Mockingjay....a symbol of rebellion and freedom

      I think when it comes to the third book of the Hunger Games Mockingjay that I am still trying to sort out how I feel about it. Actually in some way Collins reminds me of Joss Whedon in that she has a tendency to kill over characters that the readers love or care about in the end. (spoiler alert) I say this because Finnick dies in the end, and even though he seems like a Casanova in book 2 , we learn that he knows more and cares more about people than even Katniss or I thought. I love his love for Annie and how certain he is about their relationship. I think this is part of the point of the book though that even love can thrive even in terrible conditions such a rebellion against the capital.
    However, even if Katniss is a symbol of the rebellion we get the sense in the beginning of the book that this is something that she is not sure she wants to be part of and she doesn't want to feel like a pawn in a chess game.  Oddly enough Katniss seems to have two evil adversaries through President Coin and Snow.  President Snow has always been an adversary through his treatment of children through the Hunger Games. President Coin seems to be an adversary because she wants to control Kat and she does not like that, furthermore for Coin if you are not with her than you are against her. (spoiler alert)  This becomes important towards the end of the book when Snow reveals to Katniss that Coin played a part in the death of her sister Prim. I think this honestly why she shoots her at the end of the book because she knows that Coin will continue the tradition of the Hunger Games and put the capital children through the hell she had just experienced in the past two novels. She did not want to have another leader who put their needs ahead of those of the group, and who would kill children such as prim and those of the capital just to win a war, they had already won.(spoiler alert)
    Katniss for this rash move is sent back to District 12 to recover from her burns and years later is married to Peeta and has two kids with him, but dreads telling her children about the horror of the hunger games. However, she is the one who finally has the freedom to decide what she can do with her life and the time she has left. But, I am not entirely sure if we get a happy ending at the end of this book given that Katniss still has nightmares about the death she caused or that were caused by others. However, I think in terms of applying this book to real life, I think all most of us can hope for is a positive ending in which we are able to marry the person we love, have friends and family who support us, and a career or job that we are passionate about. I am sure this much harder given the recession with budget cuts, layoffs, and any other new event to trip up plans that have been made. Also this book is helpful for those of us who have lost someone and are trying to deal with that grief in whatever way possible be it through death or by someone deciding that you are dead to them.

Catching fire...aka Hunger games the sequel

        Well, I know I said I would be blogging about Dickens Tales of Two Cities, but the Hunger Games series became too addictive and I decided to finish the rest of the series as soon as my cousin sent me the books in the mail. Now that I am done making excuses...on with the review. Now I personally I think that Katniss has gone through enough personal turmoil with the first hunger games and she deserves to relax after the PTSD and nightmares she is  experiencing now. President Snow (aptly named) seems to have other plans as this is the 75th anniversary of the hunger games which means it is a quarter quell and something much worse than last year is in store for those in the games. Snow is a sadistic men as he declares that all victors of the hunger games must be entered into the lottery for the hunger games for districts one through twelve, excluding the capital. Unfortunately this means given  that their are so few victors in the hunger games from District 12 that Katniss and Peeta are entering the arena. This also means that they are facing off against many victors from the past 75 years and have to decide whether to make them allies or enemies.
     There is an underlying issue to the hunger games this year is that Katniss must prevent a district wide revolution against the capital after her stunt with the nightlock last year with Peeta.  Even though all she was trying to do is keep her and Peeta alive , the fact that she inadvertently rebelled against the capital is just a fringe benefit.  The ironic is that as much as Katniss and Peeta try to keep up the ruse that they are in love, to try to keep calm and peace in the districts, a rebellion has started in various districts that Katniss cannot control. Katniss even decides to join in the fight against the capital through standing hand and hand with the victors, and hanging last years head game keeper metaphorical when she is getting her score before she enters the hunger games for a second time.  These little acts of rebellion in addition to the riots from districts three and eight light a fuse in which the districts would like their free will taken back from the capital.
        I think the main theme seen throughout this whole book is free will or rather lack of it by the end of it.  (spoiler alert) By the end of the novel Katniss is freed from the hunger games arena and learns that District 13 and many others are trying to overthrown the capital once and for all.  Katniss learns that she has become a pawn for the second time, that Haymitch has betrayed her trust through not informing her about the revolution and that she now is the symbol of this revolution which plans to have a coup on the capital.  Katniss has not had much free will throughout both books, she had to fake her relationship with Peeta to survive, now she has become part of a battle she is not sure if she even wants to fight for. I state this because of the many instances in both books where she mentions running over with Peeta or Gale to no longer be under capital rule and be free. However this theme of their not being any free will in a dictatorship based society has been seen in such books as 1984 (maybe Brave New World, am not sure about this), and many others.
     This book also has many questioning my own decisions in life, do I decide things, am I influenced by others, or is it already predestined and I have no say in the matter. Also this question becomes even more complicated in a social networking world with blogs, social networking sites, etc. These outside influences could impact how we view a restaurant, our friends, family, etc.. I think the problem with this that all these outside sources are based on perceptions when the reality about certain establishments, people, and events might be totally different. So do we make our own decisions, or does the internet do it for us like with Hitchhickers guide to the galaxy that will tell you everything you need to know and helps make  decisions for you.