Reading Response 6: Catching Fire

For this week’s blog, I have decided to do Catching Fire since I have already finished The Hunger Games. Catching Fire is the sequel to The Hunger Games. I must warn in advance to readers who have not read Hunger Games because this blog will reveal the ending to Hunger Games because that is where the book started. Catching Fire begins with the celebration of Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark’s win on the 74th Hunger Games at their home district: District 12. After several days of the celebration, Katniss and Peeta set out to start on their “Victory Tour” of all the districts and the Capitol. At the same time, announcements are made that 24 of the previous victors from the past will compete in the 75th Hunger Games. This is in honor of the “Quarter Quell”: an event that occurs every 25th year of the Games and allows the Capitol to introduce a twist. Once again, Katniss, Peeta, and all of their fellow competitors will have to fight for the game of their life.

Here is a passage from Catching Fire:

“Not only are we in the districts forced to remember the iron grip of the Capitol's power each year, we are forced to celebrate it. And this year, I am one of the stars of the show. I will have to travel from district to district, to stand before the cheering crowds who secretly loathe me, to look down into the faces of the families whose children I have killed”

This passage shows that the Capitol values the appearance of admiration rather than admiration itself. The admiration the people of the districts show to the “stars of the show” is all false. They don’t really admire the “stars of the show”, but rather secretly loathing them.

I really like Suzanne Collins’s writing style because throughout the novel, her descriptions of characters, plot, and setting are described very vividly to the point that readers can visually see the image. Her descriptions of imagery are amazing because whenever she describe foods, I can visually see, smell, and taste the image being described. She does an excellent job on characters as well because each character is unique and has its own realistic personality that readers can relate to.