The Hunger Games Add a review

The Hunger Games is a series of young adult dystopian novels written by American author Suzanne Collins. The series consists of a trilogy that follows teenage protagonist Katniss Everdeen, as well as two prequels. The Hunger Games universe is a dystopia set in Panem, a post-apocalyptic North American country consisting of the wealthy Capitol and 12 districts in varying states of poverty. As punishment for rebellion, the Capitol hosts an annual battle royale competition called The Hunger Games. Each of the 12 districts must send two children between the ages of 12 and 18 to participate, and the last surviving child is dubbed the victor.

The novels in the trilogy are titled The Hunger Games (2008), Catching Fire (2009), and Mockingjay (2010). Each was adapted into a film, forming The Hunger Games film series, with Mockingjay split into two feature-length motion pictures. The first two books were both New York Times best sellers, and Mockingjay topped all US bestseller lists upon its release. By the time the film adaptation of The Hunger Games was released in 2012, over 26 million copies of the trilogy were in print, including movie tie-in books. As of 2023, the series has sold over 100 million copies worldwide and continues to be a significant influence in young adult literature and popular culture.

The novels were all well received. In August 2012, the series ranked second, exceeded only by the Harry Potter series in NPR’s poll of the top 100 teen novels. On August 17, 2012, Amazon announced the Hunger Games trilogy as its top seller, surpassing the record previously held by the Harry Potter series. As of 2014, the trilogy has sold more than 65 million copies in the U.S. alone, with The Hunger Games selling over 28 million copies, Catching Fire over 19 million, and Mockingjay over 18 million. The series has been sold in 56 territories and translated into 51 languages.

Following the release of the initial trilogy, Collins published two prequels. The first, titled The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, was released in May 2020 and takes place during the earlier days of the Hunger Games, featuring a young Coriolanus Snow as the protagonist. By 2023, the prequel had sold over 3.5 million copies in North America and was available in 39 languages across 39 territories. A film adaptation was released on November 17, 2023.

The second prequel novel, titled Sunrise on the Reaping, takes place after the previous prequel but before the trilogy. It follows a young Haymitch Abernathy through his victory of the 50th Hunger Games, also known as the 2nd Quarter Quell. It was published March 18, 2025, and is currently set to have a film adaptation releasing November 20, 2026.