Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
Reviewed by Matt
Catching Fire is Suzanne Collins’ follow up novel to The Hunger Games. I really enjoyed the first novel as evidenced by my review. Catching Fire is the second of a planned trilogy and in many ways is typical of a second novel in that it essentially provides a bridge from the first novel to the third novel. A lot of the plot of Catching Fire is reminiscent of The Hunger Games but it ends with bigger cliffhanger. I have to admit that I did get sucked into Catching Fire much in the same way I did with The Hunger Games. Ms. Collins really does an excellent job of building tension in her novel and maintaining it through her story. As with The Hunger Games, it kept me on the edge of my seat until the very end.
The story begins with Katniss and Peeta back in District 12 after their big win at the Hunger Games. Since they are the winners they are moved into larger homes and provided with a monthly stipend of food. Katniss is attempting to reconnect with her longtime friend, sometimes boyfriend, Gale. But Gale has grown up and is forced to work in the mines. Plus his nose is somewhat out of joint by all the antics between Katniss and Peeta during the games. All they really hope for is that life will settle down and get back to normal.
Of course, not everyone is happy by the way the Huger Games turned out. The government of the Capitol, specifically, President Snow is worried that the populations of the twelve districts will turn Katniss into a symbol of rebellion. From the beginning of the story President Snow attempts to diminish Katniss’ reputation and eventually show the other the other Districts what happens when you challenge his iron rule.
At the half-way period between the between Hunger Games, the winners are forced to go on a publicity tour. So once again Katniss and Peeta are forced to don the persona of passionate boyfriend-girlfriend. While on their tour they are able to witness the society and events of the other Districts. It is soon discovered that some of the other Districts are on the verge of uprising against the Capitol. I felt this portion of the novel was all too brief. When I read that they were visiting the other Districts, I was excited that the story would finally branch out from District 12 and explore the other societies. Essentially, the story spends most of the narrative describing the events in one district then lightly mentions the others before heading back to District 12.
With the current Hunger Games fast approaching everyone wonders what special rule will be implemented. Every twenty-five years the Capitol makes a change to the rules of the Hunger Games. With much trepidation, President Snow announces that 75th Hunger Games will only be filled with past winners. This means that Katniss and Peeta are going back to the Hunger Games and President Snow will have his revenge.
When I read that the main characters were going back to the Hunger Games I thought ugh, not again. We have been over this ground. But Ms. Collins is able to pull it off by the strength her writing and adding a few twists. The excitement and tension are once again built at a fever pitch while Katniss and Peeta fight for their lives. I also enjoyed the twist of including the past winners. They are experienced in killing and understand what to expect in the Hunger Games and this puts Katniss and Peeta at a huge disadvantage. To make things worse, the Capitol has included many deadly surprises and traps for the players inside the arena. Katniss and Peeta will need to find a way to survive or there is a chance the revolution will falter. The stakes are significantly higher this time around.
The only real issue is the main character, Katniss, suddenly loses all common sense towards the end of the novel. There are many strange circumstances that occur during the game and Katniss remains oblivious. The reader figures out pretty quickly the plan and this creates bizarre situation of the reader being well ahead of the character.
There are new aspects introduced into the story and you get a sense of the overall rebellion that is building. District 13 is lightly touched upon again but never fully explained. But there is a lot of repetition from the first novel. I was hoping that Catching Fire would move into new territories but it is only taking baby steps with advancement of the overall plot.
Catching Fire is definitely a second novel in a trilogy but it is still highly entertaining and effectively sets up the concluding novel. I am really looking forward to when all hell will break loose and wish the book was out now so I didn’t have to wait.
Matt started this discussion 2 months ago. ( )
