The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

Just this very moment I finished reading The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. Now I have a problem. It's going to be 15 days before book 2 is released and that's a long, long time to wait. Do you want to know why? Let me tell you a little bit about this story. Or was it real? Oh, I sure hope not.

Katniss is a spunky 16 year old girl from District 12 in Panem. Her district is the poorest in Panem and she must work each day to hunt and gather food for her family. Panem annually holds a televised competition much like CBS' television show, Survivor. Each district sends a boy and a girl to the Hunger Games. After much fanfare, they fight to the death before a live audience. Your heart will sink when you learn that Katniss is the girl who will represent District 12 this year. The suspense is cutting edge from the moment they enter the arena and the competition begins. It is survival of the fittest at its utmost! Will Katniss have the skills to be the single survivor? What about the boy who also enters the games from District 12, Peeta? How can either of them take the life of the other? Yet that must happen as the Capitol leadership, who arranges the Hunger Games, insist upon a lone survivor.

From the beginning I felt reasonably sure that Katniss would be the lone survivor and winner of the Hunger Games. What I did not expect was how exciting it would be to follow her every move. As with all good novels, I'm longing for more, much more. The author, Suzanne Collins, has written a superbly suspenseful science fiction novel. Thankfully, it is a trilogy. September 1, 2009 is marked on my calendar. I have an appointment with a book store to pick up Catching Fire. What is in store for my heroine Katniss next? I have just 15 days to wait.

Reviewed by Mrs. Boehm

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer

You might enjoy this book if you are a romantic with an interest in wartime love stories. You might enjoy this book if you are a history buff, particularly the German occupations during World War II. You might enjoy this book if you can appreciate fine writing and the craft of letter correspondence. You most certainly will want to read The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer if those attributes define you as a reader.

Like me you could be a reader that "tastes" many books. I come home from the library with tall stacks, lots of genres. I'm not sure if any of them will draw me in so I take home several. I first learned of this book during a lunch conversation with a fellow teacher. She highly recommended it so I placed a hold on it from my public library. I began to read it and put it down - it wasn't connecting with me. I returned it to the library unread. Oh well. Fast forward a couple months to a beach-side party Up North. Once again friends asked if I had read The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society. "Oh, you must read it. It's great!" I was told. Resolved to give it another try, I checked it out again from the library and determinedly began to read. This time I did not put it down. It was not a favorite for me but I did enjoy it enough to keep reading, hoping for more.

Mary Ann Shaffer, the author, has woven a series of letters between her main character, Miss Juliet Ashton, and her various friends and colleagues. The letters are written post World War II and entwine stories of the German Occupation of Guernsey, a Channel Island in the English Channel north of France. We learn not only of the hardships the people of Guernsey endured but also of Miss Ashton's search for meaning and love in her life. The story is tender and peaceful in spite of the war time. The characters will become your friends. This story is about connections we make with those around us and the strength we find in our friendships. Give this one a try, or two.

Reviewed by Mrs. Boehm