Hello again! I'm really proud that my little blog grew so much in three weeks. Of course, I would not have been able to achieve this without the help and support from my friends and family. A big thank you to everyone for being so supportive!
I'm also glad that Nuffnang is so nice to give away so much goodies. I was a really happy child when Nuffnang gave The Hunger Games: Catching Fire preview passes to my friend, Elie, and she gave them to me! The movie was so good that I gave it 8★ in my review here. I also ended up reading the final book; The Hunger Games: Mockingjay, because I could not wait to find out what happens to Katniss next!
First, a disclaimer. I am not a book person. I only read books for tests and exams but nothing much beyond that. I don't read magazines, but I do like comics like Doraemon and Mr Q. Though I don't think comics qualify as books cause it has more pictures than words. Picture books maybe?
So my last book-with-more-words-than-pictures is the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series by Jeff Kinney. Yes, I know that Wimpy Kid is intended for kids, but it actually has a good story and most importantly, large font. When I first opened Mockingjay, I noticed that it has a large font. Thank God, cause it would be very hard for me to read it otherwise. I actually tried to read the Harry Potter series, but gave up because the font is so tiny!
On to the book review! Frankly, I was so drawn into the book that I would have finished it in two days! But I decided to pace myself. This book was supposed to last me until the end of November (Imaginary self-proclaimed deadline of two weeks). Unfortunately, things don't often go as planned and I ended up finishing it in a week! So much for the deadline.
Anyways, I think watching Catching Fire before reading the book made it easier to read because I would be imagining Jennifer Lawrence and the other actors doing what the book says. Overall, Mockingjay managed to satiate my curiosity of what will happen next, but personally, the ending disappointed me a little. If you want to wait a year to find out what happens to Katniss next and who she chooses in the end, then stop reading here because..
Mockingjay continues where Catching Fire left off. The mini revolutions that we saw in Catching Fire have become full-scale revolutions revolving around the symbol of hope aka the Mockingjay aka Ms Katniss Everdeen. 75% of the book goes through how Katniss trains and grows to fulfill her role.
The book also builds up her relationships with Gale and Peeta but these developments are only minor things. Like Katniss coming to appreciate Gale, then start to hate him again, and somehow end up kissing and hunting together. All these issues would be resolved if Katniss learnt how to let all her feelings out and not keep secrets. Take note people! Katniss is the best example of what not to do in a relationship!
I also got spoiler from friends that Katniss will end up with Peeta. So when I read the book, I was expecting an exciting plot twist that will cause Katniss to choose Peeta over Gale. But no! The reason is only briefly explained in the ending. There was no honourable duel to the death between Peeta and Gale. No fist fights. Not even a war of words.
The climax of the revolution was a bit weird. I felt that after all that hard work Katniss put in, she didn’t play that great of a role in taking over the Capitol. That was the result of the assault team’s teamwork and ingenuity. Yes, Katniss was also part of that team but she was more of the face of the team. The symbol. The Mockingjay. So maybe it isn’t weird after all because that is all that she was meant to do. To become the face of the revolution. A person whom everyone, including the Capitol residents could identify with.
Nevertheless, the book is really detailed and action packed. Suzanne Collins wrote in so much detail that frankly when some people died in a gross manner, the scene I imagined could very well have been a scene from a final destination movie. The storyline also got my inner Katniss fire burning when I learned of the kind of torture that the Capitol inflicted onto the prisoners. It made me want to join in the revolution to overthrow the Capitol too.
Overall, I only felt disappointment because I had expectations before reading the book. If I did not have any expectations, then I would have enjoyed reading the book more. So my advice is to let go of all your expectations of the book and just let Suzanne Collins tell the story herself.
Well, that's all I have to say about The Hunger Games: Mockingjay.
Take care and toodles~
