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The Hunger Games is a young adult novel written by Suzanne Collins. It was originally published in hardcover on September 14, 2008, by Scholastic.[1] It is written in first person and introduces sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen, who lives in a post-apocalyptic world in the country of Panem where the countries of North America once existed. The Capitol, a highly advanced metropolis, holds absolute power over the rest of the nation. The Hunger Games are an annual event in which one boy and one girl aged 12 to 18 from each of the 12 districts surrounding the Capitol are selected by lottery to compete in a televised battle in which only one person can survive.

The book has been released as a paperback and also an audiobook and e-book. The Hunger Games had an initial print of 200,000 – twice doubled from the original 50,000. Since its initial release, the novel has been translated into 26 different languages and rights of production have been sold in 38 countries. The book received mostly positive reviews from major reviewers and authors. The Hunger Games is the first novel in The Hunger Games trilogy[2], followed by Catching Fire, published on September 1, 2009,[3] and Mockingjay, published on August 24, 2010.[4]

A film adaptation, co-written and co-produced by Collins herself and directed by Gary Ross, will be released worldwide on March 23, 2012. The film stars Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss, Josh Hutcherson as Peeta, and Liam Hemsworth as Gale.

Main Characters

Katniss Everdeen is the 16-year-old protagonist. She lives in a region of District 12 known as the Seam, which is the poorest area of the district. She lives with her mother and sister, Primrose, whom she calls simply "Prim". Her father died before the beginning of the story in a mining accident. She is described as having dark hair, olive skin, and gray eyes. She is best friends with Gale Hawthorne. She makes a living by illegally hunting with Gale in the forest borders of her district and selling her catch in the Hob, District 12's black market. She volunteers to be a tribute in the Games in order to save her sister, Primrose Everdeen, who was originally chosen and has blond hair and blue eyes. She must enter the Games along with Peeta Mellark and have the mentorship of Haymitch Abernathy. Katniss has mixed feelings for both Peeta and Gale.

Peeta Mellark is 16 years old as well, and was born in the richer part of the district to a baker. He has wavy blonde hair and blue eyes, a physical indicator of the wealthier people who were born in town, and is described as being very strong. He is the chosen male tribute to represent District 12. He saves Katniss' life multiple times, and has had a crush on her since he first saw her at age 5 at school but never had the courage to reveal it until the Games.

Haymitch Abernathy is the mentor of Peeta Mellark and Katniss Everdeen, and is the tribute winner of the 50th Hunger Games. Haunted by the nightmares of the Games he was in, he is rarely sober throughout the book. At first he does not bother to protect Peeta and Katniss from the doom awaiting them in the Games, but after they prove their strength he guides them through the Games.

Gale Hawthorne is 18 in the first book of the trilogy, and is Katniss's best friend. They've met up in the woods for years prior to the beginning of the novel and since then became best friends and hunting partners. Gale's appearance is similar to Katniss', as is true of most people who live in their area. Gale became head of the Hawthorne family after his father was killed along with Katniss' father in the same mine explosion. Katniss mentions that Gale is, "the only person with whom I can be myself."

Plot

The Hunger Games takes place after the destruction of North America, in a nation known as Panem. Panem consists of a wealthy Capitol and twelve surrounding, poorer districts. District 12, where the book begins, is located in the coal-rich region that was formerly Appalachia.[8]

As punishment for a previous rebellion against the Capitol in which a 13th district was destroyed, one boy and one girl between the ages of 12 and 18 from each district are selected by annual lottery to participate in the Hunger Games, an event in which the participants (or "tributes") must fight in an outdoor arena controlled by the Capitol, until only one remains. The story follows 16-year-old Katniss Everdeen, a girl from District 12 who volunteers for the 74th annual Hunger Games in place of her younger sister, Primrose. Also selected from District 12 is Peeta Mellark, a baker's son whom Katniss knows from school, who once gave her bread when her family was starving.

Katniss and Peeta are taken to the Capitol where their drunken mentor, Haymitch Abernathy, victor of the 50th Hunger Games, instructs them to watch and learn the talents of the other tributes. They are then publicly displayed to the Capitol audience in a televised session with interviewer Caesar Flickerman. During this time, Peeta reveals on-air his long-time unrequited love for Katniss. Katniss believes this to be a ploy to gain audience support for the Games, which can be crucial for survival, as audience members are encouraged to send gifts like food, medicine, and tools to favored tributes during the Games. The Games begin with 11 of the 24 tributes dying in the first day, while Katniss relies on her well-practiced hunting and outdoor skills to survive. As the games continue, the tribute death toll increases. A few days later, Katniss develops an alliance with Rue, a 12-year-old girl from the agricultural District 11 who reminds Katniss of her sister Prim. The alliance is short-lived: Rue is killed by another tribute. At Rue's request Katniss sings to her, then spreads flowers over her body as a sign of respect--and of disgust towards the Capitol.

Supposedly due to Katniss and Peeta's beloved image in the minds of the audience as "star-crossed lovers", a rule change is announced midway through the Games, stating that two tributes from the same district can win the Hunger Games as a pair. Upon hearing this, Katniss searches for Peeta and eventually finds him wounded. As she nurses him back to health, she acts the part of a young girl falling in love to gain more favor with the audience and, consequently, gifts from her sponsors. When the couple are finally the last two tributes, the Gamemakers reverse the rule change in an attempt to force them into a dramatic finale, where one must kill the other to win. Katniss, knowing that the Gamemakers would rather have two victors than none, retrieves highly poisonous berries known as "nightlock" from her pouch and offers some to Peeta. Upon realizing that Katniss and Peeta intend to commit suicide, the Gamemakers announce that both will be the victors of the 74th Hunger Games.

Although she survives the ordeal in the arena and is treated to a hero's welcome in the Capitol, Katniss is warned by Haymitch that she has now become a political target after defying her society's authoritarian leaders so publicly. Afterwards, Peeta is heartbroken when he learns that Katniss' actions in the arena were part of a calculated ploy to earn sympathy from the audience. However, Katniss is unsure of her own feelings, and realizes that she is dreading the moment when she and Peeta will go their separate ways.