Book cover image from amazon.com
MOCKINGJAY
1. BIBLIOGRAPHY
Collins, Suzanne. 2010. MOCKINGJAY. New York: Scholastic Press. ISBN 9780439023511
2. PLOT SUMMARY
"My name is Katniss Everdee. I am seventeen years old. My home is District 12. I was in the Hunger Games. I escaped. The Capitol hates me.” In surviving the Hunger Games, Katniss becomes a reluctant pawn for the rebel forces. She has witnessed her childhood friend beaten, her partner in the games supposedly obliterated, and her beloved home destroyed along with ninety percent of District 12’s population. “I have no confidence that my becoming the mockingjay will benefit those who are trying to bring it down. How can I help the districts when every time I make a move, it results in suffering and loss of life?” Katniss does become the Mockingjay and symbolizes hope for those who have been oppressed by the government. When she realizes her dream to do away with the evil President Snow, the truth influences her final act as the Mockingjay. After those in charge of the revolution decide that a slaughtering of children in future hunger games will continue, Katniss comes to her own realization, “Because something is significantly wrong with a creature that sacrifices its children’s lives to settle its differences…The truth is, it benefits no one to live in a world where these things happen.”
3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS
All of the books I reviewed for Module four were either companion books (THE DEAD & THE GONE), next in the series (AMONG THE IMPOSTORS) or concluding books in a series (MOCKINGJAY). MOCKINGJAY has been the hardest of the three to analyze because, in my opinion, it relies so much on the other two books in its trilogy. Trying to look at it as a stand alone piece was ineffective for me. This may be because when the Hunger Games trilogy was started, Suzanne Collins knew she would be writing three books. I learned this from her at the 2010 TLA Conference during her Hunger Games Session.
The obvious elements of this novel to Fantasy are the creation of the Mockingjay creature. The types of air crafts and special effects (the way the skin was transplanted after Katniss and Peeta were burned) also lend to this element. The governments involvement in the destruction of the different Districts, the Hunger Games themselves, and the obvious controlling of people (such as the scheduling of each inhabitant of District 13) brings in the dystopian effect of this novel.
Katniss battles herself through part of the novel, but the real antagonist of the novel is not so much President Snow, but the abuse of power associated with some who are in control of others, especially in government.
4. REVIEW EXCERPTS
From Booklist: "The highly anticipated conclusion to the Hunger Games trilogy does not disappoint. If anything, it may give readers more than they bargained for: in action, in love, and in grief."
From The Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books: "Readers will not be disappointed by the series conclusion, as the superb characterizations and unending plot twists that were hallmarks of the previous books are all here, but they may be surprised by Collins’ bleak—albeit accurate—depiction of war. Neither the Capitol nor the rebels can claim innocence as their separate quests for power continue to rack up the body count and destroy Katniss’ world. The bittersweet ending is at once heartbreaking and appropriate, as it stays true to both the determination of Katniss and the brutality of the Games."
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