Book Rave: Divergent

Divergent, Book 1

          Looking for a series with the edge and heart of The Hunger Games?  You will find it in Veronica Roth's Divergent trilogy.  While I wouldn't say the series is quite on par with The Hunger Games, it is certainly on the cusp of the next big thing.  Following the young Tris (who acts beyond her sixteen years), Divergent takes place in a dystopian Chicago which controls and contains its population into five distinct factions: Abnegation the selfless, Candor the honest, Dauntless the brave, Erudite the curious, and Amity the group.  When Tris turns 16, she leaves Abnegation and chooses Dauntless, undergoing a gruesome training.  If she fails, she ends up in the Factionless-the mysterious underbelly of the society.  Divergent is an easy read with lofty ideas.  Can humans really be resigned to one type of personality?  Are we not more complex?  The second book, Insurgent, delves deeper into the Factionless and the mystery of a city gate locked from the outside.   While Divergent was the stronger of the two novels by far, Insurgent left me ready for the yet to be released third and final installment.
       
           A movie is already in the works and both books can be devoured in days.

Catching Fire in Georgia

               Catching Fire, the much buzzed about sequel to The Hunger Games, invaded in the peach state today.  Georgia has played host to a number of recent films, but will only be home to The Hunger Games sequel for a little while, before shooting continues in Hawaii.  I must admit that thoughloved The Hunger Games books, I really only liked the movie.  Watching it a second time, I found myself weirdly bored and unattached, whereas when I reread the books I feel immersed in the  dystopian adventure every time.
                      It concerns me that the first film was only decent, particularly because the first book was my favorite in the series.  Slight reservations aside, I am still very interested in how the 75th Hunger Games will play out on screen, particularly with the addition of Finnick (Sam Clafin).  Hopefully Peeta (Josh Hutcherson) will be given more screen time to develop as well.  Otherwise, The Hunger Games films really do not deserve the hype surrounding them.  The books, particularly the first two, deserve all the hype they receive.  See if Catching Fire lives up to its bold name when it hits theaters Nov. 2013.

And the Role of Finnick Goes to...

Sam Claflin

         
          If you've been following the casting scoop for the much-loved Finnick Odair, you knew he was a contender, but now it's official.  Sam Claflin (Snow White and the Huntsman) will play Finnick in Catching Fire, the sure to be a hit sequel to The Hunger Games.
              I'm not sure how I feel about it yet.  Calflin was alright as a preacher in Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, but in Snow White, he was a sort of bland character without the charisma a role like Finnick requires.  That could simply be because he wasn't the main character (the Huntsman)  I'll just have to reserve judgement until the movie comes out.  Sadly, I'll have to wait a while, seeing as Katniss and crew doesn't hit theaters until November 2013.

The Finnick Games

Sam Claflin, Finnick?

          Arguably the best, most nuanced new character in Catching Fire, Finnick Odair is described as a Greek god, bronze hair and all.  The former Hunger Games champion and mentor at first appears shallow and jaded, but later connects with The Hunger Games leading lady Katniss and reveals his brokenness.  Casting rumors for Finnick spread fire faster than one of Cinna's dresses.  Everyone's name from Armie Hammer (The Social Network) to Garret Hedlund (Tron) to Sam Claflin (Snow White and the Huntsman) has been thrown into the casting gossip.  Reports are surfacing that Claflin, who also appeared in the most recent Pirates of the Caribbean movie, is the forerunner, but the studio hasn't confirmed anything.  As long as the fan-favorite Finnick is given  the screen time he deserves, I won't complain either way.  Be on the lookout for the official casting report for Finnick.  May the odds be ever in Finnick's favor, or at least in the actor's who plays him.

Should be a Movie: The Scorpio Races

       
      There are some books that have an almost mythical power to bring you to another world.  The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater is such a tale. The story is set in a chilly November on an island with strange and untamed water horses.  Every year, men compete in the Scorpio Races, a horse race around the beach.  The catch is, if the horses touch the water, they turn into beasts and may just drag their rider into the water to die.  Kate "Puck" Connolly becomes the first girl to compete in the races, and on an ordinary horse no less.  She must fight for her place on the beach and for her life among the water horses.  Along the way, she befriends Sean Kendrick, a fellow rider whose heart is with the horses and the sea as much as Puck's is.
     The book was staggeringly original and fresh amid the deluge of urban fantasy novels and rich with setting, characters, and island lore.  In movie form, it's dangerous tone and mythical atmosphere would translate brilliantly.  If you are a fan of The Hunger Games, or any of Kristen Cashore's books, you will revel in discovering this chilly story that makes legend real.   When The Scorpio Races is made into a movie, I'll race you there.

Hunger Games Hype

     
        I pre-ordered the first Hunger Games book before it was released in 2008.  I heard the premise and was immediately sold on the concept of a dystopian America where the Capital echoed Rome of the past, colossal human battles included.  Every year after, I devoured the books, loving the first two, and liking the third.  Before the release of the first movie, I was excited to the point where I bought the soundtrack before it was released.  Jennifer Lawrence seemed like a good fit for Katniss, as did Josh Hutcherson as Peeta.  Watching the movie, I enjoyed the behind the scenes of the game and appreciated Woody Harrelson and Elizabeth Bank's chemistry as Haymitch and Effie.  Along with everyone and their mother, I cried with Katniss as she honored Rue and I bit my nails as they battled tributes.  Still, I wasn't as emotionally connected to the movie as I was to the book. It didn't stick with me as much. I am not in the camp that always thinks the book is better than the movie.  I will admit I enjoyed the Lord of the Rings movies more than the books in a heartbeat.  Why then is The Hunger Games less meaningful to me in movie form, even when all of the actors did well and the story was told well?  The only reasonable explanation I can come to is that The Hunger Games book was told completely in the immediate mind of Katniss.  It buried the reader in her fight for her life and for the lives of those she so readily loved.  The movie could never achieve this level of first person narrative.  It wasn't meant to. All of the hype around the movie somehow made be anticipate the same experience I had reading the book in the theater, but they are two very different arenas. Jennifer Lawrence did an absolutely wonderful job in a very high pressure role, carrying the movie and inhabiting Katniss with the grace, kindness, and fierceness we've come to expect from her.
         The movie was good, the book was great, and I am still excited for the future of Catching Fire and Mockingjay in the future. We can all celebrate the books and movies as a part of the utterly riveting story Suzanne Collins created.