The Hunger Games vs. Its Movie

Hi all! I'll bet lots of people have been waiting for this: today, I am reviewing The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. For the first time, (and, most likely, the only time) I am going to do a joint review of the book, and its movie, which JUST came out in theaters and IMAX yesterday!

Part One: "The Tributes":
Most everyone who is a dedicated reader, and/or hasn't been living under a rock these past few months, knows the story of the Hunger Games: In the ruins of what was once known as North America, lies a new nation called Panem, ruled by the Capitol. The nation is divided into twelve districts. To keep those districts in line, each year, the Capitol forces each district to send one girl and one boy, called "tributes" to fight to the death on live television, called The Hunger Games. The very plot made me wary of this book at first, but it could be worse, at least in my opinion. Well, this book begins in District Twelve, the poorest of the districts, home of Katniss Everdeen, who has to go against the law and hunt to feed her family. It's the day that the tributes are chosen, called 'Reaping Day". There are minor differences at this point in the movie:

• The major icon of the series is the Mockingjay, or the Mockingjay pin. In the book, Katniss is given the pin on reaping day by the daughter of District Twelve's mayor, for her protection. Katniss explains that these birds are crosses of jabberjays, the Captiol's creation, and mockingbirds. These birds can mimic anything they hear.  In the movie, Katniss trades for it while she is selling the game she caught that day, and doesn't express what the birds are. Katniss gives the pin to her little sister for protection, eventually to be returned. We never see the mayor or his daughter. 
• Katniss's family has an adopted cat, an ugly, bald-spotted cat. Katniss hates the cat, and the feeling is mutual for the cat. they don't tell you this in the movie, but in the book, Katniss had tried to drown it, but her little sister begged her not to. The cat has continued resentment towards her after that.

Katniss has a little sister, named Primrose, this year being her first year of eligibility for the Hunger Games. She is fairly confident that she won't get chosen, since her name is only in the drawing for the tributes once: each year that you are eligible for the Hunger Games, your name is entered once, adding one time each year from age twelve to eighteen (e.g. at age 12 you are entered once, 13 twice, etc.), unless you opt to get a tessera, to afford extra food, by entering your name in more than required.

Against the odds, Prim's name is called and Katniss volunteers to take her place. And that is how our story begins. Her fellow tribute is a boy named Peeta Mellark, the baker's son. They say goodbye to their loved ones, and are shipped to the Capitol to train and prepare for the arena. Training goes well, as well as the tributes' public appearances to earn sponsors (people of high society who chip in to buy and ship supplies to their tribute when needed). Again ,there are little differences between the book and the movie:

• There are more sequences with Effie Trinket, District Twelve's escort, and Haymitch, District Twelve's mentor, in the book. They cut a lot of the training out in the movie. There is a lot of dialogue between Peeta and Katniss that is cut out, as well, such as how Katniss saw one of the servants that now works at the Traning Center, and how she met Gale. I know I haven't mentioned Gale, but it's because he isn't really an important character, in either the book or the movie! He's Katniss's best friend and hunting partner, but after he doesn't get chosen for the Games, the last we see of him is when he says good-bye to Katniss, except for a couple of times in the movie when they cut back to District Twelve.
• The interviews with Ceaser and the District Twelve's tributes are longer in the book, and in the book, all the tributes were sitting on-stage, not lined up off-stage, as in the movie.
• In the book, after the interviews, when Peeta professes his crush towards Katniss, she pushes him into an urn, which breaks, the shards of which cut Peeta's hands, while in the movie she simply shoves him into a wall.

Part Two: "The Games"

   There is a new arena for every Hunger Games, as to make it a surprise terrain, and as to avoid any one tribute getting too familiar with one arena before-hand, giving them the upper-hand in that aspect. This is where, in the movie, it gets really dizzying and graphic. The details are still the same, though. At the beginning, when the tributes are lifted into the arena, they must wait for sixty seconds before being let to run free in the arena. Why this is, I have NO idea.There is a structure in the very center of the arena, called the Cornucopia, which is filled with weapons, food, and other essentials for survival. This is mostly a call for a bloodbath as tributes fight over the supplies. Katniss was advised to avoid the Cornucopia for this very reason, but goes for it anyway. She ends up missing out on the bow and arrows that she was aiming for, but still gets a backpack filled with useful supplies. The Games go essentially the same as in the book, except:

• Katniss's pack also had night-vision glasses, but these were excluded from the movie for whatever reason.
• It takes Katniss an entire day and a half to find water in the book, but it takes her much less time in the movie.
• Some dialogue from the book (which was actually pretty comedic) was cut out from certain parts of the movie.
• A lot of dialogue between Rue is cut out from the movie, so you can't as easily fall for her as you do in the book, which became a sort-of important plot point for the next book (not the relationship itself, but how Katniss is affected by her death and her reaction towards the Capitol)

Part Three: "The Victor"

A rule change is announced one night: if the last two tributes left standing are both from the same district, they are both winners. Katniss runs to find Peeta, who she knows is still alive, but just barely. She tries to nurse him back to health, but he has blood poisoning, which she can only treat with medicine from the Capitol. There is an announcement of a feast at the cornucopia, where each remaining district will be offered a pack of supplies that they desperately need. Katniss wants to go for Peeta, but he won't let her risk her life for him, because he knows that the Capitol is just drawing the tributes together for another bloodbath. The remaining chapters are different in this way:

• So that Katniss can go to the feast without Peeta's knowing, in the book, Haymitch sends Katniss a vial of sleeping syrup to give to Peeta, hidden in food. In the movie, Katmiss just waits for him to fall asleep naturally.
• Clove inflicts much more damage to Katniss in the book than in the movie. 
• The mutts that appear near the end of the story are different in the book than in the movie. I'd explain it, but it is really creepy, and it is something that really needs to be read for oneself. 

There are several other differences, but that would spoil the ending, which I never do. I found the movie too rushed: they didn't give a lot of detail in-between events to set for the next one. There is a lot more cussing in the movie than there is in the book. I found it interesting that, in the movie, they gave more of a perspective on how the Gamemakers manipulate the Games, and how people back home react to the Games. Since the book is in first person, obviously these observations cannot be made. Overall, I found it a good adaptation of the book, but as is usually the custom, the book is better.

Parental Guidance:  Both the book and the movie can be very vivid and gruesome. Take extreme discretion before allowing your child to read this book or see the movie. However, also take in mind that there is NOTHING AT ALL suggestive in either. Katniss is more flight than fight. In fact, the whole reason that there is a continuation of the series is that she wishes to rebel against the Capitol. So, at least the narrator has somewhat good morals! I enjoyed both immensely, and will be picking up Catching Fire and Mockingjay as soon as possible. I hope you go get yourself a copy of this crazily-amazing series!

Thirteen R3asons Why

Today, I read Thirteen R3easons Why by Jay Asher. A friend of mine recommended it, so I borrowed it from the library. It was slightly different from how she described it, but it was still good.

This book is mainly in the point of view of Clay Jensen, who, one day. gets a box of audio tapes on his porch. There is no return address on it, so he gets suspicious. He plays the first of the tapes, and he hears the voice of the other narrator: Hannah Baker, who had committed suicide a couple of weeks before.

The tapes were like her suicide note: each side of each tape has a story, connecting to the reason she killed herself. Each story has to do with a different person, who ends up on her list of people to get the tapes and pass them on to the next person. Another, unrelated person, knows who does, and if one person doesn't the tapes go public.

This book is filled with drama, half-suspense, and heartbreak. I seriously cried a few times, a very rare thing for me, especially with books. I really liked it, but I thought Hannah had no right to make the list, the tapes, or kill herself. Most of the reasons were her own fault. I'm going to explain, and for those of you who don't want it spoiled, you can skip over this part. I'll get back to the main review in bolded words so you'll know when to stop scrolling

Reason One: She could have decided to take it slower, to get to know the real Justin, who would spread rumors, instead of rushing to get her first kiss. Then, a lot of the stuff that followed might not have happened.

Reason two: see reason one.

Reason three: see reason one

Reason Four: See reason one.

Reason Five: Why did she ask a random girl to come catch a peeping tom??

Reason six: She could have listened to her gut, which was very smart.

Reason Seven: She could have never gone to Rosie's, never seen Zach, et cetera.

Reason Eight: She could have kept her poetry private in the first place. Don't share what you don't want getting out!

Reason Nine: Hannah could have told Clay about everything! He was open and ready to talk! But no, she had to stay and cry about it. Sure, Clay could have stayed, but he didn't know because she wouldn't tell him!

Reason Ten: She was right across the hall! Hannah could have stopped Bryce, but, again, she had to hide in the closet and cry. She refused to stop another girl from going down the exact same road as she was going down.

Reason Eleven: Hannah could have called the police. That innocent senior would still be alive. But, again,  guess what? She had to think about her own problems.

Reason Twelve: Need I explain?? She was fed up with the world that she actually didn't care what happened.

Reason Thirteen: Why is Mr. Porter's story the last one, the one whom could "take the tapes to [h-e-double-hockey-sticks]"? He was just trying to do his job as counselor! He didn't know what was going on because, guess what, Hannah wouldn't tell him! Hannah herself chose to leave.

Enough of my ranting,  I need to get back to the main review. In all, I think they needed to go deeper into Clay's character. What did people say about him? Why was he so perfect (except when he lied to his mother and everyone else that night he listened to the tapes)? Who was Skye, whom Clay went after at the end of the book? This was a good story, and I recommend it, but at the same time don't recommend it.

Beastly

Today I will discuss one of my all-time favorite books: Beastly by Alex Flinn.

This book is a modern remake(retelling?) of the classic tale, Beauty and the Beast. It is set in New York City, New York, where the elite school Kyle Kingsbury, our hero, goes to is located. Kyle is the son of a news anchor, Rob Kingsbury. He is your typical beast: On the outside he is blonde, with blue eyes and charming face, but on the inside, he is cruel, selfish, and conniving. He makes fun of people who are uglier than he, and isn't affected in the least by his victims' upset faces as result of his pranks.

It isn't surprising that Kyle ends up on the ballot for homecoming royalty.When his class is voting ,however, one girl screams that the ballot is only made up of the pretty people for evil reasons. The girl, Kendra, is fat, with crocked teeth and a horned nose. She's like a witch. Kyle has never seen her before.He argues that human nature doesn't want ugly people as royalty, and maybe ugly people should become beautiful to try and make it in the world. Kendra glares at him, saying,

   "...[You'd] better hope you never get ugly, Kyle. You are ugly now, on the inside, where it matters most, and if you ever lost your good looks, I bet you wouldn't be smart or strong enough to get them back. Kyle Kingsbury, you are beastly.". These words stick to him like glue for the next few days until the dance. As a joke, he fake asks Kendra to the dance, planning to dump her like a sack of hammers in front of the entire school to humiliate her.

The night of the ball, instead of the purple orchid corsage his real date had asked for, he found a single white rose, like Kendra had asked for. He tosses it to the ground, and it loses a petal. Still thinking his date might like it, he takes it with him. She throws it to the ground of the limo, and it loses yet another petal. When they finally get to the dance, Kyle eventually gives the rose to the girl taking and selling tickets, since no one else was using it.

Kyle's prank went as planned, but Kendra didn't seem hurt in the least. It was almost as if she was expecting it. She gave one final curse to Kyle and left. He didn't have any more fun the rest of the night. When he gets home, he meets Kendra, who was waiting for him.

Kendra revealed herself to be a beautiful sorceress. She curses Kyle to being a hairy beast with claws and fangs, so his outside could match the inside. For his one act of kindness, though, (giving the rose to Linda) he gets two years to fall in love(for the two petals that fell off the rose), become kind, and get the girl's love in return. Kendra leaves him her mirror, which shows him anyone he wants to see, so he won't be completely alone and possibly find someone.

His father forces his now-ugly son to move to Brooklyn, alone. His only companions are the maid and his blind tutor, none of whom can reveal Kyle, or that he is Rob Kingsbury's son. Kyle falls into depression, and at first makes no real effort to fall in love. if he finds a girl, is up for you to find out.

I found this a very interesting read. I commend Flinn for her effort to make some back-story on the beast character, Kyle/Adrian. In other versions, you may or may not get any clue as to how the beast is selfish like he is. Most times they focus on the Beauty. My only concern is that the themes are, how you say.... Suggestive. Before Kyle becomes Adrian he is also a little inappropriate... So, look out for that.

I have one question, too: Kyle joins a chat room for magically transformed teens, and I can follow the stories of all but "Grizzlyguy's". What fairytale is it supposed to me? SilentMaid was obviously The Little Mermaid, Froggie, the Frog Prince, but Grizzlyguy's? I mean, what story is it if SnowWhite isn't "*that* SnowWhite"??? Any clue? Answer appreciated! BYE!!

Theodore Boone: The Abduction

Hello one and all to another edition of All About Books! Today, I will be discussing the sequel to John Grishham's major success of a YA novel.

This story takes place almost immediately after the events of the first book. Theo is trying to settle back into a relatively normal life, when he gets a phone call one night. It is the police, saying that his best friend, April, had vanished from her bedroom! It is even thought that she was kidnapped by a fugitive murderer, whom was April's pen pal. Theo and his parents rush to the scene to investigate. Mrs. Finnenmore is in tears, saying she had checked on her daughter just hours before she disappeared. Theo knows this is a lie.

April confided certain things to Theo. One of these things was that her mother had been gone that night, and she was holding a baseball bat to defend herself should the need arise. Her doors were locked, and she was afraid, because she was home alone. Her father had been gone for days.

Theo doesn't mention any of this, and gives the police an abridged statement. He immediately begins his own investigation in search for April. Some of his and Aprils' fellow classmates even pitch in! They are, however, frequently stopped by the police, even though they are breaking no laws.

Theo is now tangled up in another legal frenzy. He is conflicted on what he is able to do, and what he is allowed to do. His parents made him promise not to keep anything from them and not to take any unnecesary risks. They don't want him worrying over April too much, either. But, soon enough, Theo convinces his uncle Ian to go on a possibly wild goose chase across the country to save his friend. The ending will surprise you if you follow the official investigation headed by the police.

I found this a very interesting read. It was a page turner, and I barely set it down after I got it. I couldn't help but notice how much more in this book that it leans more on Theo being some sort of detective, not a lawyer/judge-in-training. is he really a kid lawyer? Or is he just another kid detective that we know always gets into trouble?

I am hopeful that John Grisham will continue this series. he hints at another book when, at the end, Judge Gantry tells Theo that he's rescheduled the Duffy murder trial for the following month. I hope we get a follow-up on that trial, and the mysterious witness!

Overall, this series is amazing. I love how Grisham can make anything seem suspenseful. The only part I don't like is how little knowledge the other fellow "teens" are portrayed as ignorant of the law, even of something as simple as mortgage and foreclosure! I'll admit, I may know more about the law than I should at my age, but I know that my fellow classmates at least understand foreclosure! I hope Grisham revises this in his later books.

The Romeo and Juliet Code

Hello all, and welcome to All About Books. Today, I'll be discussing the interesting sort-of- historical fiction novel, The Romeo and Juliet Code.

Now, don't be fooled by the title. This isn't just another love story that follows the romantic archetype. This is about trust, truth, adjusting.

This book starts out where we find a young Felicity Bathburn-Budwig being dropped off at her grandmother's house in America. You see, this takes place in the 1940's, right around the time the US joined the second World War. There is lots of bombing in England, so, like many other parents, Felicity's parents are sending her off to safety until the war ends.

Felicity Bathburn-Budwig is a typical Englosh eleven-year-old, except for one thing: she still clings to her stuffed bear, Wink, and talks to him like he's real. At least she realizes that she might-just might- be too old for Wink, but refuses to give him up. She is also very upset that her parents are just dropping her off in a place where's she's never been before, to live with people she's never met before. At the same time, she is very curious about her new surroundings.

Sooner than you know it, Felicity witnesses an awkward reunion between her father (whom she calls Danny) and her Uncle Wilson. She later finds out that there was a very serious quarrel in the family, and that's why Danny and Winnie (Felicity's mother) stayed in England

Felicity (whom is nick-named Fliss by Uncle Wilson) discovers lots of secrets on the very first day she arrives. Her grandmother, called The Gram, refuses to talk about her son Danny, there is someone named Derek locked in his room and never comes out, the biggest probably being Wilson's receiving letters from Portugal, in hand-writing that Fliss swears is her father's

Later in the story, we get to meet Derek, who is only one year older than Fliss. He hides in his room because he just got over polio, which paralyzed his left arm. He's very se;f-conscious about it and hardly gets out of bed except to see Fliss. As the story progresses, though, he loses this pride.

When Fliss intercepts one of the letters from her Danny, she sees that it is all in code, and she can't help but think that her parents are in trouble. She has to crack the code, mend her family's quarrel, all while surviving her crush on Derek. All this leads to a surprising confession from Uncle Wilson and Winnie.

I found that this book starts out very slowly, and that you don't get a very good idea on the characterization of everybody until the end! As the letters come in it gets interesting, though. When I finally finished it, i was begging for Phoebe Stone to write a sequel so I can learn more about Fliss and Derek's relationship now, and get a follow-up on Winnie and Danny. Sadly, this was not to be :(

Until next time, abinata!

P.S. I will get my review of the second half of the Carter House Girls Series ASAP!

Carter House Girls Series (Books 1-4)

Welcome one and all to another edition of All About Books! Today, I'll be talking about the first half of a new (well, not TOTALLY new, but new to me) series i found: The Carter House Girls.

The whole series arc is that Mrs. Carter, a retired model and fashion magazine editor, opens up her mansion to board teenagers. They include her granddaughter, DJ, DJ's childhood friend turned punk, Casey, an old neighbor and aspiring designer, Rhiannon, quarter- rebel, quarter-fashion mogul, quarter-bully, quarter- sweetheart Taylor, and exotic fashion-mogul Kriti. 

All these girls play unique roles in Carter House. All of them have their own sort of sad back stories. But I won't get into those right now, because they're sort of spoilers.

Book one, Mixed Bags, centers around the introduction and beginning development of the characters. DJ had just lost her mom, and had been rejected by her dad, who chose his new wife and their twin girls over her and shipped her to grandmother's. She's been getting along OK in Crescent Cove, but only has one true friend: Conner. Sweet sweet, understanding Conner. She isn't crazy about having housemates. And, when they get there, her opinon isn't helped a bit. 

Taylor immediately shows herself to be self-centered, and puts down DJ for being average, and not in the fashion circle. And, as soon as she sees DJ with Conner, she tries to make a move on him.

Eliza seemed sweet, but still sort of puts DJ down for fashion, but not nearly as bad as Taylor

Kriti is the only one who seems more concerned about education than fashion- not that she isn't concerned about being fashionable. Her dad makes designer knock-off purses.

DJ was looking forward to rooming with Casey, until she sees her. After a year of not seeing her, Casey has become a punk rocker/goth. 

Rhiannon is still the sweet Christian girl she always was. Slow to judge, and hard to hold grudges

Dj is overwhelmed by these changes. But, soon enough, she begins to be overtaken by fashion! But, not where it completely takes over her life. She even begins to date Conner! But, still, as summer goes by, there are mean strikes of jealousy and hatred.

Overall, this is a great book! But, there ARE some scenes that might not be appropriate to girls under thirteen. Although, in the end, it has a good, Christian theme- DJ even accepts Christ into her life! 

In the second book, Stealing Bradford, Taylor is jealous that almost every Carter House Girl has a steady boyfriend. She tries to make the moves on Rhiannon's boyfriend, Bradford! 

I won't go TOO deep into that plot, because if I do, I'll spoil parts of the first book. And, after that, I'll spoil THIS book. There are still the same parental warnings as with the last book.

In book three, Homecoming Queen, two of the Carter House girls are planning to run for homecoming queen. They cause major separations within the house because of their campaigns, and where they think peoples' loyalties lie.

Also, this book centers around DJ getting into an accident. She runs to save a boy from being run over while playing in the street, and gets run over herself! She's out for the entire remainder of the volleyball season, and she is bummed. Now she has to go to physical therapy, and her sports life is thrown completely off-whack. To make matters worse, Conner's ex-girlfriend, who still has feelings for him has moved back into town. 

This happens to be my favorite so far, because there is MAJOR character development with Casey. Again, the same parental warnings apply.

In the fourth book, Viva Vermont!, The Carter House Girls participate in the annual charity fashion show in Crescent Cove. Afterwards, Mrs. Carter tells the girls that a friend of hers has invited them to use his ski lodge for Veteran's Day weekend. It's off to the slopes!

Only, unknown to Mrs. Carter, several boys catch wind of the trip by way of Taylor, and tag along, renting a near-by lodge. Taylor, Eliza, and Kriti host a huge party while Mrs. Carter is away, and it's up to God to help DJ and her friends get it under control.

This is my LEAST FAVORITE of the series so far. The parental warnings apply ESPECIALLY to this book. If I were to read this series again, I'd skip it, unless it ends up being important to the plot of the next book.

I commend Melody Carlson for this beautifully written series! You can easily picture these characters, and feel like you know them. The situations seem SO real. And, it has the Christian theme! It's a win-win! I highly recommend this series, and will pick up the rest of the books soon.

Theodore Boone: Kid Lawyer, and Out of Sight Out of Time

Hello all! I have two things to discuss today.

I recently finished John Grisham's first attempt at a young adult novel: Theodore Boome: Kid Lawyer. I found it a refreshing change of pace from Nancy Drew. In fact, this book is sort of a Hardy Boys twist on Nancy Drew. I am probably confusing you, so allow me to elaborate:

This book, as the title implies, is about a kid lawyer. Now, Theo doesn't have a liscense or anything, but both his parents are lawyers and he dreams of being a trial lawyer or judge someday. Theo lives with his parents in a small town called Strattenbourg. It's very small, so you can imagine there aren't alot of exciting cases. But, when a murder trial comes along, Theo is super excited.

Every chance he gets he watches in the courtroom. He believes the defendent is guilty, but the defense lawyer is making a good case. Before Theo realises it, he finds himself in the middle of it. He discovers that a friend of his is the cousin of a witness that nobody knows about. And his testimony will prove to turn around the outcome of the trial. But.the witness is unwiling to testify, due to the fact he is an illegal immigrant.

The clock is ticking, and Theo doesn't know what to do. This is defnately not something that a thirteen year-old should have to deal with.

I found this book very captivating. It starts out a little slow, but not too slow. I find that the climax is a little TOO close to the end, though. I highly recommend it, and hope to soon pick up the sequel: Theodore Boone: The Abduction.

Now for our second topic: Out of Sight, Out of Time. This is the fifth installment in Ally Carter's hit series, the Gallagher Girls Series. It, unfortunately, doesn't come out until March 2012. It is very looked forward to, because it sounds like the most exciting of the series. You can read the full description here. A countdown widget is to the right of the page.

Until next time!