The Hunger Games (Novels)

The Hunger Games (2008)
The Hunger Games is the eponymous first book of Suzanne Collins' science fiction trilogy. The novel takes place in Panem, the country representing post-apocalyptic North America, and is written in the first-person perspective of sixteen year old Katniss Everdeen.

Plot
The novel opens with a glimpse into Katniss' world as she describes life in the dreary District 12 and goes about her daily routine of providing food for her twelve year old sister Primrose and their mother. Her primary means of food and money is illegal hunting tantamount to treason, so Katniss is skilled at stealthily moving through the forest and tracking animals with her partner Gale. On this particular day, everyone is preoccupied with thoughts of the reaping, an annual event that is broadcast live across the country of Panem. During the reaping, all citizens are required to attend a gathering in the public squares of their respective districts. At this gathering, a boy and a girl from each district between the ages of twelve and eighteen are chosen by lottery to be whisked away to the Capitol in order to participate in the Hunger Games, during which the twenty four contestants will be imprisoned inside a massive arena to fight to the death as the entire country watches.

As Katniss worries about what will happen to her family if she is chosen, she hears her sister's name called. In a panic, she immediately volunteers to take her sister's place and is disappointed to hear the next name called. Although she has never spoken to the boy, Peeta Mellark, she recalls the time he provided her family with food when they were on the brink of starvation. After a brief goodbye to her family and friends, Katniss is on the way to the Capitol, where fantastic pageantry and brutal inhumanity await her.