Catching Fire

"Catching Fire" is the second book of the Hunger Game series. After reading the first Hunger Game book, I couldn't wait to get my hands on the second book and try to find out what happen next. Thank goodness it didn't take long before I get my copy from the long wait list from our local library. (One of the perks of working in a library ;)

Summary:

Picking up the story in Catching Fire, Katniss’s victory has changed her life. She now lives in a mansion in the “Victor’s Village” of District 12, and has more money than she will ever need: her days of poverty and hunger are over. However, despite her new wealth, all is not well. As a victor, Katniss must now be involved with the violent Hunger Games (which she would rather forget) indefinitely. Most immediately, she must participate in a Victory Tour, visiting the Districts and families of the other Hunger Games contestants—“tributes”—who were killed in the arena, some of them at her hand. Then, she, Peeta, and Haymitch Abernathy—the alcoholic victor of the 50^th Hunger Games, who mentored Katniss and Peeta during their time in the arena—will be required to act as mentors to the District 12 tributes at the 75^th Hunger Games. That round of the Games has been deemed a “Quarter Quell,” i.e., an especially brutal version of the Games to commemorate its 75^th anniversary.

In addition to the distasteful requirement that Katniss continue to be involved in the Hunger Games, she, her family, and her friends are in personal danger. Apparently Katniss’s rebellious act with the berries has stirred the possibility of insurrection in the Districts: if a 16-year-old girl can defy the Capitol and survive, why not entire Districts? President Snow—the cruel dictator of Panem—has personally threatened Katniss that unless she can pacify the Districts on the Victory Tour, she and those close to her will be in danger. The only way for her to obey this order is to continue feigning love for Peeta on the Victory Tour, and thereby to convince the restless Districts that the berries represented desperate love for Peeta and not rebellion. This project is, of course, excruciating since it is sure to further alienate her long-time hunting partner, friend, and would-be suitor Gale Hawthorne.

(Source: http://www.childrensbooksandreviews.com/teen-fiction-catching-fire-by-suzanne-collins/)

The first part of this book spends a lot of chapters describing how Katniss' life has changed dramatically after winning the Hunger Game, how she adjusted to this new lifestyle, and how her relationships changed with Gale and Peeta. The author actually didn't spend too much time describing the Quarter Quell game before it ended abruptly. This book also leaves the readers the biggest cliffhanger at the end. I'm dying to know what happens next and can't wait to read the 3rd book.

I guess Suzanne Collins has done a tremendous job keeping us readers hanging on the edge of our seats with her exciting story and vivid descriptions of all the actions taken place in the arena. Every chapter gives a surprise ending that leads to the beginning to next chapter. I simply couldn't put the book down until I read through the end.

Now that there is a Hollywood production of this book going on, I can't wait to see how the movie will portray the Panem nation. Jennifer Lawrence plays the role of Katniss Everdeen. She is a wonderful young actress and I was really impressed by her acting in "X-Men: First Class". I'm sure she'll be a radiant, strong and defiant Katniss on the big screen. Movie will be released next year. I can't wait!

The Hunger Games

I came across a review for this book, and I was fascinated by their comparisons for this series written by Suzanne Collins with Twilight. I also heard there will be films coming out based on these books. So of course I have to pick one book up and read it. After a long wait at the local library's holding list, I finally got the book few weeks ago.

Summary:

The first book of the series introduces sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen, who lives in a post-apocalyptic world in the country of Panem where North America once stood. This is where a powerful government working in a central city called the Capital holds power. In the book, the Hunger Games are an annual televised event where the Capitol chooses one boy and one girl from each district to fight to the death. The Hunger Games exist to demonstrate not even children are beyond the reach of the Capitol's power.

(Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hunger_Games)

I personally felt the beginning part of the book was a little slow, as the book is laying out the ground and introducing this new kingdom to the readers, the lifestyles Katniss and her family have, and her personality. After the game starts, the story began to get exciting. With her vivid descriptions of the combating scenes in the Hunger Games and how each competitor was killed off, I was left cringing on my couch and biting my nails while reading through the book. This book really does get you like that. Hunger Game is a long awaited teen book that goes deeper than superficial teenage puppy love stories. It talks about major issues such as humanitarianism, injustice or social issues. Now I can't wait to read the second series of this book (Catching Fire), but I probably have to wait a little longer for my turn at the local library again.

Les Yeux Jaunes des Crocodiles

I just finished reading this novel, "Les Yeux Jaunes des Crocodiles" (Literal translation: Crocodiles' yellow eyes), by Katherine Pancol. This book is in French and English translation hasn't been published yet. I read the Chinese translation of this book.

Summary:

A story of the lives of two sisters, Iris and Josephine. Iris is a beautiful, rich, and elegant Parisian, who is married to a successful lawyer. Her life is summed up in a whirlwind vain. Her younger sister, Josephine, is a literary historian specializing in the study of the 12th century history. She is not as beautiful or rich as her older sister. She is married with two daughters and lives in the suburbs with a husband leaving her for another woman and she struggles financially.

Iris gets bored with her life and dreams of becoming an author. She claims to her friend that she is writing a novel. Coached by her lie, Iris persuades her sister to write a book for her. Abandoned by her husband and cornered by debt, Josephine submits to Iris' request. Since their childhood, Josephine has been used and dominated by her older sister. But after the novel is published, their fate will switch.


"Les Yeux Jaunes des Crocodiles" is probably the first French contemporary fiction that I've read in recent years. I was surprised at the complexity of each character. The author really captures the darkness and intricacies of human relationship, particularly of the struggles, jealousy, and competitiveness among family members. There are no true heroine or bad guys in this novel. Even though I could sympathize more with Josephine, the poor submissive younger sister, I could understand why Iris behaves in such a dominant way and fills her life with bunch of lies. Katherine Pancol describes in great length of their childhood and how each sister grows up with different personalities and made them who they are after they grow up.

I really enjoy reading this book, especially the character Josephine. I could relate to her submissiveness, and her struggles with life, and her kindness toward other people. In our lives, we always believe grass is greener on the other side. We struggle with our own and try to change ourselves. In the end, we all need to learn to face the imperfections within ourselves and in our lives and deal with the issues face-to-face. I think that facing your life directly and learns to deal with is the main lessons the author wants us to learn from her novel.

Why do I write this blog?

This blog is meant to be my personal space for writing reviews on the books I recently read. I would like to keep track of how many books I read. Writing a book review blog makes good sense to me.

Reading has been my passion ever since I was young. When I was little, my mom would buy those big sets of children book collections for my sister and I. I would pick up those books and finish reading them right away, then re-read them over and over again until I'm familiar with all the storyline. When I dive into a book, I could stay in the imaginary world that the authors create for hours and forget about the pain and issues in the real world. Reading, to me, opens my world of fantasy and imagination, as well as offer me a way to escape from the reality.

Because of this passion, I've been dreaming about working in a profession that deals with books everyday. Originally I thought I could work for a publisher or become a writer. By the twist of fate, I accidentally step into the world of library when I found a job as a student assistant in my college library. After graduation, I was fortunate enough to land a full time job as an assistant at an academic library nearby, where they also supported my tuition to get through my master program in library science. In an downturn economy where budget cuts are everywhere in the libraries, I was very lucky to be hired as a librarian in a public library, doing cataloging for tons of newly published books that come in everyday. I feel very blessed and fortunate to have this job. Because of this job, I get to enjoy these new books that get send to my desk upon my request. God has really been looking out for me! =)

Naming this blog as book reports reminded me the book reports I used to write back in elementary school. My teachers were very strict about formats. We have to write a paragraph of summary of the books we read, follow by another paragraph of reviews. I haven't thought about the formats for my blog. But I'm not a creative person. I'll probably follow the same format as my old school assignment.

Now a little info about my background. I was born in Taiwan and didn't move to the US until I was 13 years old. English isn't my first language. Although I've been living in the US for many years and received higher education here, I still struggle a lot with English writing. Therefore, you may see many grammatical errors or awkward sentences or phrases. Please feel free to leave comments on how to correct them. I would really appreciate that.

Ok~ this marks the end of my first long entry. Start get working now!