Review of Hunger Games: Mockingjay

Author: Suzanne Collins

Personal Rating: 15+

What It's About

Mockingjay is the last book in the Hunger Games Trilogy. 

After a narrow escape from the arena of the last Hunger Games, Katniss is brought to a new place; district thirteen. This district was supposed to have been demolished by a bomb from the Capitol, yet Katniss finds that they are more capable than they let on. District thirteen built an enormous underground bunker that the people live in, capable of withstanding surface bombs. Katniss feels a crushing guilt, though; Peeta was not able to be resuced from the arena by Plutarch Heavensbee, the last head Gamemaker, and Katniss has seen him on the televisions placed around the bunker. Peeta now looks like a hollow shell of what he used to be, crazed and tortured by the Capitol. 

Gale, Katniss' best friend, offers her comfort, though the guilt weighing on her seems to deplete her emotional bank, leaving her sad and angry. President Coin, the leader of district thirteen, seeks to make Katniss a symbol among the districs, causing massive riots and rebellions thorughout Panem. Coin knows that Katniss will either be victorious, kill Snow, and destroy the Capitol from the inside out, or die a martyr.

But as the Capitol grows more and more ruthless, Katniss and her specialized team realize that the time has come to take Peeta back, kill Snow, and destroy the Capitol. Katniss races to find a way to extract Peeta from the Capitol in a safe way, as well as a way to destroy the Capitol and kill Snow.

What I Liked

I liked the beginning, when Katniss wakes up, filled with unearthly rage and hatred that runs through her very bones. She knows that she shouldn't be rash, though she ignores the last scraps of her conscience. The dark side of Katniss suddenly emerges, showing up in such strange ways. I also liked how though the Capitol was once a clandestine place of politics and prestige, it has turned into a wasteland filled with desperate people. That sudden change of events was a twist of the knife for Snow and his lackeys, and a major advantage for the people of the districts. Oh, and the ending was so amazing, though also tragic...

What I Didn't Like

The main thing I didn't like was the physcological unease throughout the book. Katniss gets to a point where basically has a mental meltdown, and starts to become suicidal; that aspect of the book really put me on edge. Somehow, though, Collins finishes the book in a perfect way, with a happy, nice ending.

Conclusion

Mockingjay is the last of three books int he Hunger Games series, following Katniss on her final journey through the Capitol on a seemingly impossible mission. As she tries to become the Mockingjay for Coin, while also being a kind sister for Prim and an uplifting saint for the people of Panem.

Content Warning: Mockingjay is a very violent book, with gore, death, and blood. Some of the deaths are very sad or descriptive, though some are not at all sad.