The book is easy to like, I think, because most of the stuff I complain about are things the book was trying to use narrative slight of hand to make you not notice. If you go along with what it says, Katniss only hates the deserving, didn't meant to hurt anyone, etc. Each point is presented quite reasonably, and only falls apart on examination. (And it's always, always easier to write a story minimizing horror, since we the reader aren't actually there and it's easy to be detached.) And while the writing isn't very good, it certainly does the one thing it needs to, which is be easy enough to read that you can skate over the problems easily.
I often enjoy books in the manner of writing my own mental fanfic for how it should have gone. Got quite a few books into the Drizzt series like that before the writing finally got too awful, and enjoyed 9/10ths of various other bad fantasy literature on the same principle.
Making Rue, whose motives Katniss trusts more than Peeta despite knowing her less and for a shorter time, a backstabber or killer hiding behind the facade of an innocent child, could've provided an at least slightly exciting twist
What's actually a bit weird is that the book mentions the strategy of appearing harmless, waiting for the other players to kill each other off, then murdering the survivors, and does so very early on. I mean, I'm not sure how believable it'd be for Rue to manage that at twelve, but ignoring she's a little kid her actual actions fit in perfectly. She helps Katniss, a non-career kid, kill two and cripple three. She was already hanging around Katniss at the training, and from the interview she knows Katniss volunteered herself for the games because of a twelve year old sister, so she likely knows Katniss won't hurt her. The plan to attack the career kids was extremely dangerous for Katniss and pretty safe for Rue. And Rue's general lack of fear or acknowledgement that she's either going to die or she'll have to kill at least one person is rather unrealistic in itself. (Almost like there was no need to worry about the endgame with Katniss since she was slated to die early.)
so much potential! SO MUCH WASTED POTENTIAL. It's enough to make one weep, it really is.
Only looked at the very oldest fanfic, but there's one that's about what if Rue didn't die...and also what if the rule change said three of them could live for no reason, way to epically fail author.
But the couple alt Hunger Games stories looked better written than the book, and I can only assume fandom's improved a great deal since then.
no subject
The book is easy to like, I think, because most of the stuff I complain about are things the book was trying to use narrative slight of hand to make you not notice. If you go along with what it says, Katniss only hates the deserving, didn't meant to hurt anyone, etc. Each point is presented quite reasonably, and only falls apart on examination. (And it's always, always easier to write a story minimizing horror, since we the reader aren't actually there and it's easy to be detached.) And while the writing isn't very good, it certainly does the one thing it needs to, which is be easy enough to read that you can skate over the problems easily.
I often enjoy books in the manner of writing my own mental fanfic for how it should have gone. Got quite a few books into the Drizzt series like that before the writing finally got too awful, and enjoyed 9/10ths of various other bad fantasy literature on the same principle.
Making Rue, whose motives Katniss trusts more than Peeta despite knowing her less and for a shorter time, a backstabber or killer hiding behind the facade of an innocent child, could've provided an at least slightly exciting twist
What's actually a bit weird is that the book mentions the strategy of appearing harmless, waiting for the other players to kill each other off, then murdering the survivors, and does so very early on. I mean, I'm not sure how believable it'd be for Rue to manage that at twelve, but ignoring she's a little kid her actual actions fit in perfectly. She helps Katniss, a non-career kid, kill two and cripple three. She was already hanging around Katniss at the training, and from the interview she knows Katniss volunteered herself for the games because of a twelve year old sister, so she likely knows Katniss won't hurt her. The plan to attack the career kids was extremely dangerous for Katniss and pretty safe for Rue. And Rue's general lack of fear or acknowledgement that she's either going to die or she'll have to kill at least one person is rather unrealistic in itself. (Almost like there was no need to worry about the endgame with Katniss since she was slated to die early.)
so much potential! SO MUCH WASTED POTENTIAL. It's enough to make one weep, it really is.
Only looked at the very oldest fanfic, but there's one that's about what if Rue didn't die...and also what if the rule change said three of them could live for no reason, way to epically fail author.
But the couple alt Hunger Games stories looked better written than the book, and I can only assume fandom's improved a great deal since then.