Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins Review
Nov. 18th, 2010 03:45 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
iariaI was honestly surprised by how grim and depressing this book was. I mean this series deals with a pretty bleak reality already but even so I was not expecting it to all end like this. I guess I was expecting it to at least turn out well for Katniss. But the last third of this book was just pretty much unrelenting bleakness – and the first two thirds weren’t all that happy either – and just, yikes. I find myself wondering if the producers of the upcoming Hunger Games movie read this book and then swore.
- I think there was more death in this book than in the first two combined and, while it may just be because it’s been a few months since I’ve read the first two books, the deaths felt more horrific in this book. Numerous reoccurring characters died, others we got to know over this book and what really stuck out was how many children were killed.
Looking back it really feels like this book focused on the death of children more than the others. I mean all the people in the Games were children, or rather teenagers, but it’s easy to forget that sometimes. And in this book you have Katniss watching kids die – at the warehouse, the little girl in the yellow coat, and then death of all the children at the president’s building – and their deaths were very horrifying.
- Finnick’s death surprised me. I mean they let Katniss bond with him, gave him his happy ending and I guess I was expecting him to survive. Plus the way he died – it was so quick and it took me a moment to realise it. I’m glad that he got that happiness for a little bit especially after all he’d been though in his life. Poor Finnick.
- I love that Annie didn’t fall apart after his death. When we see her at the end she seems as composed and together as she ever did and I liked that.
- The moment that shocked me the most in the whole book was that Suzanne killed off Prim. I didn’t even realise that it had happened at first. I read the paragraph that described her at the wall but I didn’t realise it was her and it wasn’t until a further five pages when Katniss states that she watched her little sister ‘become a human torch’ that I realised that it was Prim who died. Those pages had been a little confusing, I was wondering why Katniss had given up so thoroughly and then I read that line and went ‘what the fucking hell’ and went back and re-read. I still can’t believe that she was killed off, and killed by burning her alive. Holy crap.
I loved Prim. She seemed like such a strong and compassionate and wonderful person. Plus her dying when the whole book started by Katniss taking her place to save her life was just an added level of ouch.
- One thing I was expecting was Katniss killing President Coin and it was a very satisfying moment.
- The most touching moment for me was Katniss and Buttercups reunion at the end. That he walked all the way back to District 12 and the home he knew, looking for his people, makes me weepy just thinking about it. And I cried when he perked up at Prim’s name, and then when he understood what Katniss meant and grieved with her. At the same time it comforts me a lot that he does appear to realise that Prim is dead and not coming back. I always find it so terribly sad and horrible when I hear about pets waiting for their people to come back. I loved the line “we comfort each other” and the implication that he became her cat in some way and from that point on they had each other. Of course saying I cried isn’t strictly correct since I spent much of the last part of the book crying so it was more like I continued crying.
- I’ve never been very shippy about this series but of the two guys I wanted Katniss to choose Peeta more than I wanted her with Gale. That they did get together, and that they did get some semblance of a happy ending with each other – peace and healing and children – makes me happy. What really made me happy was that it never did come down to Katniss picked between Peeta and Gale. She didn’t choose one over the other. I liked that.
- Peeta’s storyline this episode was surprising and unexpected but it works for me because I think Katniss needed to have to work for Peeta’s love in order for her to realise she wanted him. I was surprised though by the distance Katniss kept from Peeta throughout this book.
- I was sad that Katniss and Gale’s friendship was destroyed. It was so important and necessary to both of them and they ended up losing each other when they needed each other most. I am glad it wasn’t because of romantic reasons though.
- I loved the larger role Johanna got and especially the Johanna/Katniss friendship. That was unexpected but made me so happy. Them being roommates and going through boot camp (basically) together and supporting one another made me happy. I loved that when Johanna ended up in the hospital Katniss gave her a bundle of pine needles to help her through it – so thoughtful and meant specifically for Johanna. I was very pleased that Johanna survived. I wish that we’d gotten to see some Johanna/Katniss interactions post-war. I’m choosing to believe that some of those missed calls were Johanna and after Katniss pulled herself together Johanna started visiting and they become best friends.
- Another aspect of the book that went differently than my expectations – more ‘real life’ – is Katniss’s role as the Mockingjay and that she wasn’t more involved in making decisions, that in the end the people didn’t rally around her, that she didn’t end up helping with the rebuilding and that she didn’t become a leader in the new governement. Instead she was confined, given a trial, and then basically banished to Distract 12 where she lived a quiet life. Huh.
- I like that District 13 wasn’t just the ‘good guy’ to the Capital’s ‘bad guy’ of the story. That it was more complicated than that.
- District 13’s fascination with Buttercup made me really sad for them. I cannot imagine not having pets. People need pets!
- I loved what we got from the Haymitch/Katniss relationship and I was really happy that he not only survived but ended up back in District 12 with Katniss. I do wish they’d had more interaction.
- For some reason I hadn’t actually expected Cinna to be dead. I thought he was still in the Capital, perhaps held prisoner, and it made me really sad when I realised, yes, he was dead. I hated that. I did like what we got with the rest of Katniss’s prep team. I also liked that while Katniss in a way lost her mother at the end she had Greasy Sae there to take care of her when she couldn’t.
- I was sad that Madge and her family just died and all you really get is one line about it. I had expected them to have some larger role in the story.
- The ending felt too rushed. If this book had ended with Katniss returning to District 12 with Haymitch and then we’d gotten a fourth book to deal with the fall out it would have worked better. Book 4 could be about Katniss dealing with her PTSD and healing, about Katniss/Peeta falling in love and finding their way back to each other, about Panem itself healing and moving on and it would have worked much better. Plus I really wanted Katniss to have more of a role in the rebuilding of Panem as well as more choice in her life. I’m imagining a camera crew, because they will always be there in her life, interviewing her a year later from the end of the war and her explaining exactly why she did what she did.
I think a part of me just wants Katniss to reclaim her choice from everyone else – they think she was insane and mentally incompetent and while to a degree she was she also very much wasn’t. She had a reason for killing Coin, several in fact, and they were good reasons in themselves. For her to be waived off at the end of the book by everyone as being crazy bothers me. I want her to have that chance to reclaim her choice.
- I think there was more death in this book than in the first two combined and, while it may just be because it’s been a few months since I’ve read the first two books, the deaths felt more horrific in this book. Numerous reoccurring characters died, others we got to know over this book and what really stuck out was how many children were killed.
Looking back it really feels like this book focused on the death of children more than the others. I mean all the people in the Games were children, or rather teenagers, but it’s easy to forget that sometimes. And in this book you have Katniss watching kids die – at the warehouse, the little girl in the yellow coat, and then death of all the children at the president’s building – and their deaths were very horrifying.
- Finnick’s death surprised me. I mean they let Katniss bond with him, gave him his happy ending and I guess I was expecting him to survive. Plus the way he died – it was so quick and it took me a moment to realise it. I’m glad that he got that happiness for a little bit especially after all he’d been though in his life. Poor Finnick.
- I love that Annie didn’t fall apart after his death. When we see her at the end she seems as composed and together as she ever did and I liked that.
- The moment that shocked me the most in the whole book was that Suzanne killed off Prim. I didn’t even realise that it had happened at first. I read the paragraph that described her at the wall but I didn’t realise it was her and it wasn’t until a further five pages when Katniss states that she watched her little sister ‘become a human torch’ that I realised that it was Prim who died. Those pages had been a little confusing, I was wondering why Katniss had given up so thoroughly and then I read that line and went ‘what the fucking hell’ and went back and re-read. I still can’t believe that she was killed off, and killed by burning her alive. Holy crap.
I loved Prim. She seemed like such a strong and compassionate and wonderful person. Plus her dying when the whole book started by Katniss taking her place to save her life was just an added level of ouch.
- One thing I was expecting was Katniss killing President Coin and it was a very satisfying moment.
- The most touching moment for me was Katniss and Buttercups reunion at the end. That he walked all the way back to District 12 and the home he knew, looking for his people, makes me weepy just thinking about it. And I cried when he perked up at Prim’s name, and then when he understood what Katniss meant and grieved with her. At the same time it comforts me a lot that he does appear to realise that Prim is dead and not coming back. I always find it so terribly sad and horrible when I hear about pets waiting for their people to come back. I loved the line “we comfort each other” and the implication that he became her cat in some way and from that point on they had each other. Of course saying I cried isn’t strictly correct since I spent much of the last part of the book crying so it was more like I continued crying.
- I’ve never been very shippy about this series but of the two guys I wanted Katniss to choose Peeta more than I wanted her with Gale. That they did get together, and that they did get some semblance of a happy ending with each other – peace and healing and children – makes me happy. What really made me happy was that it never did come down to Katniss picked between Peeta and Gale. She didn’t choose one over the other. I liked that.
- Peeta’s storyline this episode was surprising and unexpected but it works for me because I think Katniss needed to have to work for Peeta’s love in order for her to realise she wanted him. I was surprised though by the distance Katniss kept from Peeta throughout this book.
- I was sad that Katniss and Gale’s friendship was destroyed. It was so important and necessary to both of them and they ended up losing each other when they needed each other most. I am glad it wasn’t because of romantic reasons though.
- I loved the larger role Johanna got and especially the Johanna/Katniss friendship. That was unexpected but made me so happy. Them being roommates and going through boot camp (basically) together and supporting one another made me happy. I loved that when Johanna ended up in the hospital Katniss gave her a bundle of pine needles to help her through it – so thoughtful and meant specifically for Johanna. I was very pleased that Johanna survived. I wish that we’d gotten to see some Johanna/Katniss interactions post-war. I’m choosing to believe that some of those missed calls were Johanna and after Katniss pulled herself together Johanna started visiting and they become best friends.
- Another aspect of the book that went differently than my expectations – more ‘real life’ – is Katniss’s role as the Mockingjay and that she wasn’t more involved in making decisions, that in the end the people didn’t rally around her, that she didn’t end up helping with the rebuilding and that she didn’t become a leader in the new governement. Instead she was confined, given a trial, and then basically banished to Distract 12 where she lived a quiet life. Huh.
- I like that District 13 wasn’t just the ‘good guy’ to the Capital’s ‘bad guy’ of the story. That it was more complicated than that.
- District 13’s fascination with Buttercup made me really sad for them. I cannot imagine not having pets. People need pets!
- I loved what we got from the Haymitch/Katniss relationship and I was really happy that he not only survived but ended up back in District 12 with Katniss. I do wish they’d had more interaction.
- For some reason I hadn’t actually expected Cinna to be dead. I thought he was still in the Capital, perhaps held prisoner, and it made me really sad when I realised, yes, he was dead. I hated that. I did like what we got with the rest of Katniss’s prep team. I also liked that while Katniss in a way lost her mother at the end she had Greasy Sae there to take care of her when she couldn’t.
- I was sad that Madge and her family just died and all you really get is one line about it. I had expected them to have some larger role in the story.
- The ending felt too rushed. If this book had ended with Katniss returning to District 12 with Haymitch and then we’d gotten a fourth book to deal with the fall out it would have worked better. Book 4 could be about Katniss dealing with her PTSD and healing, about Katniss/Peeta falling in love and finding their way back to each other, about Panem itself healing and moving on and it would have worked much better. Plus I really wanted Katniss to have more of a role in the rebuilding of Panem as well as more choice in her life. I’m imagining a camera crew, because they will always be there in her life, interviewing her a year later from the end of the war and her explaining exactly why she did what she did.
I think a part of me just wants Katniss to reclaim her choice from everyone else – they think she was insane and mentally incompetent and while to a degree she was she also very much wasn’t. She had a reason for killing Coin, several in fact, and they were good reasons in themselves. For her to be waived off at the end of the book by everyone as being crazy bothers me. I want her to have that chance to reclaim her choice.
