Katniss is a 16-year-old girl living with her mother and younger sister in the poorest district of Panem, the remains of what used be the United States. Long ago the districts waged war on the Capitol and were defeated. As part of the surrender terms, each district agreed to send one boy and one girl to appear in an annual televised event called, "The Hunger Games." The terrain, rules, and level of audience participation may change but one thing is constant: kill or be killed. When Kat's sister is chosen by lottery, Kat steps up to go in her place.

This book will hold you in its grasp and will NOT let you go. HOLY COW! I loved this book. I think that this kind of sci-fi is amazing, and this one is at the top of its class. I loved Katniss, I loved the people she was around. More than once I broke down and cried while reading this book. Pure literary magic.

This book kept getting shorter and shorter and I kept thinking, “No way they can wrap it up in this many pages,” and they didn’t! TOTAL CLIFFHANGER ENDING! The kind of ending that makes you want to squeeze the author until a sequel pops out! As it is, I don’t think the sequel, Catching Fire, comes out until Fall 2009.

GRR!

~Enna Isilee