REVIEW: Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins

Synopsis

Against all odds, Katniss Everdeen has won the annual Hunger Games with fellow district tribute Peeta Mellark. But it was a victory won by defiance of the Capitol and their harsh rules. Katniss and Peeta should be happy. After all, they have just won for themselves and their families a life of safety and plenty. But there are rumors of rebellion among the subjects, and Katniss and Peeta, to their horror, are the faces of that rebellion. The Capitol is angry. The Capitol wants revenge.


About the Author
from her website


Since 1991, Suzanne Collins has been busy writing for children’s television. She has worked on the staffs of several Nickelodeon shows, including the Emmy-nominated hit Clarissa Explains it All and The Mystery Files of Shelby Woo. For preschool viewers, she penned multiple stories for the Emmy-nominated Little Bear and Oswald. She also co-wrote the critically acclaimed Rankin/​Bass Christmas special, Santa, Baby! Most recently she was the Head Writer for Scholastic Entertainment’s Clifford’s Puppy Days.

While working on a Kids WB show called Generation O! she met children’s author James Proimos, who talked her into giving children’s books a try.

Thinking one day about Alice in Wonderland, she was struck by how pastoral the setting must seem to kids who, like her own, lived in urban surroundings. In New York City, you’re much more likely to fall down a manhole than a rabbit hole and, if you do, you’re not going to find a tea party. What you might find...? Well, that’s the story of Gregor the Overlander, the first book in her five-part fantasy/​war series, The Underland Chronicles.

At present, Suzanne is hard at work on the third book in her sci-fi series, The Hunger Games.

She currently lives in Connecticut with her family and a pair of feral kittens they adopted from their backyard.


My Thoughts

When I started this book, I crossed my fingers and toes, closed my eyes, and chanted, "Please let it be as good as the first, please let it be as good as the first." Well, it wasn't. It was even better!

This book picks up in the lives of Katniss and Peeta following their win of The Hunger Games, and their win over The Capitol. They live on eggshells as they try to keep The Capitol pacified, but unrest is rising in the districts. And The Capitol is not happy-- not one little bit.

I don't want to say too much, as I don't want to give up the twists and turns that make this book so much fun. Katniss remains as spirited and impulsive as she was in the first book. Poor Gale is in torment over the relationship between Katniss and Peeta, but is still strong and convicted. Peeta and Prim remain as sweet and good and pure as driven snow, and Haymitch remains the antithesis of them, tied up and buried under his past with the help of a drunken haze. The mysterious entanglements of the districts, their history, The Capitol, and underground movements slowly begin to unravel and reveal themselves.

If you've read The Hunger Games, and you enjoyed it, please, please, please crack open Catching Fire today. You won't be disappointed!

So...when does Mockingjay, the third book in the series, come out? *sigh*



My Rating: 9 out of 10