Kindle edition
As the third and final installment in the Hunger Games trilogy, Mockingjay has the dubious honor of tying up loose ends and providing a satisfying and resounding conclusion. Mostly, I think that Mockingjay succeeds on both counts.
After the events of Catching Fire, Katniss finds herself in the mysterious District 13. Heralded as the leader district of the rebelling Panem, District 13 is set up as the alternative to the Capitol. But it isn't the perfect solution and like the Capitol, District 13, headed by President Coin, Katniss is a pawn to be used and nothing more.
At this point, without the Games as a backdrop to who Katniss is, I felt that Katniss experienced character development on her own two feet. Even though she is chosen to be the symbol of the rebellion, she does so on her own terms and without compromising who she is. Character development of the supporting cast is also continued and thus, a higher level of emotional investment is possible in Mockingjay, specifically with Finnick and Prim.
The stakes are higher, and with this, the philosophic backdrop to the series becomes more dominant. The hoped-for outcome is that District 13 and the rest of the districts will triumph over the Capital...or is it? District 13's spartan way of life was necessary for it to survive, but Collins wants the reader (and Katniss) to doubt District 13 and Coin herself. Collins puts forth a common trope in revolutions from France in 1789 and Cuba in the late 1950s: just because a revolution might overthrow a previous government doesn't mean the new government will be any better.
Collins, throughout the series, doesn't hold any punches and it doesn't stop in Mockingjay. Characters are tried and tested and the ending is properly bittersweet and poignant, not unmarked by tragedy. Overall, Collins has told a thoroughly entertaining and thought-provoking story. Although there were moments of clumsy narration (Katniss's various blackouts and narrative backtracking) and a use of "reoccuring" (in Catching Fire), The Hunger Games is not a series to be ignored.
Related reading:
The Hunger Games review
Catching Fire review
The stakes are higher, and with this, the philosophic backdrop to the series becomes more dominant. The hoped-for outcome is that District 13 and the rest of the districts will triumph over the Capital...or is it? District 13's spartan way of life was necessary for it to survive, but Collins wants the reader (and Katniss) to doubt District 13 and Coin herself. Collins puts forth a common trope in revolutions from France in 1789 and Cuba in the late 1950s: just because a revolution might overthrow a previous government doesn't mean the new government will be any better.
Collins, throughout the series, doesn't hold any punches and it doesn't stop in Mockingjay. Characters are tried and tested and the ending is properly bittersweet and poignant, not unmarked by tragedy. Overall, Collins has told a thoroughly entertaining and thought-provoking story. Although there were moments of clumsy narration (Katniss's various blackouts and narrative backtracking) and a use of "reoccuring" (in Catching Fire), The Hunger Games is not a series to be ignored.
Related reading:
The Hunger Games review
Catching Fire review
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