Review - 'The Hunger Games' by Suzanne Collins

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Synopsis:
'In the ruins of a place once known as North America lies the nation of Panem, a shining Capitol surrounded by twelve outlying districts. The Capitol is harsh and cruel and keeps the districts in line by forcing them all to send one boy and one girl between the ages of twelve and eighteen to participate in the annual Hunger Games, a fight to the death on live TV.

Sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen, who lives alone with her mother and younger sister, regards it as a death sentence when she steps forward to take her sister's place in the Games. But Katniss has been close to dead before—and survival, for her, is second nature. Without really meaning to, she becomes a contender. But if she is to win, she will have to start making choices that will weigh survival against humanity and life against love.'

I am a bit late as far as getting into The Hunger Games series but I'm so glad that I did.
My main reason for reading this book was all the hype surrounding the recently released movie because I am one of those people that refuse to see a movie based on a book without having read the book first.
Once I started this book I was hooked pretty much from the first few pages. It was such a fast paced read with wonderful narration that creates such a vivid picture in your mind. I love books like this that move at a fast pace and always have something significantly happening to make you want to just keep reading more and more. Books which take so long to describe the simplest event and move at a snail pace just to be overly descriptive tend to lose my interest very quickly (Yes, I'm pointing a finger at you 'Wheel of Time' series!)
This is technically a Young Adult book and is written from the perspective of a 16 year old girl named Katniss but it is in no way a childish perspective which I thought was great. You could tell that the hard life lead by Katniss shaped her more adult perspective on life and this was evident in the way the story was told. Obviously there were certain things that made you remember that she was only 16, especially her naivety with regard to the feeling of love after everything that went on between her and Peeta, the other tribute from her District.
Overall I hated putting this book down and definitely think it's a book that everyone should read. The ending left me wanting more and I just can't wait to start the second one in the series.

Did everyone else get as hooked on this series as I did?

Michelle xx