Catching Fire
Scholastic, 391 pages, $17.99 (hardcover)
ISBN: 978-0-439-02349-8
Last year, The Hunger Games took both the SF and teen fiction worlds by storm. Catching Fire continues the story of Katniss Everdeen, a poor teenage girl from impoverished District 12 who was taken to the Capital to fight for her life in the Hunger Games. Katniss triumphed over her opponents and struck a very public blow of defiance against the tyranny of the Capital.
Now Katniss is back home, but things are not well. The leaders of the Capital know that she is becoming a symbol of defiance in all the Districts—and they inform Katniss that she must use her status as champion to renounce her defiance and help quell rebellion. Her family and friends are hostage to her obedience.
On a victory tour of the Districts, Katniss tries to do as she is told ...but as she learns more of the Capital’s cruel oppression, there also comes the dawning realization that she has become an inspiration to rebels everywhere.
Then the unthinkable happens: the Capital decrees that Katniss and her fellow champion Peeta must compete once again in a bigger, more deadly round of Hunger Games.
But Katniss has secret friends in the most unusual places, and just like the ever-more-restive populace, she too is catching fire....
Catching Fire is a page-turner, and it’s also brimming with questions of honor, freedom, and personal responsibility. Like the best teen books, this one is equally enjoyable to adults of all ages.
If you haven’t read book 1, The Hunger Games, you’ll want to start there, as there’s definitely background information and character development that you’ll need for Catching Fire. Fortunately, that just means double the pleasure.