Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins

Summary:

A regular life, after surviving the Hunger Games, is no longer possible to Katniss Everdeen and her faux beau, Peeta Mellark.  There are certain lines that have been crossed and things will never be the same.  First of all, her friendship with Gale has been strained since her romance with Peeta must be maintained in front of the Capitol's cameras.  Then a visit from President Snow indicates Katniss' actions in the Hunger Games has set off a chain reaction even she can't begin to understand or control.  Increased security and the rumor of rebellion in other districts are only the warning signs.  President Snow declares that in honor of the 75th Hunger Games, the contestants will be chosen from the remaining victors.  This means that Katniss will definitely be returning to the arena with either Peeta or her mentor, Haymitch.  Not willing to sacrifice either of them, Katniss strikes a deal with Haymitch to make sure Peeta survives at all costs.

Response (Spoilers):

I kind of feel like Katniss hasn't been allowed to make any of her own decisions in these two books.  Obviously there are a few things she chooses, like volunteering to take her sister's place or mourning Rue.  But Peeta's revelation of Love has sort of trapped her in a relationship for which she never really asked.  President Snow's do or die bargain has her forced into an engagement she never wanted.  She has been plucked and polished to fit an image created for her by the Capitol.  Then Peeta manipulates the audience to believe she's pregnant with a child she would never have had in an effort to save her life even though she's determined to save his instead.  Even in entering the second Hunger Games, Haymitch has made all the decisions without informing her.  He has decided they will have allies whether she wants them or not, the rebels have decided there will be a jailbreak, and District 13 has decided she's the figure head they need to rouse the rest of the Panem nation into revolt.  Really, where is her say in any of this?

I would even argue that her decision to take her sister's place was one she didn't have complete control over.  The government being what it is and the Hunger Games bring what it is, the entire society is engineered to manipulate and control its citizens.  So really what choice did she have when they pulled her sister's name out of the bowl?  Now she has been whisked away to lead a rebellion she doesn't really support.  Everyone else is thinking about the greater good of society while she's worried about the individuals around her.  I think all of this is driven home for Katniss when she discovers that District 12, her home, has been destroyed.  Her family has managed to survive, but it's not clear who else made it.

Again, I would recommend this to anyone looking for an entertaining read.  I still feel that the author is really reaching with her love triangle, though.  I thought we would get a little more face time with Gale, but he's still MIA even though they're back in the District for half of the book.  It makes me root for Peeta because I don't really have the emotional attachment to Gale that Katniss supposedly does.  This could be the author's intention, however.  Still, I had to go right into the third book just to see how it ends.