Book Reflections: Mockingjay

Mockingjay (Book 3 of The Hunger Games) by Suzanne Collins

I could not have been more wrong when I had thought that the books were the usual YA fare of love triangles in weird settings. The romance took the last seat on the bus in Book 1, got a bit to the front in Book 2, and then, for me, almost left the bus in Book 3. The trilogy is so not about romance at all, but it's there. It's crazy, brave, and thoughtful. It shows the author's belief that romance or the idea of it is not the sole driving force of young adults. There's caring for your family, survival, and sacrifice depite all odds -- odds like war and madness. Collins respected kids enough to know they must be shown these things.

Although it took only two days for me to go through all three books becuase they were riveting, it took me quite some time to write about them. I think it's because the disturbing issues the book presented are very relevant and distressing. And Mockingjay is the most disturbing of them all.

Mockingjay comes out throwing the darkest issues to light. As the Capitol's thirst for dominance doesn't end in the bloodshed of children, it seeks to make victims of the victors as well. We learn of the reasons behind Haymitch's inebriation, hear of the prostitution of Finnick, and discover the tortures done on Peeta and Johanna. The rebels also have their own drunken lust for power, which prompts the fear that one tyrant will just be replaced by another. This almost becomes a reality in the book if not for an exciting wtf moment.

As I was reading through them, I couldn't help but guess if the writer would see the story to a logical but horrifying end. And she did. Collins plunged the lead characters into madness head on. And Katniss, poor Katniss, becomes the tribute of all of Panem. She becomes the face of the revolution and comes out scarred (if not damaged) for life when the sister she sacrificed everything for dies a gruesome, violent, senseless death. Because, truly, war takes its toll on the youth. What remains is the faint glimmer of hope for our hero in the torch that Peeta carries for her. The guy simply loves Katniss and comes out of his own madness to reach out to her. I was a sobbing wreck after this.

But there is hope as the story culminates in the new generation of Panem -- not a shining ray of light kind of hope, more like a muted fragile glow of a very early dawn. It is enough to move on but not enough to completely heal. I'm still a bit distraught with what happened to Katniss.

The whole series is a powerful read. It is something I would recommend to kids, but somebody will have to be there when children reach the last pages, and ask "Why did it have to end that way?"