The Hunger Games

The Hunger Games

by

Suzanne Collins

Made into a movie starring Liam Hemsworth better known for his sometime association with Miley Cyrus. The other ‘man’ is Josh Hutcherson who has a much larger acting experience and the girl at the centre of it all is played by Jennifer Lawrence. Picked up a copy of the DVD but decided to read the book first so back to it. By the way the individual books are a better buy in E-Book Format than the trilogy as a whole.

To stick with movie terminology for a moment this is  a high-concept novel written for young adults. Bucking the trend toward paranormal romance involving werewolves, vampires, and other magical creatures the people here are real but the reality they inhabit is a distopian society of an imaginary future. Genre bending it plays like a Reality TV Show the action playing out in the present with constant flashbacks to the past. Whether this be intended as a parody in the manner of Orwell’s 1984 is unclear.

The gender neutral names given the teens leaves their sex in doubt for several chapters however it soon becomes apparent that basic survival is nore important than romance here. Despite the hype surrounding Liam Hemsworth his part in the movie is played down even more than the character Gale in the book. As Jennifer Lawrence says in an interview in the supplements disk movie scripts tend to ruin the book. The reality TV Show analogy is apt, the action being to a large degree scripted, in this case totally so.

The book and the movie are so intertwined I’ll do a single blog entry regarding both. Whereas a book tells  you how it happened, a movie shows you; therefore a scene that may take several pages to set up in text passes in seconds on screen. On the other hand before CGI things the imagination can do are damn near impossible sometimes on screen. Holllywood loves young romance so it could not resist playing up the relationship between Peeta and Katniss.

Whether or not Suzanne Collins is aware of it the short story The Lottery by Shirley Jackson published in the June 26, 1948 edition of The New Yorker bears a striking resemblence to this plot line, or should I put it the other way round. The other parallel is The Most Dangerous Game based on a short story by Richard Connell that dates back to 1924 proving that there isn’t very much new under the sun.

Prince William: The Man Who Will Be King

Prince William: The Man Who Will Be King
By
Penny Junor

There is a certain irony to the fact that in reading this book I make myself an accessory to those who would invade the privacy of a man who, barring calamity, I am unlikely to ever see crowned King as his father, first in line, is only one year my elder. I cannot forget the date of his parent's wedding as they did it on my birthday. When that marriage began to fail I distinctly remember the advice attributed to the ghost of Prince Charles progenitor Henry VIII, "Off with her 'ead". His Royal Highness' uneasy relationship with the press was dramatically illustrated in the recent movie, The Queen, which dramatizes the circumstances of his mother's death. Both Charles and Diana were complicit in the publicity war that preceded her death.

The Royal Family have a love-hate relationship with the press. William's grandfather once famously turned a garden hose on a photographer. The Royals seek publicity as a means of communicating with their subjects and welcome coverage of their many civic duties. The Queen's Christmas Message is broadcast to millions. At the same time the tabloid press' obsession with celebrity makes any photo captured by the paparazzi especially if it is compromising worth tens of thousands. As any sports figure will tell you it's unsafe to adjust an athletic support or scratch an itch anywhere that a cell-phone or camera can capture it and the event can be on you-Tube today before the act has attained the desired relief.

Modern technology places our heroes right in our living rooms and the advertising that accompanies sporting events makes possible 8 figure salaries. TV and internet coverage makes these celebrities feel like part of the family and fuel our curiosity about their private lives. Where does a movie star or rock musician's desire for publicity end and the invasion of privacy begin. What limits should be placed on Fleet Street's desire to know. Where does our ownership of the Royal Family as the embodiment of our Nation end and their right to a private life begin. Modern technology has blurred that line and made them accessible as never before.

As is highlighted in this book the present Queen has lived a closeted life and was raised in an age in which a hands off mentality existed. Little is known of her personal preferences and private desires. Her grandson lives a more public life and finds privacy much more difficult to attain. Part of the allure of sovereignty has always been the mystery that has traditionally surrounded it. The degree to which familiarity can breed contempt endangers that allure. In an age when a determined terrorist who is not afraid to die in attaining his goals is almost impossible to stop a sovereign's Personal Protection Officers face a daunting task. It is an age when even the Pope feels obliged to ride in a bullet-proof 'popemobile'.

All this said I am as guilty as any in soaking up the juicy tidbits. I recently read the 60-page spread in MacLean's detailing the life of Canadian Royalty--Justin Trudeau. I was amused to read that the future head of the Church of England had to ask Mummy, what denomination am I? One can understand the reticence both William and Harry have in accepting new friends always wondering if there are ulterior motives. As is related in this tome many of their indiscretions are stories fabricated by associates in need of extra pocket money. Even their own press secretaries are not above using spin to make 'The Firm' look good. The discussion of the relevance of the monarchy in these modern times is the provenance of another discourse.

Interestingly enough I note that this book had come down in price since I bought it at a supposedly bargain price but has since been bumped up to $11.99. Whether you'd want to read it depends on your interest in the Monarchy. It adds little to what has not already been available to a follower of the Royals in the public record. At times in detailing the minutia of his life the book drags dreadfully, becomes tedious.

He has been so absent from the scene I'd forgotten Spencer's Eulogy in which he promised that his family would be active in the princes lives, that absence proves his oration was simply an attempt to embarrass the Royal Family before hundreds of millions.

The Royal Family no longer rule as such and are now considered to be above politics but they have discovered that through Royal Patronage they can have a positive influence upon the charities of their choice. Endeavours they support can be bolstered simply by their lending their names as Royal Patron and fund raising boosted if they make a carefully planned appearance as little as once a year. A Friend has met Prince Phillip several times because of his mentoring of Outward Bound. Princes Harry and William and now William's wife Kate have taken Patronage several steps further by sponsoring forums in which the charities they support meet in round table to share ideas and even participate in joint ventures. Their next step was to form a Foundation whose purpose is to provide seed money to fund the start-up of charities in areas of concern to the princes: disadvantaged youth, veterans, and conservation.

Twould have been a kindness if the series of pictures at the end of the book had been adapted to full page views for the electronic version, as it is they become very small on a tablet. The index forms fully 20% of the book.

Flame of Resistance

Flame of Resistance
by
Tracy Groot

The book begins in the cockpit of a fighter plane as the pilot is being shot down over German occupied Vichy France in 1944. The pilot is rescued and recruited by the French Resistance. The story continues with members of the French Underground and the brothel where intelligence gathering is carried on. The background highlights the privations suffered under the German occupation and the things those who live under it have to do to survive.

If this sounds like dry material blame this writer. The author makes it all sound compelling and leads the reader along as the tension builds in the lead up to an expected Allied Invasion and the operatives stress levels increase with fear of detection and torture.

This book has movie script written all over it. Can’t say who would play the very tall handsome blue-eyed, very blonde American Airman of Dutch Ancestry but the part has movie star written all over it.

Muscular Verse

The Root of Lightning
by
Michael Spring

This is muscular verse written by a man who works with his hands and trains others in the martial arts. It is so much easier to see other’s inconsistencies and incongruities. A builder turns concept into the concrete, a fighter attacks from stealth and surprise, a poet bares his soul making himself vulnerable. The lines in this book reveal all three qualities at once. Michael makes you sense the satisfaction a boxer feels when he trains and lands those blows on the heavy bag, the oneness with his own body and strength. The love and pride a father feels in seeing his son grow. The power of nature when a storm strikes. The empathy of a caring soul who sees pain and would ease it. This is verse to be experienced, not dissected. It benefits from being read aloud. Enjoy it as I have.