Mockingjay (The Hunger Games, Book Three)

It was a great book that followed along with the first two books very well and the author always puts a surprise in your way to keep the action going

I have really enjoyed these books. I agree that the third is the most controversial, the one that it was hardest for me to appreciate. There are parts that I am a little less happy with, such as Katniss’s leading her squad across the Capitol with her made-up mission. It does feel like a video game. She spends too much time in avox mode, either because she cannot speak due to near strangulation, or because she is simply too upset, or simply because she is in solitary confinement.Still, the book deserves five stars, and the whole series is amazing. Not only is it entertaining, but this last book manages to keep the same pattern as its predecessors – an initial section, followed by the messiest of the Hunger Games (an actual war) – while taking us to whole new levels and posing deeper questions. What is the point of revolution and war if nothing changes? And is Coin good? Collins makes that character extremely ambiguous, at least at first. Katniss is represented by the color black: her hair is black, and she comes from the coal district. President Snow is represented by the color white: white hair, white snow, and white roses. But Coin is gray: gray eyes, gray hair, and gray clothing. Is she good or evil?Many gems and motifs in this book show its extraordinary depth.Mockingjay divided into three different parts: The Ashes, The Assault and The Assassin. The titles of all three parts contain a word beginning with “As” which is a lovely approach.The word “the” is a little misleading, as it implies that each part is about just one of those items, whereas in each case it could apply to several different events, persons or conditions. Now I will get into some serious spoiling, so only read ahead if you don’t mind such things.The Ashes. Obviously, this continues the motif of all things related to fire. There are several literal instances of actual ashes, beginning with Katniss’s return to the bombed-out remains of District 12. She returns near the end with Gale, and they tour the ashes of their home. There are more literal ashes to be found in the bombing of District 8, and figurative ashes to be found in Katniss’s emotional life and her relationship with Gale.The Assault. This is the second part, and there are many examples of assaults within the part. At the end of Part 1, Peeta Mellark warns everyone in District 13 that they are about to be bombed. At the beginning of Part 2, Peeta himself is being assaulted for the defiance he showed by warning them. Katniss does not see the assault, but she hears his cries and sees drops of blood on the white tiles.Assaults continue. District 13 is subject to several days of bombing, in which Katniss and the others are forced to stay in their bunkers. (An interesting question is why the Capitol stops the bombing after only a few days, but that is not answered.) Peeta is then rescued – which could be considered an assault on the Capitol – and as soon as he sees Katniss, he tries to strangle her. This is because he has been brainwashed (“hijacked”) by people in the Capitol – an assault on his mind (which started in Part 1, but certainly continued during Part 2).In order to get away from the unexpectedly murderous Peeta, Katniss joins the rebels in District 2, where the rebels themselves perform a horrendous assault on the Nut, a mountain containing most of the weapons being used against them. Katniss, acting as a peacemaker, is assaulted again, this time with a bullet, but although she is injured she survives. The remaining chapters in this part are devoted to planning for the assault on the Capitol.Part 3 is called The Assassin. Again, the title can be applied to many people in these chapters. It begins with the still-unstable Peeta, programmed to kill Katniss, joining Katniss’s squad. He can be seen as an assassin sent by Coin – a view confirmed by Boggs, her commander. Katniss spends much of the time with the plan to assassinate President Snow. (She feels a little too guilty about blaming herself for the deaths of her comrades – after the initial incident, they had very little opportunity to go back – they were stuck behind enemy lines.) Of course, she does not carry out this particular deed of killing Snow but kills Coin instead. But we must remember that Coin herself is an assassin, and what is worse, a killer of kids. She tried to kill Katniss through Peeta (and at one point Katniss reminds readers that she is only 17, technically still a child). She is responsible for Prim’s death and the deaths of a whole bunch of Capitol kids. What is worse – what Katniss cannot bear – is that Coin is planning to continue with another set of Hunger Games (Nothing has changed!).I could go on and on but I am sure I have wearied most people. Enjoy and appreciate!

I may have been disappointed with "Catching Fire," but that didn't stop me from buying the final installment of the "Hunger Games" trilogy as soon as I'd finished the second book. However much the last book let me down, I was too invested in Katniss' world to not see how everything comes together. I had hoped "Mockingjay" would end the series with a bang and provide a satisfying conclusion to the trilogy. Once again, I found myself not only underwhelmed, but frustrated and angry by how much of a mess this book was. Spoilers follow.After being rescued from the Quarter Quell by the rebels at the end of the last book, Katniss learns that District 12 was destroyed and only a small portion of the population survived. She also discovers that District 13 still exists, but it isn't the safe haven that people had hoped it would be. Instead, it's an underground bunker where everything is strictly controlled and regimented, and ignoring or straying from the rules is a strongly punishable offense. Worse still, Peeta was not rescued and is being held captive by the Capital, his fate unknown. Still reeling from recent events, Katniss is expected to be the symbol of the rebellion, the Mockingjay, but she isn't sure if she can fill this role or if she even wants to. With the districts steadily falling to the rebels and the attacks from the Capital getting more brutal, Katniss realizes that she has to stop President Snow, no matter what it takes...no matter the costThis book should have been great. It has the framework to tell an empowering story of Katniss standing up for what she believes and becoming a symbol for the change she desires. The potential for action and wide reaching consequences is present, as is the possibility for a great deal of character growth and development as Katniss faces opposition not only from Panem, but also from District 13 and their plans. But "Mockingjay" doesn't deliver and instead falls tragically short on all fronts. It's a mess; everything that was done well in the first two books is mishandled here, the result being a book that is unsatisfying, frustrating, and oftentimes even boring! I've raved about Collins' ability to pace the last two novels; they were rarely boring and kept you turning the pages, desperately wanting to know what happens next. That sense of suspense and needing to read just one more page is gone here. A good seventy-five percent of this book is spent with Katniss milling about in District 13, either in a drugged daze or frantically trying to work things out in her head. When she finally gets to the Capital, the story picks up again and races to the climax, but it takes an incredibly long time to get there, and then ends on the same slow, disconnected note. Frankly, it's a chore to get through, and a book with this much promise simply should not be this boring. What happened?Like I said, very little happens in the novel. If you go through the list of events, it seems like there are a lot of big things going on: Katniss goes to District 12, Katniss begins her life in District 13 and agrees to be the Mockingjay, she shoots some promotional videos and ends up in a firefight in District 8, District 13 is attacked and later manages to rescue Peeta, Katniss is present when District 2 is conquered by the rebels, Katniss infiltrates the Capital, important characters die, and Katniss finally gets to kill Panem's leader (sort of). See? There's a lot that happens, but it feels like most of the book drudges along with very little in the way of important events taking place. This is because Katniss either isn't there for the big events (rescuing Peeta), they happen very quickly with little time to think about or enjoy them (District 8, District 2, the bombing of District 13, and the death of the leader), and because they're interspersed with long periods where Katniss just sits in District 13 and does nothing. The infiltration of the Capital provided a level of excitement similar to that present throughout the first novel, but it's such a small part of the book that it gets lost in the pages and pages of either flying through events or moping around District 13. I couldn't bear to put the first two books down...I had a hard time wanting to pick this one up.We don't even get a satisfying ending after slogging through page after page of Katniss lamenting over this or pondering that. I'm not the kind of reader that needs a happy ending. In fact, most "happily ever after" endings rub me the wrong way. I do, however, need a satisfying conclusion that brings closure, and that simply isn't provided here. Katniss has an intriguing discussion with President Snow about the death of her sister. Then, in a moment of apparent madness since Katniss' thoughts are too jumbled and rushed to make sense, she decides to kill President Coin, while Snow dies either as a result of his health or the mob that closed in after Coin's death. From here, Katniss spends days lo...

If you love the slow budding, complicated and raw relationship between Peeta and Katniss and you just can't wait to read the ending that Suzanne Collins would write, because you just KNOW that she'll do right by them and give them the kind of ending that two people who have been through so much hurt, and pain, and hardship deserve, well- you won't find it here! The ending of a three book series consists of a five page wrap up. WTF Suzanne Collins... WTF. I sincerely hope whatever writers get hired to do this movie have a better understanding of your own audience then you do! With a story this complicated a wrap up is NOT the kind of ending your audience was looking for.I wrote my own ending, if you'd like to read it go for it:Continuing from where Katniss says, she gave all her bacon to Buttercup….The days start to go by, somehow. Life continues. It's funny like that. Even when everything you love has disappeared from the face of the Earth, never to be seen again, their laughter never to be heard again, their smiles never to be seen again… life does go on in the cruel way that it does. What I had thought was impossible begins to happen without my knowledge- it crept up on me. I slowly started to accept the fact that the lives lost, the ones I cared for, are gone. I will have to continue my life without them here with me. At least not physically. Sometimes I would talk to them when I had no one else to turn to- after Greasy Sae left for her own makeshift home where the Hob used to be. It seems weird to admit it to myself, but I begin to crave human company. After being constantly surrounded by people, the solitude that I was used to before the madness of the Hunger Games seems so foreign to me now that I’m home. That's when I talk to Prim about random things that I see throughout the day, or to Cinna, describing to him the colors that I see around me, or to Finnick, telling him about how Annie was doing according to the letters she sends faithfully every month.One late afternoon I muster up the energy and set off to the meadow, place my bow down next to me and throw aside my shoes to try to find a grain of peace here that my home can never give. The grass and leaves are lush and green- soft under my feet, I try to recount the good things that once happened here gail, my father, even the crew members from 13. I take a deep breath and close my eyes, willing myself not to think of the staggering loss that threatens the corners of my mind. I recite in my head the phrases I so often replayed in my mind, my meager attempt to hold on to my sanity: my name is Katniss Everdeen. I am eighteen. I live in District Twelve. I am the Mockingjay. I was the Mockingjay. The Capitol is gone. Gale, my best friend, is now in District Two. He is safe. I don't know where I stand with Peeta but Peeta is safe. I'm back home in District Twelv., I am finally safe. I let out a deep breath as I open my eyes and stare at the sky, lying down in the Meadow where the new buds of life cushion my body from the soil underneath. The sun has just begun to set and the sky was magnificent, painted in shades of light pinks, dull yellows, brilliant reds, and soft hues of orange. Orange. Seeing his favorite color painted all across the endless sky triggers an influx of memories. Its so hard having him live so close and yet knowing how far away we really are. I find myself longing for the feeling of his hand in mine- the way his eyes used to light up just for me. The way he always double knotted his shoelaces, the relief and the surge of warmth that I felt when we kissed. Really kissed. That relief and surge of happiness that I was too afraid to admit to myself was present when he was finally safe, when he was finally near, back at district 12. The feeling of elation when he wrapped his arms around me as we fell into the soft pillow of snow as one. That seems so long ago.I closed my eyes, imagining his beautiful blue eyes which used to bring such warmth, trying not to forget them and the way they pierced into mine in the gentlest way possible, filled with undeniable love. The way he used to look at me never has fully returned since the Capitol hijacked his memories. Their plan did not prevail, but in some ways, the Capitol and Snow had their victory before their downfalls. Although Peeta was not successful in killing me physically, they took the only sure thing I knew. Peeta loved me, he loved the heartless girl who doesn't trust a soul in the world other than herself. It killed me to know that although he was pronounced "recovered" by Dr. Aurelius, he never truly will be. The light that always shined in his eyes is gone and replaced with something hollow. And that is how Snow and the Capitol took their final revenge.Peeta and I haven't spoken since he planted the primrose bushes. He somehow managed to finish planting the bushes before I woke up in the morning and as a result my house in the Victor's Village is now surrounded with primrose bushes...

I want to premise this review with a few things. First, Hunger Games is one of my favorite books. Catching Fire was just as good, if not better! Finally, Suzanne Collins must have made some kind of Faustian deal to be such an amazing writer, or at least have some special powers. When the third and final installment was released on Tuesday, I was thrilled! I have been waiting for this book for over a year! But when it came to actually reading the book, I knew something was wrong. Earlier in the week I had reread the first two books and found them just as captivating and engrossing as the first time I had read them. But Mockingjay? I kept putting it down! I had no problem setting it aside to do something else... This didn't bode well.Mockingjay picks up shortly after Catching Fire left off with the rebels from District 13 saving Katniss, Finnick, and Beetee from the arena in the 75th Hunger Games. Her family and Gale and his family have gotten out of District 12 with a handful of other refugees, but most of the people and all of the district (except Victor's Village) has been bombed and burned to the ground. Now Katniss is living with the other refugees and District 13 in their underground facilities that are basically a subterranean city. But Katniss isn't really "living" in the the realest sense. Mostly she hides, shirks her duties, and avoids all contact with people if possible.When President Coin, the leader of District 13, wants Katniss to agree to be the Mockingjay, a symbol of freedom and courage for the rebel movement against the Capitol, Katniss refuses at first. When she sees Peeta, who was captured by the Capitol, on TV and he has clearly been beaten and tortured, she agrees to be the Mockingjay with a few conditions- one being the immunity of all Hunger Games victors, including Peeta. District 13 then primps and preens Katniss into the Mockingjay and parades her through multiple propaganda videos (called propos) to keep the war effort motivated. Of course, this involves keeping her mostly out of danger, with the exception of a few surprise attacks by the Capitol.*Spoiler Alert*Once the Districts have been won over by the rebels, however, the Capitol is the final battle to be won. Coin creates a group of "Celebrity" soldiers that includes Katniss, Finnick, Gale, and Peeta, among others, and she sends them off to the Capitol. The carefully planned mission, however, goes horribly awry when the "pods" (easily triggered defensive weapons that carry everything from black tar waves, to shrapnel bombs, to tracker jackers) are too numerous to avoid. As the Capitol bombs their previous hiding place and assumes they are all dead, the group makes its way to President Snow's mansion on an assassination mission. It doesn't go as planned, however, and Katniss's greatest fears are quickly becoming realities.I wanted to love this book so much. In fact, it wouldn't have taken much for me to absolutely love it as much as the first two books in the series, but for some reason it fell short for me. It wasn't a huge disappointment, just not as amazing as the first two books were. I would love to hear how others felt about it, because I am worried maybe my own expectations negatively affected my opinion. The truth is I hated Katniss in this book. She was weak and damaged. Ok, I can accept that. But she was also whiny, petulant, and refused to take responsibility for the revolution she played a part in. I wanted so much more out of this older, more mature, and wiser Katniss. I didn't want her to hide in laundry rooms and broom closets for naps throughout the whole book. Even when she gets Peeta back (in bad shape, but away from the Capitol at least), she is still moping about. She does go on about killing Snow, but it almost seems like an afterthought.Another complaint was the rushed feeling of the deaths of major characters. I will admit, I was reading quickly at some points, but I would read a paragraph and a character would be gone with very little explanation or time to process. Just GONE! Now, I read quite a few apocalyptic stories and dystopias, and I am not surprised when important characters are killed. That is, after all, the nature of the genre. But why wouldn't you give those characters the respect they are due?I did like the guilt Katniss displayed at how many lives were at stake because of the revolution she was involved in. Every rebel life, every innocent civilian life, and every district that was affected by the war is like one more thing peeling away at Katniss's sanity. I know she was a reluctant face of this war, but is important to see her pain for each and every death her involvement is even loosely responsible for. This humility was one of the most endearing qualities in Katniss, from her first time in the arena with the loss of Rue and even Thresh, all the way to the loss of her friends, like Cinna, and the people of her district. Unfortunately, this guilt seemed to overwhelm the determined Katn...