.
District
13. Without giving too much away, I love that District 13
doesn’t turn out to be a perfect save haven—it isn’t some utopian otherworld, set
apart from the shambles of the rest of Panem. (I mean, otherwise, the story
would have such an anticlimactic end.) In many ways, District 13 is even more
broken, because at least the people in the other districts know they are
oppressed—at least the government of Panem doesn’t hide its cruelty. Elsewhere,
the ideologies that trap the people are obvious and undeniable—not so in District
13.
The
Capitol. We get to see more of the Capitol and
its citizens, and I might have accidently fallen in love with the poor,
messed-up darlings. All the civilians are so shallow and pampered—I doubt
they’ve ever had a true taste of life. And while Panem is all one country, the
Capitol has its own culture entirely, built on the shoulders of the districts
and yet somehow separate.
Plutarch
and the Rebels. I’m still not sure what to think of
Plutarch. On the one hand, I want to like him, since he is technically on
Katniss’s side. But he also is on his own side, and that’s why I love, if not
him specifically, at least his presence in the novel. Unlike so many others, he
doesn’t worry as much about reform and freedom—before all this, he already had
a certain measure of liberty and wealth (if you ignore the fact that no one is
really free, no matter how rich, when they live under a tyrant). Despite the
fact that he classifies as one of the good guys, you could argue Plutarch is
only in this because he sees it as just another arena and just another Games.
His cold mind doesn’t care about the body count so long as the action is
amusing and flashy and television-worthy.
Johanna.
I hands-down love her. She’s snarky and slightly mental and very difficult to
like. She’s lost everything she’s ever cared about, but she survived. And
despite her fragility, she’s still so strong, even though she no longer has the
capacity, at least for the moment, to taken an interest in others. Actually,
though, that is what I love the most about her, because it’s believable. Once
you’ve lost almost everyone you ever loved, you reach a point where you no
longer care because it isn’t worth it, because it hurts too much—and if you’re
going to survive, you have to cut out that part of you that feels, at least for
the time being.
The
Way Suzanne Collins Breaks Peeta. I love Peeta. He has always been one
of my favorite characters in the series because he loves Katniss’s
unconditionally, because he bears with her so patiently, and just because. And
I don’t think I ever appreciated him as much as I did in this book, since (like
Katniss) I only realized how special he is when Collins breaks him and forces
him to remake himself.
Prim.
Just, Prim. Read the book, and you’ll understand.
Cressida
and the Rest of the Propaganda Team. Cressida is basically a rock star. She
might be just a director for propaganda clips, but I’m pretty sure she’d win her
own Games if she ever found herself as a tribute in the Arena. And even though
she’s a citizen of the Capitol, that doesn’t make her a product of their values
and their ideals.
Along with Cressida, we have the rest
of the propo team, and while none of them become hugely fleshed out, they all
form a single entity—a valuable presence in the novel. I’m pretty sure, whether
she recognizes this or not, Katniss would be a hopeless wreck without them.
The
Propaganda. Because why fight a war with weapons
and bloodshed when you can strike the first blow with propaganda? Seriously,
though, never underestimate this tactic.
Katniss
(Again). Suzanne Collins has it in for Katniss,
I think. Maybe someone should take away her writing privileges until she can be
nicer to her characters.
Moving on.
As I’ve said before, Katniss’s
emotional/psychological state is quite believable. Having seen the start of a
war (twice), and losing my home, my possessions, my friends, and my country
(twice), I think watching Katniss work through some of the same things was a
little too hard for me at first. I wanted her to be okay, because I needed to
be okay. Now, with a few more years and a little more distance under my belt,
I’m glad that Collins was honest and believable, that she didn’t just reach
down with her magical authorial hand and fix everything for her.
That
Epilogue. It’s the perfect bittersweet ending to
a traumatic series. It balances the long-lasting scars with the promise of
renewal, and it doesn’t leave its readers with the lie that life will turn to
cotton candy when the battle is over. Instead, it leaves us with the reality
that life is rough but we can survive.
Okay,
enough with the inspirational stuff. Now I’d love to know if you’ve read the
series, what you thought of it, and which book was your favorite. Also, what
was your opinion on the love triangle, and are you happy with how Collins
resolved it? Have you read any Hunger Games-like books you felt were
better/worse?
