Mockingjay Review
MILD SPOILER ALERT: This review contains spoilers – so please come back once you have read Mockingjay.
It felt like we had to wait forever, but finally Mockingjay, the last book in the Hunger Games series has been released and as a conclusion to the trilogy, it doesn’t disappoint.
In the first book, The Hunger Games, we discover a world ruled by a dictatorship that demands that every year children from different districts will fight to the death in a giant televised event. It is in that book that Katniss, at the age of 16, is thrown into the Games only to emerge after having broken all the rules and taken back a small amount of control. In Mockingjay, Katniss is still breaking the rules. Here she’s the face of a rebellion against the all-powerful Capitol. The situation has now descended into all out war. There are no longer any more Games being held in the arena, as they’re now spread out throughout the districts.
This story is at once heartbreaking and horrifying. It’s brutal and Suzanne Collins never spares the blood or the gore. That’s not to say she does it pointlessly. Every wound or death has a purpose and an aftermath. Everything is connected and written for a reason. The readers are drawn along emotionally. We feel every blow along with Katniss, and mourn all of the loved ones that she loses along the way. Katniss falls apart, and in a way, so do we.
This is a war story. We find out what it means to be a volunteer and yet still be a pawn. Suzanne Collins develops the supporting characters beautifully, so much so that we learn to care about them and some of their deaths can be a bit hard to take. That might upset some people, but for me it was one of the strong points of the book. The war is depicted as real and horrible. There’s no clear good and bad guys either. Mockingjay continues to be just as complex and intriguing with its areas of grey as the first two books. You can never take anything for granted.
And all of that is bigger than the love story – the speculation about who Katniss will choose, Peeta or Gale. While Katniss continues to love them both, romance has never been a priority for her and that stays true in Mockingjay. It’s always been about survival for Katniss and making sure her loved ones, including Gale and Peeta, survive too. Nevertheless, the war does eventually come to an end and she does make a choice. Because she’s been to hell and back and lost so much along the way, the decision, the ending, seems somewhat real. You know that Katniss will never be the same again.
While I loved this book, I do have some criticisms of it. I was expecting Katniss to develop more in Mockingjay. I really thought her internal struggle would be a reflection of what was happening in Panem. I thought that as the districts took back their power, so too would Katniss emerge as the master of her own destiny. Unfortunately it never really happens. She never reaches her full potential and ends her days in passive reflection. Was she manipulated by Snow, or did she, in the final moment, act on her own, setting everyone free to start over, with no Capitol and no District 13? It felt to me that Katniss’ inner journey was never fully resolved. I would have liked her to have had a moment to reflect, to know that she had achieved it, that she had finally become the Mockingjay for real and that once she’d finished her task – had done all she could do – she was ready to leave. But there is no neat ending for Mockingjay. It doesn’t’ get wrapped up nicely with a bow. The ending was a little unsettling, which is definitely part of its strength and its beauty, but a part of me was left wishing for a just a little bit more.
***SPOILERS***
I agree to an extent with you about the ending. Unsettling, is what made it a good piece of literature to. But I actually think that katniss’ attitude at the end worked. To me, it made her more real because she wasnt like the steriotypical hero in other books. She was torn and she bled and she went into a depression that I think is natural for a human. She watched so many die and killed so many, and after everything she did, her main goal from the beginning was crushed. She went in this brave, fighting girl trying to save her sister, to a woman broken by her failure. After being a puppet for so long, to once again regain control of her life could take the rest of her life.
I loved the book. As you said it definately didnt dissapoint and I am extremely happy the love triangle took a back seat because thats how it should be. The book is about survival and freedom. Not team peeta or team gale.
As much as I hated the deaths, they were definatlely purposeful to the story, realistic and made for a good read. Yet they really were heart wrenching. I loved getting to hear more about Finncick, at the same time I was a mess reading that part because it broke my heart. I also enjoyed seeing how much Haymich loves Katniss and Peeta. I think what I loved most was the ending was almost not an ending, it left you with this feeling that life went on. There story didnt end there and although the impact of the hunger games lived on, the hunger games finally were over.
my twitter @marissamariec
p.s I just saw the twitter follow link. lol sorry
you described it beautifully! i totes agree with you as well. i felt that katniss character development was lacking as well as her love for the gale and peeta. while the heart of the story is the need to overthrow the capital suzanne collins built up the triangle in the previous book and while its touched upon minutely throughout the book when she finally chooses its in a final paragraph. it made it seem she made her choice because she had gone mad and he was there instead of it being the love she felt for him all along. i understand she was broken and albeit a little crazy from all thats happened but i was expecting katniss to revel in her strength in the final book and i found that lacking. then to agree to continuing the hunger games even though she’s been through it….
to be honest, i was left disappointed in the final book.
Masterful, absolutely masterful. I was in tears by the end of the last book. What some people chide as cramming to many things into too little space I see as exactly the fast pace that keeps your heart pounding, putting your mind into the head of Katniss Everdeen as a war rages inside her own head, mirroring the physical battle unfolding across the nation. In the end we see both dictators taken out by their own creation, leaving democracy to blossom once again in the ashes of our own civilization for the first time since that unnamed and unknown disaster. My only hope now is that we will evolve just like Katniss said, to stop seeing each other as enemies, but rather as brothers and sisters united across the earth.
I thoroughly enjoyed the story, but was really disappointed in the ending. Mrs. Collins is so incredibly gifted at describing situations and people attitudes, I thought that it was lacking in detail when Katniss is somehow getting better with the help of Peeta. Perhaps I really just didn’t want it to end?!? Not sure.
I hated it. Hated it, hated it, hated it. For an hour after I finished the book, I just sat in a disapppointment-induced semi-catonic state. Suzanne Collins, what the hell? Where was the strong, passionate ‘girl on fire’ Katniss from books one and two? Where was the love triangle? Where was the choice we’d been waiting two whole books for Katniss to make- Gale or Peeta? This book was just one giant cop out. I can’t fault Collins writing style- it was as beautiful as ever- but the blandness of the plotline completely overrode it. No doubt people will think I’m frivolous and petty to be hankering after a proper conclusion of the Katniss/Peeta/Gale love triangle when I’ve been presented with a ‘realistic and honest display of war’, but how many wars have you seen lead by a vacant, drugged-up teenager? For that’s what Katniss became in this book, and it broke my heart far more than the hastily written (and forgotten) deaths of the other characters. Katniss was the hook in the series. In the Hunger Games she was defiant and bold and daring, while still managing to have a fierce love for her family, Gale and Peeta at the same time. In Mockingjay she was self-pitying and uncaring and barely there, a blank canvas of a girl who let the events of the other two books overcome her. Maybe that’s ‘realistic,’ but it’s in no way satisfying. We wanted Katniss to rise up and accept her role- and more than that, embrace it because she believed in the cause. Instead we got a girl who hid in closets, whined about any role she was asked to play in the revoltuion and let the choice of Peeta vs Gale be made for her. Now I only finished the book this morning, so there’s a slight chance this review might have a just a hint too much bitterness. Maybe when I’ve had some reflection time I’ll be able to find some redeeming qualities, but until then Mockingjay, in my eyes at least, is a monumental disappointment in an otherwise faultless series.
Hated it. Hated it, hated it, hated it. For an hour after I finished the book, I just sat in a disapppointment-induced semi-catonic state. Suzanne Collins, what the hell? Where was the strong, passionate ‘girl on fire’ Katniss from books one and two? Where was the love triangle? Where was the choice we’d been waiting two whole books for Katniss to make- Gale or Peeta? This book was just one giant cop out. I can’t fault Collins writing style- it was as beautiful as ever- but the blandness of the plotline completely overrode it. No doubt people will think I’m frivolous and petty to be hankering after a proper conclusion of the Katniss/Peeta/Gale love triangle when I’ve been presented with a ‘realistic and honest display of war’, but how many wars have you seen lead by a vacant, drugged-up teenager? For that’s what Katniss became in this book, and it broke my heart far more than the hastily written (and forgotten) deaths of the other characters. Katniss was the hook in the series. In the Hunger Games she was defiant and bold and daring, while still managing to have a fierce love for her family, Gale and Peeta at the same time. In Mockingjay she was self-pitying and uncaring and barely there, a blank canvas of a girl who let the events of the other two books overcome her. Maybe that’s ‘realistic,’ but it’s in no way satisfying. We wanted Katniss to rise up and accept her role- and more than than, actually *try* to be the mockingjay because she believed in the cause. Instead we got a girl who hid in closets, whined about being merely the face of the revolution and let the choice of Peeta vs Gale be made for her. Now I only finished the book this morning, so there’s a slight chance this review might have a just a hint too much bitterness. Maybe when I’ve had some reflection time I’ll be able to find some redeeming qualities, but until then Mockingjay, in my eyes at least, is a monumental disappointment in an otherwise faultless series.
the book left me…dissappointed. i like the steriotypical endings. boo. >:(
I have to say I love the series, and the people above make good points. Yes, it’s realistic. Yes, it’s not all suppose to be about the love triangle, but c’mon? I agree with the person who said that Katniss wasn’t the girl on fire in Mockingjay. Everything just played out while she was barely there. And at the end, she never really chose Peeta, it was Gale that moved on, really. I’m disappointed that we didn’t really see from the other characters much. Especially Peeta. I’m also upset that the other character’s deaths played out too fast and it didn’t even build me up to cry. The book seemed to drag out in my opinion, and it didn’t have that upbeat feeling like it had with the first book. Good, but unsatisfying.
i was so disappointed mrs collins should of made 4th book the ending was bland and drab. i expected a better ending and the love triangle to be more dramatic. there are some authors like jk rowling who no how to end a story but mrs collins is not 1 of them
I actually didnt mind the ending in the sense that there was no big rebound of Katniss, no revelation or magical psychological fix, i feel having a happy ever after, after everything she had been through would have been way to unrealistic and sugar coated. I definitely feel that through the whole book there was a strong reference to our society and i think Katniss’s ending was the same, thats pretty much stated above that war is not pretty or fun like what we often see in the movies etc. In that way i see it almost as a respect to reality war torn people and circumstances but i may be overthinking here.
I have to admit i was for Gale the whole way, (but my gosh i hate how this thing is turning into a scarily similar situation with “team gale or Peeta” like in twilight ugh, i think that undermines the depth of the series. anyway i really wanted them to get together, they were soul mates and it was just so perfect! but i saw the cracks beginning to show through the last book and Gale seemed to change also for kind of the worse. With the children’s bombing i could see there was no turning back then. But i still feel completely gutted that he was altogether out of her life, as inevitable as it was for one of them, it left me feeling like i had a hole in my own heart.
But altogether this has been one of the most memorable, amazing and moving series ive ever read, i wish it never ended. Suzanne Collins i believe stand up just as strongly as J.K Rowling in her own right
<3
I didn’t mind the ending so much. It was disturbing in a way but I liked the realistic feel to it. After going through so much it definitely didn’t make sense that Katniss wouldn’t have any problems after the war was resolved. However, a lot of plot lines felt dropped to me. The love triangle that had been built up so much in the last book kind of fell apart. Gale was supposed to be someone Katniss could count on but as the story progressed he started to turn into this bad guy. And Peeta became a stranger to Katniss. I completely forgot that she was supposed to love one of them. And most of Katniss’s thoughts of rebellion began to fizzle as well as she became more and more occupied with being used as the Mockingjay. The entire ending felt rushed and messy. The war simply ends and some people die. Prim’s death caught me completely offguard and unlike many other character deaths I didn’t feel much when she died because it hadn’t been built up. It just felt thrown in. I agree with what others said earlier. Katniss didn’t “choose” over Gale or Peeta. Gale just went away and Peeta suddenly remembers that he loves her. It didn’t make sense that someone so close to Katniss would just leave her. But despite all of this it definitely was a great read and it doesn’t change my opinion of the trilogy at all. It was a great story and I can’t wait for the movie!
I just finished Mockingjay and though I got what I wanted (Peeta and Katniss)being together, I can’t help but feel depressed. There’s so many unanswered questions, like why did Prim die? How did she get to the Capital? What was the point of book 1 where Katniss goes to save Prim’s life if in the end she dies anyway? And why marry Finnick off if only to kill him and leave his son fatherless? Yes, I got butterflies when Peeta returned and loved Katniss again, but I couldn’t help feeling sad that Gale was out of the picture. Couldn’t he have met a girl and stayed in 12? I feel like this book could’ve been written better with a better ending. Katniss to me is likeable, because not all girls are girly and submissive, some have opinions and other things on their minds rather than boys.
i generally liked it, but there were some thing i was really upset with.
i felt like the book was rushed at the end and many important characters died. WARNING now i’m goin to rant about the deaths. i realize this book has a war in it and some important characters will die, but i didn’t like how they happened. the best example is finnick. he just got married in this book, then he dies? and killed by mutts was awful, because katniss, gale, etc. escaped from the mutts and finnck’s skills were just as good, so why did he die? i felt other characters who died also had unreasonable or unnecessary deaths. another problem is that katniss was really close to some of them in this book, like finnick, but after they died katniss mentioned them and felt sad. her sadness felt kind of fake because she didn’t realize how valuable those people were except prim. prim’s death, altough heartbraking, was one that i thought was perfectly executed because it made katniss realize the truth about coin.
another thing i didn’t like was the ending. okay, i did like the ending, just not how it was explained. it just felt like a sad, but peaceful ending to a trilogy with lots of action.
please understand that these are the things i didn’t like and i actually enjoyed this book a lot. my favourite thing about these books is katniss. she’s strong and brave and flawed. she’s not one of those annoying characters that give advice and make other people solve their problems (i only like that kind of thing in anime).
she wasn’t lovesick, even though she did have romance in her life (*glares at bella*). she was strong and it was obvious why gale and peeta loved her.
The book was pretty good. I couldn’t stop reading. Collins’s writing style is so amazingly addictive and there wasn’t a minute I didn’t enjoy it. But, there were a lot of things that bothered me. The deaths were so fast and, and Katniss seemed to not care a lot about them until Prim died. When she agreed to do a Hunger Games with Capitol children– that was absolutely weird and uncharacteristic for the Katniss we learned to know throughout the trilogy. The ending was left a bad taste in my mouth, but many have mentioned it before and it’ll be pointless to repeat it. Katniss seemed to be regressing instead of progressing. The whole thing kind of happened while she was just there. What actually bothered me is Katniss’s relationship with Peeta and Gale. Yes, it’s not supposed to be all about the love triangle, but it bothers that at the end, when she chose Peeta, it seemed forced, not very genuine. I mean, it wouldn’t hurt for her to show at least some affection that actually has a romantic feeling to it. I think Gale was right when he said she will choose the one she can’t survive without— not the one she can’t live without or the one she loves. To me, that seems a little unfair towards Peeta. Throughout the whole trilogy there wasn’t a clear sign that Katniss is actually in love with either of them. Then at the end, when she chose Peeta, it just seemed wrong to me. The relationship with Gale is another thing that bothers me. When they try to get to the city circle and Gale asks her to shoot him and she doesn’t because she was so confused she didn’t get it, I think Gale saw that as her betraying him, or I don’t know really. It’s just that when she screams his name when the guards try to take her away after she shot Coin’s head expects him to shoot her, to help her, and he doesn’t, like he is getting back at her. He was suddenly this bad guy that she counted on and failed her. Katniss didn’t choose… Gale was out of the picture, so what was left is just Peeta. To me, her relationship with both of them was awful. I think she doesn’t really deserve Peeta, and Gale bailed on her when they were supposed to count on each other. And the fact that it doesn’t seem to bother either of [Katniss and Gale], just kind of gives the feeling that they were never actually that good of friends. I don’t believe she ever actually fell in love or was able to with either of them. She didn’t make the choice; the choice was made for her.
(Contains spoilers) Yes, I was captivated by the book and finished it in under a day. But, like some of these other comments, I was left disappointed. Katniss turned into this whiny brat that can’t do anything for herself. And with the love triangle, I expected some more romance than the ‘I don’t feel that good, so I’ll kiss you.’. Especially towards the end, when the choice was made, I was still hoping there’d be some romance.
And how her mother completely ditched Katniss after Prim died (which makes me curious about why that was the only one that depressed her) annoyed me. Maybe I’m just raging at the ending and when I think about it some more, I’ll like it better. But right now, I am highly disappointed, especially with all the hype this series gets.
What people need to understand is *spoiler*, Gale helped create the bomb and premise of the second bomb going off killing the medics (her sister). She couldn’t face him anymore after that. Sure Prez Coin stole the bombs and used it on the kids, but Katniss will never forget it. That why Gale walked out of her life. I gotta say though, I cried at the end of the book. It was so powerful and the point of her having to be sedated alot and her not altogether recovering from such trauma shows that she’s not the invincible Mockingjay everyone beleived. She’s just a 17 year old girl trying to survive and keep her family/loved ones alive.
In reply to Terry;
It was never established that Gale helped create those bomb. At best, he had a plan to use on combat troops that was similar. That’s as far as his part with the bomb goes. Ms Collins makes it a point to say that not ever Beetee – whom everyone likes and is the ‘smart scienct guy with a moral compass’ – knows if it was the Capitols bomb. Katniss is just selfish and whiny. She only thinks about herself.
And it takes Peeta being chemically altered by the Capitol to realize Katniss isn’t perfect. He needed to realize that on his own.
Peeta is the most bland character there is. He does nothing interesting in three books and is just dead weight in two and half of them. His obsession with Katniss is just creepy. It’s not romantic to commit emotional blackmail on a girl the way he did. For Christ’s sake, he told a national TV audience is fake girlfriend is fake pregnant. I guess that’s okay because he’s cute and sensitive.
Oh, this isn’t a realistic look at war. You don’t have mutts in war. You don’t have exploding rose bushes. Presidents don’t use children as human shields. YOU DON’T HAVE A SIXTEEN YEAR AS YOUR SYMBOL. People are in wars and they come home just fine or at least functional. And not all good people die in war. This is just heavy handed anti-war propaganda.
The number of apologist for this piece of crap is sickening. The first two books were really good. Mockingjay was just rubbish.
I thought that the book was incedibly fast-paced. My friends advised me not to read the book as they said it would ‘ruin the whole series’, but i wanted to see how things turned out and so I read it. I thought there was a lot jammed in there, maybe too much, but that may have been impacted by the fact that I read it in four hours religiously. *SPOILER* I wish there was more on what happened to Gale. I swear, the fact that he was barely mentioned at the end nearly killed me, as I was Team Gale for a long time. Did he end up with another girl? What was the ‘fancy job’ anyway? Katniss seems so alone and depressed in the end, no family still with her. Even her mother doesn’t visit her. At least they have children, so it’s sort of happy. I thought that the last words ‘There are worse games to play,’ was incredibly genius and powerful. Because there always are worse games to play in life, especially when the Hunger Games are concerned.