Deep in the world lie 12 districts. Each district is known for something different. Each district also lies in a different class by what they produce…You may be able to afford decent meals, you may not. Within each district lies fear, but also hope. Only the strongest may survive. Would you be willing to lay everything on the line? If not for your family’s sake, for your own survival? Could you force yourself to kill? It’s at your own risk, but it also decides whether you live…or die.
Meeting Katniss Everdeen in the first instant is different. Not because it’s written from an outside point of view, but from Katniss’. A little sister named Prim, and whatever reaping is, cause me to wonder what’s so strange and important of both. There’s a cat named Buttercup and it’s easy to start wondering ‘what’s with the strange names?’ But then I learn that they are a part of what’s called District 12, and things start to make some sense. Why or how? I don’t know. District 12 is also known as the Seam, but what does that mean? They’re trapped in by a chain link fence…almost making me think ‘what are we in, a jail ground?’ But Katniss doesn’t feel as trapped as I would because she crawls under the fence. Wait, what? A coal mining town, so no one’s really ‘fortunate’ in earnings. But when a coal mine explosion happens, what happens to any victims’ family? Well I guess knowing Katniss now…I know a little. Her dad taught her to hunt so in a sense, she’s sort of left in charge. But, then I find out what she’s done is completely wrong…crawling under the fence. Death? Rebellion? Peacekeepers? Okay so apparently if you break rules you’re trying to start a rebellion which is punishable by death and that’s what the Peacekeepers are for? Apparently that’s how it’s supposed to work…but Katniss hunts for the good of the people that live in District 12, especially her family. Panem is known as the Capitol…so they rule districts. I kind of think it’s in reality Washington D.C. It is set in North America after all. And saying bad things about your district is just as bad? Okay then. So it would be like me saying my town is the worst ever, or something else, and I could be severely punished by a beating? Katniss meets someone named Gale in the woods…and he calls her Catnip. You’ll find out why in reading. He brings a part of ‘breakfast’ and mocks the Capitol accent. Wait an accent? Apparently they do. And then you have it, the title of the book. ’Happy Hunger Games’ well, Hunger Games, because Gale mentions it. What are they? Apparently by this point I can only think it’s really bad. So bad, Gale is willing to flee the district. But he has a family too. After getting on with hunting, they finally head back for home. But they first enter The Hob, which is like the black market. Apparently being hunters, and a source of decent meat to the people, allows Katniss and Gale to get a few necessary items for their families. Anyway, they finally get to what the reaping is. Once you’re 12 years old, your name goes in a pool…which is stopped (your name being in the pool anyway) once you’ve finally reached age 19. You may also get extra entries put in by exchanging for tesserae. Well, read it and you’ll understand exactly what that entails. Because of this, and Katniss being 16, she has twent entries. Gale is 18 and has his name in 42 times. Wouldn’t you, because the reaping is a BAD thing, want to have your name entered the fewest amount of times? The reaping is held at the town square, and it is mandatory to attend. The reason behind The Hunger Games seems almost a bizarre thing to me. Panem, or the Capitol, was supposed to bring peace to thirteen districts. However, the districts started an uprising against the Capitol. All districts were reigned in but one, which ended up being wiped out completely. The Capitol’s way of reminding the people of the remaining districts to keep the peace, lies in The Hunger Games. Each child that’s chosen from each district, which includes one boy and one girl, are known as tributes. The Hunger Games force the tributes into an arena to basically fight to the death, until only one remains. As per usual, the girls are up first. Which means Katniss having to worry first. Not only does she worry about herself, but about her sister Prim. She doesn’t worry too heavily about Prim because she is only entered in the drawing once. The first name is called, and…it’s Primrose Everdeen.
Katniss’ sister? A twelve year old…with ONE entry?
WHAT?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!
This is what Prim was named for.
