the birds have all gone silent

It's done.

The book came in this afternoon at 1:51.  Yup, I looked at the clock.  It is THE book of the moment, so the occasion needed to be marked.  I still had a small chunk of pages to finish of the previous book, so I set it aside for a short time.  The children played, conversations were had, and me and my aching back spent more time on the floor (and alternately on my beloved, and now medicinal-use-only, bag of frozen peas) with a book.

Bits and pieces were read throughout the late afternoon and early evening, but I had a PTA-related meeting to attend.  Thankfully that meant a short wait at the bus stop, followed by a short ride, followed by a short walk, all of which were conducted with book in sturdy left hand, with eyes darting up only to assess location and cross streets.  The meeting and the subsequent computer work at home took up about three hours, but after that it was immediately back to the book.  With the required break in the evening reading, I didn't finish before midnight, but just around 12:30 am.  And all I can say is wow.

I try my very best to record my "mini-reviews" (which would be much more aptly titled "mini-reactions") immediately after the last page of a book has been read, and this one felt much too important to hold off putting down my first impressions until morning.  Even though it's appearing on the 2010 reviews page as well, I feel compelled to post it here, too.

Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins
What can I say without saying too much?  The action and intensity are on par with the others, but there's a growing sense of hopelessness in this one that tore at my heart.  The atrocities that can be justified by people in power are again overwhelming, and the socio-political statements here are as thinly veiled as ever.  The irony in the "Peacekeepers" moniker is just the beginning, and there's so much that can be dissected, discussed and pondered over in this world that Collins has created- a world that reads in horrors, so unreal and unimaginable, until tiny cracks of reality peek through.  It's beyond horrific to think that anything like this could ever truly occur, but it's even more frightening to imagine the small events and actions that could eventually lead to something none too different.  Brilliantly conceived book and trilogy.  I don't imagine I'll be sleeping soundly tonight. 

If you haven't read The Hunger Games trilogy yet, trust me (and many, many others) when I say that is a wrong that needs to be corrected as soon as possible.


Amazed and shocked and overwhelmed,