The Final Chapter: "Mockingjay"

Book Title: Mockingjay
Author: Suzanne Collins
Version: Hardback
Voice: First Person
ISBN: 9780439023511
Publisher: Scholastic
First Published: August 24th, 2010
Number of Pages: 390

Alright there was a hitch yesterday and I was unable to post my final review of the trilogy. However here I am today and I am all ready to post. CAUTION: This review contains some spoilers.

In the third and final installment of "The Hunger Games" trilogy Katniss is recuperating in the underground city of District 13. She has learned that her own district has been bombed to the ground and though her family, Gale and many others that Katniss cares about escaped to safety she is struggling with the knowledge that Peeta has been captured by the Capitol. In District 13 there is a very tight regimen to follow, each person has a schedule that they have to stick to but Katniss spends most of her time wandering around and avoiding everyone.

Katniss has discovered that everything after her original win has been carefully planned out and the rebellion that is starting to really take off is supposed to be lead by her. She has become the figurehead that everyone is hoping to follow. And though she agrees that something has to be done to stop the Capitol she doesn't want to be in charge of everyone's lives, she was in that position twice in The Games. Finally she decides to take the helm when Peeta is rescued and it becomes clear that he has been brainwashed and tortured into believing that Katniss is the enemy and needs to die.

Hurt and confused Katnisss starts leading the rebellion through each district. Gathering forces and fighting off those that disagree with them. As the rebels get closer and closer to the Capitol the districts fight harder to hold back the rebels but they continue to push forward. Finally a small group, including Katniss, Gale, and a recovering Peeta, makes it to the Capitol and goes in search of President Snow.

The final chapter of "The Hunger Games" trilogy is all about the uprising. There are many more losses in this book, some that wrenched the heart and brought me to tears. Suzanne Collins has a unique way of making the characters so tangible and real that you can't help but become invested with them. Each triumph one that we celebrate with them, each failure one we suffer with them. Although this trilogy is considered teen fiction it has so many more layers that make it accessible and enjoyable to all ages. Suzanne Collins' books are a great read. They keep the reader interested and invested which can sometimes be hard with a plotline this dark. And do not be fooled it is a dark story but one that is well worth reading.

It is a strange world and one that is a little scary because it one that is more possible then some of the other 'end of the world as we know it' stories. But it is a world that is well worth the visit because there is so much to it, such pain and beauty, so many layers of emotion. If you are looking for a series of books that you can really sink your teeth into go out and buy a copy of the first book "The Hunger Games." I warn you though, once you get started you won't want to stop.