From Goodreads,
"The final book in the ground-breaking HUNGER GAMES trilogy, this new foiled edition of MOCKINGJAY is available for a limited period of time. Against all odds, Katniss Everdeen has survived the Hunger Games twice. But now that she's made it out of the bloody arena alive, she's still not safe. The Capitol is angry. The Capitol wants revenge. Who do they think should pay for the unrest? Katniss. And what's worse, President Snow has made it clear that no one else is safe either. Not Katniss's family, not her friends, not the people of District 12."
Awards and Nominations:
- Andre Norton Award Nominee (2010)
- Goodreads Choice Award for Favorite Book and for Young Adult Fantasy (2010)
- Children's Choice Book Award Nominee for Teen Choice Book of the Year (2011)
- Locus Award Nominee for Best Young Adult Book (2011)
- DABWAHA Romance Tournament for Best Young Adult Romance (2011)
Buckle up ladies and gentlemen because this review is about to be full of spoilers and character analysis. Upon finishing the book I immediately started on the two movies that concluded the series. This review will be packed with spoilers, so if for some reason you don't know how this series ends, I advise you to close this page and read something else.
Mockingjay is the final book in the Hunger Games trilogy. Katniss is now in District 13 and is aware that her district has been destroyed by the Capital. Katniss must learn to function, overcome, and heal to be able to be the face of the rebellion. She is soon in the districts fighting for the Capital to release Peeta. Eventually, the rebels are able to get Peeta and others out, but Peeta is now a mutt and is out to kill Katniss. Katniss is upset over this and has her sights set on killing President Snow for all he has done. Katniss along with Gale, Peeta, and others are soon sent to the front line to be a part of the action, but to stay safe while doing so. Everything goes wrong and they are all soon propelling themselves into the fight as they try to find President Snow and kill him.
I mentioned in my review of Catching Fire that Katniss was making a character arc. She was transitioning into a strong, independent female character that was also learning how to love and be loved. Unfortunately, her character arc went down in flames in this book. The games completely screwed Katniss up. I feel like the first three-quarters of the book she was in the hospital because she was losing her mind or she was injured. When Peeta was off his rocker crazy trying to kill her she wasn't patient or loving with him. She never really was until they were in the Capital and were on the verge of being killed. I feel like Katniss deserved more than what she got. Her character dramatically flattened in this book as she was in and out of the hospital. I feel like Collins also tried to redeem her by having her have kids at the very end of the book. Katniss deserved a better character arc than the one that was written for her.
I remember this book being released. My friends and I were all reading the book at the same time but at varying paces and places. I still remember one of my friends calling me and screaming "ARE YOU TO THE PART WHERE PRIM DIES!?!?!" I was furious because I was not at that part and she had spoiled one of the biggest dramatic points of this book. So on that heartbreaking point, let us talk about Prim being killed by the rebels. Katniss sacrificed herself for Prim so that Prim would be safe. She had kept her safe for years until they landed in District 13. Katniss was so out of it at that point that Prim started to take care of Katniss. Prim took on a role at the hospital and was in training to become a doctor. Near the end of the book, Katniss is at the President's house and children are being corralled into a pen. Parachutes are dropped and they explode. Medics are sent in and Katniss sees that Prim is one of them. She yells at Prim and makes eye contact at the exact moment that the rebels bomb the area. Prim is killed. I am still furious over this death. Katniss basically sacrificed herself for nothing. Prim only got an extra year and a half on her life from the 74th games. It felt like everything Katniss had suffered was for nothing, and even at the end of it, she lost her sister. This was probably the most uncalled for death in the entire series, Rue included.
Peeta also caught the short end of the character arc in this book. He started this book in the capital and was there for some time before he was rescued. Once he was in District 13 he was crazy and trying to kill Katniss because he had been hijacked and was basically a mutt. Overtime in the book we see his very slow transition to figure out what was real and what wasn't. But then everything just stops progressing for him. We never find out if he was able to revert back to his former self. We don't find out if he is still madly in love with Katniss. The only thing we know is that they got married and had two kids. His character never got a proper closure on his mindset and progress from being hijacked. I know that in the movie when he planted the primrose for Katniss he was very indifferent. I really wish there would have been more in the epilogue for him because he was a huge and important part of Katniss's story.
My final character analysis is on Haymitch. Even though Katniss and Peeta were in the games during the first two books, he was still present, or at least was presented as if he were present. He had conversations with them and always had another plan. He was close to Katniss and tried to keep her in the loop as best as possible. They both trusted him and Katniss went to him for advice. But in this book, Haymitch feels very absent. He is obviously there, but his presence is lacking. Katniss doesn't go to him for advice on various things and he doesn't seek her out to give her advice. I feel like as a mentor, he should have been there and offered his support as best as possible. He had helped them survive two hunger games and I feel he would have been an amazing support. I also feel that he should have known or did know about Coin's plans and that he should have shared that with Katniss. If he knew that Coin was just another President Snow he should have shared that with Katniss so that she could protect herself and act accordingly.
Overall, this was my least favorite book of the series. It felt rushed and that random things were included to make the book longer and stretch the rebellion out. The book and the movie were COMPLETELY different. Effie is present throughout the movies but doesn't show up until the end of the book. Katniss and Johanna go through training to be soldiers and that never happened in the movies. The movies should have been closer to the book considering they made two to "fit everything in". I give this four stars. It was a good concluding book, but the characters lacked and didn't get the proper closure for the series.
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