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Things that throw me out of a story-
This is not a formal book review. It's just a few short comments on The Hunger Games , which really is a good book. But not an excellent one, and not, perhaps, as good as it could be. My sister tells me the series gets better, and I certainly intend to read the next two. But -
There are a few things that jerk me right out of a story when I'm reading, and, unfortunately, a couple of these are in The Hunger Games. One of these is glaringly inaccurate natural history or history. In this case, it's natural history - or botany, rather. In the first chapter, when Katniss is in the woods with Gale, he tosses her a blackberry. There follows a rapturous description of the feel and taste of the berry. All well and good. But - later on, the kids gather a gallon of strawberries. No. Just no. In what world does this take place? In my world, strawberries ripen in June, and blackberries (the ones with the seeds and prickers, not black-capped raspberries, which are a different thing), in late July to early August. You'd never find them ripe at the same time. As my sister says, maybe these are odd, mutant strawberries that ripen all summer. Or maybe Collins is actually thinking of black-capped raspberries, which might be ripening just as the late strawberries are finishing. Or - something. But I found it jarring.
That, in itself, isn't so bad. As I said, bad or apparently incorrect facts in a story will jerk me out of it, but I can get back in, espcially if, as in this case, most of the other facts seem correct. Unfortunately, bad grammar jerks me out again. I think part of what strikes me as bad grammar may just be a stylistic choice; there are lots of sentence fragments, which may reflect Katniss's stress and the way she is thinking - in short, rapid bursts. But also, at a couple of points, Collins confuses "lie" and "lay". "I lay in the stream", she has Katniss say, and this is supposed to be present tense. A person does not "lay", unless she's doing it in simple past. A person lays an object; a person lies. This sort of thing drives me wild. It looks as if Collins is switching tenses, and it's actually annoying.
Then there's a stylistic choice. Collins writes the whole series in present tense, first person. This is meant to make it more immediate, but I, personally, find it distances me. I'm not being told a story; I'm being subjected to a newspaper account. But that, of course, is just my point of view.
As far as the story itself, the themes and the characterizations go, I think Collins is very successful. This is an angry story with a pretty strong moral sense - like the narrator herself. It's hard to read, because of the extreme violence and cruelty. And I am wondering: who benefits from this violence and degredation? Because someone must, or it would not go on.
Panem. Bread and circuses. And how does this reflect our society? Those are interesting questions. It's a good book. I just wish that, from a grammar/stylistic pov, it were better written.
There are a few things that jerk me right out of a story when I'm reading, and, unfortunately, a couple of these are in The Hunger Games. One of these is glaringly inaccurate natural history or history. In this case, it's natural history - or botany, rather. In the first chapter, when Katniss is in the woods with Gale, he tosses her a blackberry. There follows a rapturous description of the feel and taste of the berry. All well and good. But - later on, the kids gather a gallon of strawberries. No. Just no. In what world does this take place? In my world, strawberries ripen in June, and blackberries (the ones with the seeds and prickers, not black-capped raspberries, which are a different thing), in late July to early August. You'd never find them ripe at the same time. As my sister says, maybe these are odd, mutant strawberries that ripen all summer. Or maybe Collins is actually thinking of black-capped raspberries, which might be ripening just as the late strawberries are finishing. Or - something. But I found it jarring.
That, in itself, isn't so bad. As I said, bad or apparently incorrect facts in a story will jerk me out of it, but I can get back in, espcially if, as in this case, most of the other facts seem correct. Unfortunately, bad grammar jerks me out again. I think part of what strikes me as bad grammar may just be a stylistic choice; there are lots of sentence fragments, which may reflect Katniss's stress and the way she is thinking - in short, rapid bursts. But also, at a couple of points, Collins confuses "lie" and "lay". "I lay in the stream", she has Katniss say, and this is supposed to be present tense. A person does not "lay", unless she's doing it in simple past. A person lays an object; a person lies. This sort of thing drives me wild. It looks as if Collins is switching tenses, and it's actually annoying.
Then there's a stylistic choice. Collins writes the whole series in present tense, first person. This is meant to make it more immediate, but I, personally, find it distances me. I'm not being told a story; I'm being subjected to a newspaper account. But that, of course, is just my point of view.
As far as the story itself, the themes and the characterizations go, I think Collins is very successful. This is an angry story with a pretty strong moral sense - like the narrator herself. It's hard to read, because of the extreme violence and cruelty. And I am wondering: who benefits from this violence and degredation? Because someone must, or it would not go on.
Panem. Bread and circuses. And how does this reflect our society? Those are interesting questions. It's a good book. I just wish that, from a grammar/stylistic pov, it were better written.