The Hunger Games trilogy is a series of sci-fi books by Suzanne Collins.
If you’ve seen the film, or read the books, now read the facts.
Publishing began in 2008, and ended in 2010.
The trilogy are published through Scholastic.
The books in the series are; The Hunger Games, Catching Fire and Mockingjay.
The books are classed as adventure, science-fiction and young adult.
The books are set in a dystopian North America known as Panem. This features the Capitol, which used to be the Rocky Mountains, and it’s twelve futuristic, yet poverty-stricken Districts.
The series follows sixteen year old Katniss, as she is chosen to participate in a dangerous televised game, known as ‘The Hunger Games’ and what happens in the months that follow.
The Hunger Games opens the series, as Katniss is chosen to represent her District in a series of deadly and dangerous reality televised games. As the novel draws to a close, Katniss emerges victorious from the Games, and struggles with her love for two boys.
The series continues with Catching Fire, in which the actions from the previous book sparks a rebellion among the districts, and a new type of game – the Quarter Quell Games.
Mockingjay closes the books as the rebellion continues through the Districts and comes to a firey head. Katniss must remain triumphant if she is to survive the ravages that await her.
The series is seen through Katniss’ eyes.
The trilogy are written in the style of plays, which comes from Collins’ screenwriting background.
The Hunger Games was named ‘Best Book of the Year’ in 2008 by Publishers Weekly.
It has been translated into over 26 languages.
The series has sold over 1,000,000 copies on Kindle alone.
The series are also available as Audio Books.
The books are influenced by the Greek myth of Theseus and the Minotaur, where many young people were sacrificed to a deadly beast.
Collins was also influenced by footage of the Iraq War, which were entwined with reality television shows. She was ‘channel-hopping’ at the time.
Collins’ father had a career in the Air Force as a doctor of political science. He had great knowledge of military specifications and historical dates. He was a great research source for Collins as she was writing.
Many of the names were derived from Roman Gladiatorial names.
Reviews of the series were generally positive, with ‘addictive writing’ and the portrayal of violence.
Critics however disliked the romantic love triangle, and claimed the ending for Mockingjay did not tie up any loose ends.
Lionsgate films released the first film, also entitled The Hunger Games. They are also planning on releasing the other books in later years.
The film’s star Jennifer Lawrence (Katniss Everdeen), Josh Hutcherson (Peeta Mellark) and Liam Hemsworth (Gale Hawthorne).
North Carolina was the filming location for The Hunger Games film.
Artists Arcade Fire, Taylor Swift and The Civil Wars contributed to the film’s soundtrack.
The film encompasses the theme of feminism, due to its complex female lead, that is still susceptible to flaws, such as love.
Politics play an important role in the both the book and film series, due to the right and left-wing viewpoints.
Christian allegories have been found in both books and film.
To coincide with the film’s release date, Facebook created The Hunger Games Adventures game.
The film’s first weekend brought in an amazing $152.5 million in North America.
