Can I just say that Suzanne Collins’s The Hunger Games deals with so much more than a futuristic nation’s sadistic starvation game in which 24 youths are chosen from twelve districts (one girl, one boy) to compete in the Capitol–until death…on TV?  Sounds gruesome, doesn’t it?  It is.

But, sadly, it’s an excellent portrayal of humanity.  It reminds me a little of George Orwell’s The Animal Farm with all of those underlying themes.

What we have grown to tolerate, even to laugh at.  How we treat others who are different from us.  How we accept what is, because we’re too afraid to rock the boat.  How, when push comes to shove, disaster displays our true inner self.

Touted as a YA (young adult) novel, it’s already garnered many awards.  If you liked Orwell’s commentary in novel form, you’ll like this one.

Be forewarned, though.  It’s the first book in a series, so once you’ve started, you might just have to wait for the others.  The second one comes out this fall.