Ok, this book kept my attention....and I admit...I was enteratined, and I can say I liked it....but at the same time there was so much I did not like and just made me feel dumb.....
Like the crazy outfits...I am sorry, I just could not fully believe, by into, or take seriously the girl on fire...all the prep and the parading of them and ceremony, I don't know, I truly dislike reality tv shows and how scripted they are too....all aspcts of them bug me, and so of course this did.
I think what really bothered me was that they could dress people up, interview them, test them and score them, and watch them die. It's just weird and I want to say (stupid!) I know it is making commentary on how our society functions, but I just (as everyone has probably noticed in my other responses) have a hard time bying in to things that I cannot "imagine"...I do have a good imagination too...some things though, just do not sit right with me....The whole soap opera love affair too...just...I dont know, not a book I'd push on to students...and actually I was asked to. I guess the RCSD ordered a bunch for the tenth graders and i was asked to take a box and give them to kids to read. I was like...whoa...I have a TON of books I can reccomend to students, this one....not so much....
Casey! I am so sad you didn't really like the book! I can definitely agree with you that a lot of the things seem far fetched in the book, but I couldn't help thinking about Lady Ga Ga when reading your comment about the clothing. Granted, she seems to take things to the extreme, I guess she helped me to picture what the games would be like. I kind of thought of that prep work for the games like an award show with the glamorous outfits and people like Lady Ga Ga in a meat dress....then why not someone on fire? I think if you really break the book down you might actually be able to find things in our real world to relate to? Just a thought as to why it may already be so popular with young readers! I do agree though that there are a lot of other great books we could recommend to our students! With the movie coming out, this one may grab their attention!
ReplyDeleteOh, good thinking Katie! The reference to Lady Gaga is perfect! And, I must also now admit my weakness for Project Runway (on BravoTV)... this year on the Project Runway All-Stars there was a challenge for the designers to make an avant-garde dress which would be shown as a part of a music video?music tour? for Pharrell. http://www.hulu.com/watch/335260/project-runway-all-stars-when-i-get-my-dress-in-lights
DeleteThe dress was to made out of a combination of LED lights, vibrant neon tape, and other fabrics which would glow in black light. It was truly "fantasy meets fashion."
Aww Cassandra, I'm sorry you didn't like the book that much, but I respect your opinion and reasons behind it. I usually stay clear of such fantasy books, but I actually enjoyed this one. I think its because of the whole "survival" thing. I get hooked to those reality shows where they have to conquer a bunch of dangerous tasks, and I guess this was just one more thing lol. It reminded me of of the movie gladiator but with a reality show twist. I bet that if I was watching the hunger games on t.v, I would probably just say, "its all scripted!!" lol.
ReplyDeleteCasey, I certainly appreciate your struggles with the genre of Science Fiction/Fantasy/Supernatural.
ReplyDeleteHowever, I do agree with Groenke and Scherff's suggestions in Chapter 9 of our textbook that the Hunger Games would serve as a "reading ladder" or "scaffold" to a more challenging read, such as *1984*. The power of propaganda and the question of individual independence/government control in Orwells' novel may be much more comprehensible for students if they are able to use the Hunger Games Trilogy as an entry point into understanding.
I get what you mean. Everyone has preferences when it comes to genre. I think that part of the point of a dystopian society, though, is that it IS so outrageous. The similarities between our society and the societies portrayed in these books are more subtle, but they are there just enough so that the issues brought up are not completely removed from reality or possibility. I'm sure some of your students would really love science fiction/fantasy novels. I would see what others are recommending, and see which books have won awards or have gained recognition and go from there. I would do that because I know that I am very limited and particular when it comes to books I like to read, and I wouldn't want to discourage students from exploring a variety of literature.
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