Unlike choosing my favorite Harry Potter book, choosing my favorite from this series is incredibly easy: Catching Fire was immediately my favorite after I finished reading all three.
I like The Hunger Games because it sets up this excellent world with great background and good characters. I like Mockingjay because, even though we're in the process of wrapping things up, there are still new and terrible horrors, but they don't feel like deus ex machinas.
But I love Catching Fire for three main reasons, each of which is slightly spoiler-ish so if you haven't read it, you might not want to read this yet. One: the setting is incredible. The arena is just amazing and I can't wait to see it in film. Two: I like when awesome characters die. I like the feels; I like crying at books. This book makes me cry. And three: I won't even give details, but the big THING at the end. There are books where you know there's a sequel and because you knew it all along, the story just sort of stops, and you wait for the next book. But then there are books that give you specific questions you want answered in the next book, and this is one of those. The end of Hunger Games asked "what's next?" which isn't bad, but it's vague. The end of Mockingjay says, "That's it, folks. Go find something else to read after you've dried your eyes and complained on the internet about what just happened." But the end of Catching Fire asks, "What the HELL just happened?!?!??!" It's the biggest reason I'm glad I only picked up the series shortly after Mockingjay was published; I would not have wanted to wait all that time to find out.
While I do enjoy pretty much the entirety of this series (and honestly, the moment that I realize that I LOVE Haymitch and he's pretty much my favorite character happens in Catching Fire), I can't help but love the first one.
The first book just sets the stage so well. I'm just drawn into the scene and the characters and the action and I can never seem to pull myself back out of it all.
The first time I read The Hunger Games, I read it in record speed. Later, I decided to re-read the book. It had only been about a year since I read it the first time, so I figured since I remembered most of the facts, I could read it a little slower, take my time, enjoy it.
That didn't happen. I blew through it just as fast as the first time, which is saying a lot. If a book can give me the same exhilarating feeling as the first time that I read it, well, that's pretty damn impressive.
The other, kind of spoilery, reason I love book one? It's where we get to see the most Cinna. It's where we meet him, where we realize how awesome he is, where we really get to see him in his element. I love Cinna, and I love how much face time he gets in this book.
I have to agree with Alex and choose Catching Fire as my favorite. The reasons are as follows:
ReplyDelete1. Finnick
2. Gale. We finally get to know him, and this is the book where he actually becomes a viable interest in the supposed love triangle (Even though I was Team Peeta the whole time, because clearly thats who the author wanted her to be with).
3. Beete, Mags, and all of the other tributes, who are all awesome, especially compared to those in the first book (with the exception of Rue)
4. Finnick. Did I say that one yet? I absolutely adore him. Even though he is the Cedric Diggory of the series, I think he's probably my favorite character.