The Hunger Games Trilogy

I started reading book one of the Hunger Games trilogy, "The Hunger Games", at the beginning of the marking period. I found it entirely compelling and a wonderful read. I became obsessed with the books; I faked sick one Saturday night to finish reading it. It was worth it! I adore Suzanne Collins' engaging details and plot lines. She has the habit of ending every chapter with an intense cliff-hanger, Nancy Drew style. How was I supposed to stop? In the first book, we are introduced to the life of Katniss Everdeen, a poor girl growing up in District 12. She lives in Panem, which is North America in the future. There were 13 districts in Panem but one rebelled against the capital and the entire district was blown apart. As a reminder of the rebels of District 13, the Capital holds The Hunger Games as a reminder that they are the most powerful and will demoralize the districts at any chance they can get. In the Hunger games, 24 people are chosen to compete to the death (2, a boy and a girl, are chosen from each district). The last one standing is the victor and as a reward, they live in luxury for the rest of their lives. We find that Prim Everdeen has been chosen as the female tribute in the Hunger Games this year. Her older sister, Katniss, steps in for her place in a dire effort to protect Prim. The male tribute from District 12 is Peeta Mellark. Katniss and Peeta are forced to leave their family and friends to go to the Capital to compete--they will most likely never see their loved ones again. District 12's odds of winning are always the slimmest, being the poorest district. Despite this, Katniss and Peeta enter the arena determined. Throughout the Games, Peeta and Katniss become closer. After confessing his love to Katniss, Peeta depends on her for his survival. Katniss begins to fall for him... but for a different reason, or so she thinks. Every time Katniss kisses Peeta or shows affection towards him, she receives a gift that will help her and Peeta to survive. Katniss carries out this love until the end of the games, where only her and Peeta are left standing. Instead of fighting each other, they decide to kill themselves with poisonous berries. However, they are stopped and are both crowned victors. At the end of the book, Katniss confesses to Peeta that she doesn't think that she really loves him.
Collins opens up the second book, "Catching Fire", explaining Katniss' new life as a victor. In her gorgeous home, Katniss is visited by President Snow, the ruler of Panem. He tells her that he knows that her love for Peeta is fake, and that the berry stunt was rebellious towards the capital. He threatens to kill her and her loved ones if she doesn't convince Panem that this was not an act of rebellion. After this encounter, Peeta and Katniss begin their victory tour where they talk to all the districts. While on the tour, the two hear whispers of rebellion. They hope to subdue this talk when Peeta proposes to Katniss. However, as rebellious acts against the capital start up, the 75th annual Hunger Games comes around. To punish Katniss, they put her and Peeta back into the games along with another 22 previous winners. These games are different, alliances are formed from the beginning and the tributes work together to get out of the arena. And, by using electrical wiring, they do just that. The force field is broken between the arena and the real world. Immeadietly, helicopters from both the capital and DISTRICT 13 come in to the rescue. We find that District 13 has been thriving underground and that they will do anything to help aid the forming rebellion. We also find that District 12, Katniss' home, has been destroyed by the capital.
Book three, "Mockingjay": Katniss has been rescued by 13, along with a few of her other allies. However, Peeta has been captured by the capital. This less eventful book was not as fun to read as the other two. Basically, rebellion is in full scale-- Capital vs. Districts. Katniss is worried about Peeta, but admits that she loves her best friend from 12, Gale. They bonded over their mutual love of hunting back before the 74th Games. They help each other fight the capital in the districts as well as coping with the loss of their home. However, things get more complicated when Peeta is rescued from the Capital. He is not himself... the Capital has programmed Peeta to try and kill Katniss. The Capital manipulated any old, loving memory of her to be a horrible one. But Katniss must not distract herself too much from this if she plans to kill Snow. She is the face of the rebellion, the "Mockingjay". Eventually, Peeta starts to get better and joins Katniss' regime when they go to invade the Capital along with the other rebels. Gale is also with them, along with a few of their victor friends from the second book. Their mission is to get to Snow's mansion. Along the way, almost everyone in the regime dies. Katniss is split up from Gale and Peeta, but makes it to the mansion alone. However, huge explosions go off killing children residing in the mansion. When all the medics come out to help, a second bombing goes off and Katniss' sister, Prim, is murdered. Katniss doesn't make it to the capital because she is set aflame. But she later finds that the Capital has fallen and that the president of 13, Coin, is now the leader of Panem. Peeta and Gale are both safe, but Katniss is devastated by her sister's death. Snow has not been killed, and Katniss is the one who will do it. But beforehand she talks to Snow and finds out that he did not set off the explosions that killed her sister, but Coin did. This enrages Katniss and instead of executing Snow, she shoots Coin. This ensues a riot and Snow is killed during this. Katniss returns back to her home in 12 to realize that she cannot love Gale because he helped create the bomb that killed Prim. So, when Peeta follows her, she decides that she does love him and they eventually get married. This book kind of sucked compared to the other two, but the series is amazing, nonetheless.

Eat Pray Love by Elizabeth Gilbert

Although not entirely finished with this novel, I find it extremely entertaining and insightful. Elizabeth Gilbert, or "Liz", tells the story of recovering from her divorce-induced depression. She decided that in order to start over, eat her heart out, follow god, and (unexpectedly) find love once more. Liz wrote her novel in 108 parts, symbolizing the 108 beads on the traditional "malas" or, meditation necklaces. When Liz first divorced her husband, she found a buddhist guru to follow, initiating her quest to India. I find this very inspirational considering I am not a very religeous person. Her faith in god gave her strength and I respect her very much for that. I am very excited to get to her travels in India to read more about her religeon and meditations. I am currently reading about her expedition to Rome, Italy. Here she eats her heart out and makes new friends. I have to say, her outstanding use of imagery when she describes her many Italian meals inspires me to venture to my kitchen for a midnight snack. Gilbert is a wonderful author and I am very excited to keep reading this novel!

Symbolism of the robin in The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett

The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgen Burnett is a beautifuly written story. Mary, the main character moves from India to a moor in Northern England when her parents die. There, she befriends a robin who leads her to the secret garden that she has been looking for. The robin is homologous to Mary. Both the robin and Mary are curious; Mary spends her time searching for a secret garden and the robin spends his time poking around in Ben Wetherstaff's and Mary's bussiness. Mary and the robin are also both very lively; Mary skips rope and gardens all day, building up a serious appetite and the robin chirps around, trying to communicate with the people for the entire day. These similarities bring Mary and the robin to one significant way that they are alike. Both are just looking for a friend. They end up finding a friend in each other and the robin leads Mary to the secret garden where she is able to find her childhood innocence and a few more friends.

The Help by Kathryn Stockett

"The Help" by Kathryn Stockett is an inspirational novel set in Jackson, Mississippi during the 1960s. The book revolves around segregation and racism towards the maids, or help, of the haughty southern ladies of Jackson. The book is narrated by three different women We start off by hearing the book in Aibleen's, a black maid to Miss Elizabeth Leefolt. Aibleen is bascically the mother figure to Miss Leefolt's daughter, Mae Mobley. We hear of how much Aibleen loves Mae Mobley and how poorly Miss Leefolt treats Mae Mobley and Aibleen. The catalytic proposal by Miss Leefolt's best friend, Miss Hilly, to install bathrooms in every house in Jackson, Mississippi for the help to use sets the book in motion. Miss Hilly proposes this because of her false accusations that all colored people carry diseases and other ungodly disorders. She felt that by sharing bathrooms, the "diseases" would contaminate the entire house. Miss Hilly demands her friend, Miss Skeeter, the writer of the League of Jackson's newsletter, to write a proposal to the bathroom installation plan in the newsletter. Miss Skeeter, a more liberal southerner decides that this segregation is not right. She refuses to post the article and with her new rage, she begins to truly pursue a job in journalism. After talking to the editor of a New York City publishing company, Skeeter begins to write a book about being a maid in Jackson. She interviews Aibleen and Minny (the third, rambunctious narrator) along with 10 other maids. When finally published, her book begins to create drama in the white community, especially with Miss Hilly. Although the book is 100% anonymous, she realizes that the book was written about her and her friends by their help. And, although in the end many maids get fired and families are torn apart by the effects of the book, it was a groundbreaking attempt to end segregation in Jackson and show, the efforts and miseries of the help in Jackson, Mississippi.

Water for Elephants

When first reading Water For Elephants by Sara Gruen, I thought that it was going to be very difficult. But, as it turns out, the slight challenge is nice and I quite enjoy it! I love Gruen's depiction of the circus and I can admit to looking up more information about circuses in the mid 1900s. Very interesting, indeed! I am very intrigued by the main character, Jacob's, story. I think that this book is much about vulnerability. Jacob lives a pretty good life. He goes to an Ivy league college and he is already set up with a veterinary career because his father owns a practice. But when his parents die in a terrible car crash, he is left with nothing. Because of the depression, the bank claims his house and the practice. Jacob is left with nothing, vulnerable to the open world. He drops everything and hops on a train that turns out to be the circus. He is again vulnerable there and this allows him to be set to do anything. He starts out by shoveling manure... not the greatest job but he accepts it. He then becomes a crowd pleasure; he tries to get people to see the side shows. When the big circus starts, he sees a beautiful performer... although he used to be too shy to talk to girls--to even associate with them at all. But, with his new acquired vulnerability he was able to talk to her and form an, eventually, unbreakable bond. 

Sold by Patricia McCormick

A heart-wrenching story about a girl named Lakshmi's life as a prostitute. Lakshmi lives in a small hut in a small village in the mountains of Nepal. Her family is so poor, that they cannot afford a tin roof over their heads. When her family's crops (their only means of income) are washed out my the monsoon, Lakshmi's step-father sells her into prostitution in order to pay off her family's debt. Her mother tells her, "Simply to endure is triumph," and Lakshmi makes a mantra of these words. She goes on a long journey to India where she enters the "Happiness House." Because Lakshmi is resistant to the evil ways of the owner, Mumtaz, Lakshmi is isolated in a drab room where she must be drugged so that her clients can freely rape her. When Lakshmi finally gives in to the prostitution, her life truly becomes a nightmare. Mumtaz cheats her out of her money; even after her family's debt is payed. But, she listens to her mother's words and endures. Finally, after a long time of prayers and diluted hope, Lakshmi is rescued by Americans who raid the "Happiness House." After enduring the misery and horrors of being a prostitute, Lakshmi eventually triumphs and becomes a stronger and more mature woman who can finally lead a happy life.

Gone WIth the Wind by Margaret Mitchell

A beautifully written story of love, conflict and war. The pulitzer prize winning novel by Margaret Mitchell has been inspirational to women since 1939. Mitchell writes of a teenage girl, Scarlett O'Hara, and her experiences with love and dealing with the pain of the Civil War. Scarlett is a vivacious, awe-striking, outspoken young woman. Men fall at her feet; she can seduce them with just saying "hello." Her many beau result in a deceiving reputation. Although many find her to be self-centered (as portrayed in the movie), Scarlett is actually an extremely strong individual. She takes over her father's plantation, Tara, when her mother is sick and her dad becomes psychotic. She fights off the carpetbaggers when they try to take Tara from her due to taxes and proves herself to be extremely courageous. The strength and courage of Scarlett acts as a motivation for the thousands of women who read this book to be more proactive with their own lives and live freely and rambunctiously, as Scarlett has.