Catching Fire

Published Information

Author:	Suzanne Collins
Series:	Hunger Games #2
Published:	September 2009
Genre:	Science Fiction
Pages:	400

Ratings

Violence:	PG-13 (Hand to hand killing, )
Sexual Content:	PG-13 (Kitness and Peeta sleep in same bed, kissing at other times)
Language:	PG (Swearing is mentioned, but not the actual words)
Reading Age:	High school
Buy Recommend:	Hardbound (My family will read, some of us more than once)
Overall Rating:	7 out of 10 (While very good, felt like an intermediate step to third book)

Plot Summary

Now that Kitness and Peeta have won the Hunger Games, they think they are safe and life can go back to normal. But they realize very quickly that life will be even more difficult for them. In winning with both of them coming out alive, they have beaten the Capital at their own game, and those who care know it. The leader from the capital, President Snow, visits Kitness and makes it very clear that she will have to keep up the façade of her being in love with Peeta. Kitness' family is at stake, as well as Gale and his family. The president knows that Kitness is in love with Gale, but wants Kitness to feel her very own form of misery. Kitness and Peeta decide to get married to try and convince him that they will do what it takes, but they soon find out that the President will not be satisfied.

Part of the problem is that the way Kitness and Peeta won was shown as a form of defiance. A sign of hope to the rebels. Some of the districts begin revolting. By the time the games have begun several of the districts are in a full revolt. In some cases, the district has already locked down the district, but in others, there are still problems. Before things can get any worse, they lock down district 12, in hopes that Kitness and Peeta can't do any more damage.

Every 25 years, there is a special hunger games, where different rules apply. For example, in the 50th year, twice as many tributes are required. So 4 from each district are sent. Interestingly, this is the one Halemitch won. Now that the 75th year has come around, the rules are changed again. For these games, the tributes will be chosen from the winners of previous games. Kitness and Peeta both realize they are going back this year.

There are a couple of other differences in these games, maybe differences the Capital didn't expect. For example, most of the winners know each other since they see each other at the games each year. In many cases they are friends. So it becomes easy for many of them to form friendships and alliances again. Another difference is that the people in the capital love the winners. They are like celebraties to them. So by the Capital leaders putting the winners back in the arena, the people of the capital are not happy at all. It becomes an even more apparent problem when during the introductions, many of the tributes make comments about how unfair things are and that something should be done. By the time the interviews are over, the city is up in arms about how bad the games are.

However, the games go on. Now, Peeta and Kitness go into the games again, and while some of the tributes are older, or a little more frail, they are all winners and are able to do anything necessary to win. The only chance Peeta and Kitness have will be to enlist the help of some of the other tributes. But which ones can they rely on? They will have to rely upon Halemitch's help more than ever if they hope to survive.

Comments

This second book is just as good as the first, though it is very different. The first book was pointing out problems in society. There is still some of that here, but the book is more about how there are different ways to express disagreement and individuality, even when you are very restricted in your rights. In some cases, we can full out rebel. In other cases, we spread our disagreement with media or word of mouth -- grass roots if you will. But the point is, there is always something we can do to help improve society or overcome persecution from others. It is not always easy, but we can do it. We can't wait for something to happen, rather we must take action.

The book does have a couple of graphic scenes, such as when Gale is tied to a post and whipped, and then nursed back to health. Or when someone tries to cut out a tracker out of Kitness. That being said, the game is not viewed from the same stand point as last time. In the first book, there was quite a bit of brutality between the contestants. There is very little of that in this book. It is more about the tributes figuring out the dangers around them and overcoming them. Overall, the violence isn't as prevelent as in the first.