The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

Collins, S. (2008) The hunger games. New York: Scholastic Press.

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins is a Young Adult Science Fiction book published in 2008 by Scholastic.

Exposition: Katniss Everdeen, a 16 year old girl, lives in Panem, previously North America, she and her friend Gale hunt and gather food in the outside woods of District 12 for their families' survival. During the reaping, Katniss' sister is chosen for the Hunger Games, a contest in which only one person - a tribute - will survive; Katniss immediately volunteers to save her beloved sister.                                                                Conflict: Katniss has to compete against 22 other tributes from other districts and Peeta Mellark from her own district. During their time together in training, Peeta and Katniss begin a relationship in which she is not sure what to think and feel for him.                                                             Rising Action: Katniss scores highest of all tributes during a test in front of the Gamemakers. The games begin and Katniss feels betrayed when she realizes that Peeta has joined a group of mean tributes that are hunting her.                                                                                                                            Climax: After a change of rules in the Games, Peeta and Katniss have joined in an effort to survive together, they become finalists when Caesar Flickerman, a reporter, announces that only one tribute will complete the Games. Peeta draws his knife and Katniss prepares an arrow, Katniss tells Peeta that they will go together to the end and gets poisonous berries from a bag. The Gamemakers decide to allow both of them to be victors.                                                                                                                           Falling Action: Peeta and Katniss are sent to a recovery area separately in which they spend time healing and waiting for the final interview before going back home. When the time for the inteview comes, Haymitch tells Katniss that she must continue pretending to love Peeta since she is in trouble for defying the Capitol with the poisonous berries.                                                                                                                               Resolution: Peeta believes that Katniss faked her love for him during the Games and tells her that he will participate in the final welcome back in District 12 but that he will not continue with the relationship. Katniss, Peeta and Haymitch are back home and Katniss wishes that she could hold Peeta's hand a little longer.

The Hunger Games is a books that provides the reader with suspense, understatement and unexpected insights among other literary elements. In many sections of the plot, understatement allows the readers to participate in the story, the facts and unspoken feelings are part of this experience in which the reader can conclude what the characters are feeling and make connections to their own personal experiences. The unexpected insights, small surprises, make the reader want more of the story, with this element, the story becomes meaningful to the reader.