With all of the crazy reality shows on TV nowadays, something like Panem’s annual Hunger Games doesn’t seem too implausible. Every year, each of the country’s 12 districts are forced to select one boy and one girl between the ages of 12 and 18 to send to the Capitol to compete as tributes in the Games, which are televised for the entire nation to see. The odds of being selected are slim, but of course, two kids must go and this year is an unlucky one for District 12’s Katniss Everdeen. Suzanne Collins’ The Hunger Games tells the story of Katniss’ fight for survival in the Games.
The book has amassed quite a following and Collins has even written two subsequent stories, one called Catching Fire and another called Mockingjay, which is due out on August 24th. MTV was on hand at a special Scholastic event during which Collins read the final pages of Catching Fire followed by a sneak peak at the beginning of Mockingjay.
The big news for movie fans? Lionsgates didn’t just pick up the rights to Collins’ first book to throw them away; they’re adamant about bringing this story to life and far sooner than expected. The studio plans to announce the film’s director this summer and go into production in January 2011. Later that year, we should be able to see Katniss duke it out with her competitors on the big screen.
This is your cue; it’s time to read The Hunger Games, if you haven’t already. The book is fantastically addictive with big screen potential evident throughout. I’m about a quarter of the way through Catching Fire and can already tell a franchise is a serious possibility.
By Perri Nemiroff
