which is the popular teen book at the moment. We had our Harry Potter faze, our Twilight faze and now it is the Hunger games (maybe I missed a few in between?) The Hunger Games is the first one I have gotten sucked in to.
The Hunger Games is a book set in the supposed future of our world. We are now under the watchful eye of the "capital" and have strict rules each 12 districts must live by. In the past the "districts" had uprisings against the "capital" and years later are still being severely punished. Each year there is a "reaping". Every child from the age 10-18 must have their names placed in a drawing, one boy and one girl will be chosen from each district. The 24 children chosen will be placed in a arena to fight till the death. The book follows Katniss, one of the fighters who decides to volunteer after her sister's name was chosen. It is a gruesome plot and I have heard people say it encourages violence and has little, to no moral value. I strongly disagree with that. I think, like so many things in life it is a tool that can be used to apply critical thinking and a teaching tool about government, power, the sanctity of life and the importance of standing up for injustice. If I were a parent of a young adult, with caution, I would allow my child to read this book and I would want us to discuss moral issues that arise and use it as a teaching tool. I think the Hunger Games opens up great opportunity for discussion! That is not something to shy away from. I hope as my son gets older I look for ways to encourage critical thinking and allow time for learning discussions. I think books are a great way to do that! I would recommend this book with a slight hesitation: it is violent. I don't think it is gory and it always points to the injustice of the situation the Author does not condone the violence. In fact, she goes out of her way to make the reader feel the injustice along with the characters. With that hesitation aside, I would highly recommend it. It is a super easy, fast, and enjoyable read. So, go pop some popcorn and sit down for a nice read, you'll be glad you did.
The Hunger Games is a book set in the supposed future of our world. We are now under the watchful eye of the "capital" and have strict rules each 12 districts must live by. In the past the "districts" had uprisings against the "capital" and years later are still being severely punished. Each year there is a "reaping". Every child from the age 10-18 must have their names placed in a drawing, one boy and one girl will be chosen from each district. The 24 children chosen will be placed in a arena to fight till the death. The book follows Katniss, one of the fighters who decides to volunteer after her sister's name was chosen. It is a gruesome plot and I have heard people say it encourages violence and has little, to no moral value. I strongly disagree with that. I think, like so many things in life it is a tool that can be used to apply critical thinking and a teaching tool about government, power, the sanctity of life and the importance of standing up for injustice. If I were a parent of a young adult, with caution, I would allow my child to read this book and I would want us to discuss moral issues that arise and use it as a teaching tool. I think the Hunger Games opens up great opportunity for discussion! That is not something to shy away from. I hope as my son gets older I look for ways to encourage critical thinking and allow time for learning discussions. I think books are a great way to do that! I would recommend this book with a slight hesitation: it is violent. I don't think it is gory and it always points to the injustice of the situation the Author does not condone the violence. In fact, she goes out of her way to make the reader feel the injustice along with the characters. With that hesitation aside, I would highly recommend it. It is a super easy, fast, and enjoyable read. So, go pop some popcorn and sit down for a nice read, you'll be glad you did.
As a side note, this is where I go in my dreams most nights, the Popcorn Station and it is where I got my delicious popcorn I enjoyed as I read the Hunger games.
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