In My Mailbox [45]

So technically this wasn't in my mailbox, nor is it a book, but I figured it was still worth sharing:

I was at Chapters.Indigo today and ended up getting a Hunger Games/Catching Fire/Mockingjay t-shirt! (It's actually just one shirt -the front view is shown on the left and the back view is shown on the right.) I hadn't realized there was so much THG merchandise out already - board games, magnets, stickers, keychains, shirts, you name it!

I'm pretty excited to start wearing it; it'll definitely be cool to see if anyone else recognizes the meaning behind it and mention it.

To find some of my previous posts on: The Hunger Games, Catching Fire, and Mockingjay.

What was in your mailbox this week?

*In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by The Story Siren

The Many Faces of The Hunger Games

It's always fascinating to compare international covers for books, see what persona they're taking on around the globe. Sure, there's that old saying, "don't judge a book by its cover" - but oftentimes, a book's cover can say a lot about its contents. This isn't a complete collection of all the international covers, but they're ones that I find of particular note.

These are the German covers for The Hunger Games and Catching Fire, respectively. There's no denying that both covers are very striking, very gorgeous. Beautiful colour schemes, and the covers themselves just sort of pop. I also like how only half the face is shown, and the eye just sort of stares at you. It's also kind of cool how "Panem" is the word of main focus on both covers.

These are the Taiwanese covers for The Hunger Games and Catching Fire, respectively. They both have the signature mockingjay on the cover, one in gold, one in bronze. Personally I think the cover for THG kind of looks like a movie poster. The atmosphere created is definitely chilling. Really like the colour scheme of CF, and how some of the main tribulations of the arena are depicted here.

Both of these are from the UK, and both are of The Hunger Games - but one is a girl version, and one is a boy version. I don't tihnk I've seen anything like this before, one book marketed simultaneously to different gender groups by having different covers. It's kind of a cool idea, really. The guy one has a Stephen King blurb, the gal one Stephenie Meyer. Hmm...

These are both of The Hunger Games as well, the Swedish on the left and the Danish on the right. The image on the Swedish cover is definitely very chilling, but I'm not particularly fond of the way the text was integrated. Love the title font on the Danish cover. The image itself seems to be marketed almost towards a younger audience though...

Again, both are of The Hunger Games, the Russian one is one left, and on the right is the cover from the Netherlands. For the Russian one, the characters aren't really how I would picture them. For one thing, they look older than they should. For another - and wait for the explanation before getting indignant - I would expect Katniss to be portrayed as thinner. If that's Gale in the background, likewise. If that's Peeta... well. Anyway - why? Despite being able to hunt, Katniss is from the Seam, and it's referenced throughout numerous times that food is not plentiful. Sure, she's able to get game. But it's still only enough to fill her stomach, not enough to eat in excess. That, plus the fact that she's always expending a large amount of energy, one would expect her to be a little more malnourished-looking. Walking around looking like she's getting a full three meals a day and then some would probably arouse a fair amount more suspicion than safe, considering the physical state of the other people around her. Really like the blue gradient on the Danish version of the cover.

How about you guys, any particular covers you like more than the others? What do you think of these ones?

Katniss To Die In Mockingjay?

Recently, Suzanne Collins was interviewed by the School Library Journal (which can be found here, for any of you who haven't seen it yet). Before you read further, I must warn you that there are spoilers pertaining to The Hunger Games, Catching Fire, and Gladiator in this post.

Now, there was one particular question & answer pairing that jumped out at me, and it'd be great to hear you guys weigh in as well. Says Collins,

"But once the “Hunger Games” story takes off, I actually would say that the historical figure of Spartacus really becomes more of a model [...] for Katniss. We don’t know a lot of details about his life, but there was this guy named Spartacus who was a gladiator who broke out of the arena and led a rebellion against an oppressive government that led to what is called the Third Servile War. He caused the Romans quite a bit of trouble. And, ultimately, he died."

Could this possibly be foreshadowing for Katniss Everdeen's fate? And you know, it kind of reminds me of Gladiator, that 2000 film starring Russell Crowe. And *spoiler alert* Maximus dies at the end of the movie. I mean, from an emotion-evokation perspective, that would definitely carry heavy impact.

And considering Collins's style, I can't imagine her finishing off Mockingjay with a happy fairy-tale ending. So let's face it - there're going to be deaths. There's going to be carnage. The whole Gale-Katniss-Peeta triangle is not going to end perfectly for all.

So, what do you think? Will Katniss follow in the footsteps of Spartacus and Maximus and the like and suffer a Romantically tragic demise? Will she survive? Which of those close to her will meet untimely ends?

Waiting on Wednesday (17)

Mockingjay - Suzanne Collins
*August 24th, 2010 Scholastic

Against all odds, Katniss Everdeen has survived the Hunger Games twice. But now that she’s made it out of the bloody arena alive, she’s still not safe. The Capitol is angry. The Capitol wants revenge. Who do they think should pay for the unrest? Katniss. And what’s worse, President Snow has made it clear that no one else is safe either. Not Katniss’s family, not her friends, not the people of District 12. Powerful and haunting, this thrilling final installment of Suzanne Collins’s groundbreaking The Hunger Games trilogy promises to be one of the most talked about books of the year.

It's Mockingjay, what can I say? A little over a month! Who's excited?!

*WoW is hosted by Jill over at Breaking the Spine

Birthmarked Review

Birthmarked - Caragh O'Brien
*March 30th, 2010 Roaring Brook Press

After climate change, on the north shore of Unlake Superior, a dystopian world is divided between those who live inside the wall, and those, like sixteen-year-old midwife Gaia Stone, who live outside. It’s Gaia’s job to “advance” a quota of infants from poverty into the walled Enclave, until the night one agonized mother objects, and Gaia’s parents are arrested.

Badly scarred since childhood, Gaia is a strong, resourceful loner who begins to question her society. As Gaia’s efforts to save her parents take her within the wall, she herself is arrested and imprisoned.

Fraught with difficult moral choices and rich with intricate layers of codes, BIRTHMARKED explores a colorful, cruel, eerily familiar world where one girl can make all the difference, and a real hero makes her own moral code.

Caragh O'Brien's Birthmarked is the best book of 2010 thus far. I've been letting my thoughts sit and simmer for a few days, in the hopes of being able to churn out a more coherent review. Even so, it looks as though this will be a pseudo-review in the style of my review of The Hunger Games from awhile back. Which is oddly fitting, actually. See, I have all my favourite books, in hardcover, placed in a cluster on my bookshelf. Birthmarked is the latest addition amongst the likes of Willow (Julia Hoban), The Hunger Games & Catching Fire (Suzanne Collins).

One of the integral aspects of dystopian lit is world-building. The writer, and in turn the persona, has to be a segway for the readers into a new realm, an introduction to a world so like our own, yet so grotesquely unlike at the same time. Something that's a satirical hyperbole of our society, but at the same time, credible. The world building in Birthmarked is pretty phenomenal. O'Brien's attention to minute detail is what really brings Gaia's world to life. The specific lingo (mabrother, masister, Tvalter, etc.) is unique really shows the development of linguistics since our time. "Unlake Superior" is a clever play-on (and doubly cool because the city I live in is located on Lake Superior's shores). The hats were a great quirk specific to this new, imagined future. And of course - there's the code.

Another aspect that I respect in YA literature is having a strong leading lady. Gaia Stone fulfills that role admirably. There's no damsel-in-distress in Birthmarked, waiting around passively to be rescued. Gaia goes out there, and she gets it done. She brings the action, she forwards the plot, and she makes it happen. Sergeant Grey... hehehe, what can I say? He's pretty dreamy, yeah. :) Probably one of the best boys of YA, and all that jazz, no big deal or anything. (Subliminal message = read Birthmarked!)

I'll admit - I was getting a little worried at the very beginning in regards to Gaia's initial reactions, and it was a little hard to suspend disbelief at that point. But once you get past the beginning exposition (which is kind of inevitable, considering the world-building needed for sci fi - and besides, relatively speaking, that section is quite miniscule), WOW. Just wow. And yeah, there were some plot elements that were a little predicatable, but the plot just worked here. It just meshed with the story, the characters...

One of the other great things about Birthmarked is simply how smart it is. The technology in it, the science behind it... it really adds an extra layer of depth, which is great to see. In case you can't tell from my review thus far - basically, I loved Birthmarked.

These meager words here hardly do Caragh O'Brien's Birthmarked justice. This is one to move to the top of the TBR list, a must-read. A dystopian masterpiece.

Caragh O'Brien | Goodreads | IndieBound

*Luckily, it looks like Birthmarked will have a sequel! Which is awesome, because the ending sets itself up perfectly for more to follow - the story's not over yet :) If you've reviewed/read this, drop me a comment?

**Also - stayed tuned, because we've got an interview with the formidable Caragh O'Brien coming up in the near future! :)

Mockingjay Cover

The cover for Mockingjay, the final installment of Suzanne Collins' highly acclaimed trilogy that began with The Hunger Games and continued with Catching Fire, has been released today. And what a cover it is!

For one thing, it's a beautiful shade of blue. For another - doesn't the cover seem to be just teeming with symbolism? I mean, the first two covers demonstrated obvious correlations and parallel structure - and so does this one. But the centre circle - it's bursting apart! Do they represent the districts, and the freedom gained? In fact, the bird on this cover - posture-wise, orientation, etc. does seem to seem more self-confident, more free somehow. The others seem to be almost held captive by their respective circles - this one's got its wings spread out to full wingspan, ready to take flight.

What a beautiful title too; Mockingjay. Even the ring of it sounds beautiful. Also interesting to note that THG had three words, in the title, CF two, and now M one. Almost like we're counting down, y'know?

And for comparison's sake, here are the two earlier counterparts of the trilogy's covers:

Certainly Collins has lucked out with a series of great covers over the course of this series. Do you guys have a favourite? Any predictions on the final outcome and/or events of this third installment?

My review of The Hunger Games; alas, haven't gotten around to reviewing Catching Fire yet, despite delving into day of its release. Here's the Scholastic blog, USA Today, and Publishers Weekly's takes on the cover.

In My Mailbox [21]

Brought to you by Alea & Kristi, Lucid Conspiracy presents In My Mailbox #21...

So, I didn't get anything in my mailbox this week. But - there was a book that I'd forgotten to mention in last week's IMM compilation post of like, the previous five weeks or so.

I actually purchased Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins the weekend after it came out - so, Saturday September 5th, I believe it was. And of course, I devoured it that very weekend, pretty much. (You can see my review of The Hunger Games here.)

It was... definitely thought-provoking, in a different sort of way. I've had to let it sit for a while to collect my thoughts on it, and hopefully I'll crank out a review soon, after I clear the backlog queue of other reviews I've got to churn out.

Drats on homework and extra-curriculars and etc. so I haven't been around as much recently, but hopefully once everything settles down and I get back into the swing of things, it'll all ameliorate!

Your turn now though - what was in your mailbox this week?

The Hunger Games

The Hunger Games - Suzanne Collins

Winning means fame and fortune.
Losing means certain death.
The Hunger Games have begun...

Disclaimer: I have noticed that there tends to be a slight lag time between my finishing a book and typing up a review - mostly because it's easier to be objective after some distance from initial impressions. I may come back and make slight changes to this, as it's been mere hours since finishing THG.

Literally, I must be among one of the last in the blogosphere to read The Hunger Games, so originally I hadn't been planning to write a review. But. After I broke down and picked up a copy at Chapters - and devoured it - I just had to write some thoughts down. Bear with me if it's a little incoherent, as it's more of a ramble of contemplations than an actual review. We'll call it a pseudo-review.

Firstly, Suzanne Collins's The Hunger Games is an absolutely breathtaking masterpiece. I seem to be on a bit of an dysfunctional futuristic sci fi rampage these days, what with reading Anthem, The Chrysalids, and researching 1984, Brave New World, and the like. And The Hunger Games completely blew me away with its originality. That's not to say every single concept was entirely unheard of previously (hearing the premise before reading, it reminded me of Gloria Skurzynski's The Virtual War Chronologs), but the execution was definitely Collins's own.

The voice was excellent. It was distinctive, wry at times, with dispersed bits of dry humour - which is quite the feat, considering the fact that this is a book about survival by killing other kids your age. The tense - present - was barely noticeable. In fact, half the time, it was like the words fell away and the immediacy offered just brought the reader that much closer to Katniss because of the barely noticeable tense. I mean, with most books, on some level you're aware that you're simply reading the story. But with The Hunger Games, there were moments where the words just fell away and it was like actually being immersed in the story. And the flashbacks! Wow - incorporating backstory like that, in such a form, without making it seem like an infodump - that in itself is a huge accomplishment, which is more than can be said for a lot of others.

The characterization of Katniss was excellent. I enjoyed the fact that her shortcomings were realistically portrayed in an endearing way. Especially the way - epitome of show, don't tell, as far as writers' advice goes. The flaws seemed natural, not purposely fabricated to escape Sue-dom, but simply part of who she is. She's a spunky one. (And alright, I may be slightly biased, having slight feminist tendencies at times, seeing as how Katniss is such a strong female lead.) In contrast, there were slight moments of too much perfection coming from Peeta Mellark at times, but viewed from Katniss's narration, these hardly made a noticeable impact.
However, throughout the novel, Peeta's name kept bothering me. And I couldn't figure out why. But now I have - Peeta. Does that not remind you of pita bread? The baker's son? If that was indeed what Collins was going for; ingeniously sly.

Let's face it. Most of us probably have not experienced the things that Katniss and Peeta have; going without food, being beaten for burning bread, and certainly not the Games themselves. Such is the skill of Collins, being able to pull the audience in, allowing them to emphathize with something so different, so remote. Diction choice just had to extra zesty zing.

The premise also brings up a lot of interesting concepts. We have to admit it - with the way media is going nowadays, I mean honestly, reality t.v., there's not a lot of thinking involved. Purely entertainment value, right? Somehow, Collins took this concept, tossed it into a crock-pot with the whole Gladiators concept, and churned out something so deeply thought-provoking. Is our society already headed in such a direction?

And it's not blatantly thought-provoking either; it's one of those novels that creeps up on you, subconciously starting a thought process that continues into conciousness. While being an entertaining read, especially how even in such dire situations, she is able to inject spasms of humour. The Hunger Games is utter brilliance.
I have no idea how I'm going to wait until September 1st for Catching Fire - it feels so far away. I really want an ARC - especially with that ending...

Phew-wee. And I really want to talk about this, without worrying about spoilers. If you've reviewed/read this, drop me a link or comment?