Final ranking of the Hunger Games books, from worst to best
Canadian actor Donald Sutherland has died
Emmy award-winning actor Donald Sutherland has died. He appeared in over 200 films and television shows.
Hunger Games fans are excited because Suzanne Collins has announced that not only is another prequel novel in the works – Sunrise on the Reaping, which centers on Katniss’s moody mentor Haymitch Abernathy and the 50th Hunger Games – but that another movie has also been greenlit.
To celebrate this news, I decided it was time to determine once and for all the definitive ranking of the current books in the Hunger Games universe. I devoured the original trilogy in high school, attended every midnight premiere of the films, and have enjoyed re-reading the books over the years.
So, without further ado, here is my ranking of all the Hunger Games books so far. May the odds always be in your favorite’s favor.
4. “The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes”
When Collins announced a prequel centered around young Coriolanus Snow before he becomes president, I was excited. However, that excitement quickly faded when I didn’t have to finish the book. As an avid reader, that almost never happens to me.
There was so much here that could have been good but just fell flat. Coriolanus’s inner monologue is a pain to read, he comes across as whiny, and even though his family has fallen from grace, he still tries to become somebody in the Capitol without admitting that he’s broke and broken.
It’s the 10th Hunger Games, and Snow and his classmates are each assigned a tribute to look after. In the meantime, they’re all expected to hatch a plan to make the games more exciting for the spectators. At this point, the tributes are simply thrown into an abandoned arena with some random weapons to cause a brutal bloodbath, with none of the ingenuity of the games we know and have sort of grown to love.
Instead of developing a truly despicable and interesting villain in “The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes,” Collins simply passes over the invention of sponsors who give benefits to the tributes they want to win. It’s mentioned in passing in a single conversation and then everyone says, “Yeah, that’s a great idea” and moves on. What could have been a major plot point was just an inconsequential scene.
Most of the book is about Snow’s punishment for cheating so that his District 12 tribute character, Lucy Gray, would win, and how he finds his way back to her to start a less interesting romance that we all knew wouldn’t work. If I’m being honest, I didn’t ship her.
3. “Mockingjay”
I would like to say up front that I don’t think Mockingjay is a bad book at all. However, compared to its two predecessors, it doesn’t stick in your mind like the others.
Mockingjay revolves around the rise of a District 13-led rebellion against President Snow and the Capitol, and Katniss’s role as the face of the rebellion, despite her many decrees that she doesn’t want to be. And can you blame her?
Honestly, a lot of this book just runs together in my head and not many of the specific details really stand out. However, I did like the death of Katniss’ sister Prim. I know that’s a strange interpretation, but you know what I mean. It was a risky move for the plot that paid off.
And I loved the scenes with the rebel crew and a still image being healed by a brainwashed Peteta coming along and sneaking through the Capitol to get to their target: Snow. It felt real and grounded and the imagery made you feel like you were a part of it.
But the ending? What a conclusion to a trilogy in which our Katniss, true to her nature, turns everything expected on its head and kills the new President Coin to prevent more corrupt leaders from taking revenge and keeping the Hunger Games alive.
Snow dies in a rather disappointing way, as he may have choked on his own blood due to the mysterious illness he’s had throughout the series, but there’s a sort of poetic justice to this nonetheless.
For my taste, the whole thing is a bit too beautiful to describe: 15 years later, we see Peeta and Katniss leading a fairly normal, comfortable life with their children in District 12.
2. “The Hunger Games”
There is nothing that compares to the original, and although The Hunger Games was an incredible first novel in a trilogy, for me it just couldn’t compare to its sequel, Catching Fire.
But it’s a perfect introduction to the series and offers impressive amounts of world-building without slowing down the plot. I also love the little mini-twist at the beginning with the assumption that Katniss would be chosen for the reaping and her sister was chosen instead, leading to Katniss volunteering in her place.
And that really prepared readers of The Hunger Games to expect the unexpected from Collins. The novel hits a bit of a low point when Katniss and Peeta make their first public appearance, learn who their mentor is, and show off their skills to the game makers. While all of this is interesting, it doesn’t compare to the chapters describing the game itself.
The game’s story was well-written, exciting, and it really felt like there was a lot at stake. Collins introduced most of the tributes skillfully, and I even grew to love some of them (I’m looking at you, Rue, RIP), sometimes forgetting that only one will emerge victorious.
I could smell hundreds of pages in that Peeta and Katniss were going to make it out alive, but what the ending lacked in drama it made up for with an eerie foreshadowing that Katniss, Peeta, and the gang were about to get into big trouble.
And boy oh boy, was there trouble.
1. “Catch fire”
I’m one of those people who almost always prefer the second or third book in a series, mainly because there’s less world-building and more action. The plot gets more exciting, you know?
And in the case of Collins’ second book, Catching Fire, the plot does indeed get more exciting, and fast.
After Katniss and Peeta survive the first Hunger Games, everything seems calm, but the mischievous President Snow is not happy that rumors of rebellion are spreading in the districts. He decides to cause trouble at the 75th Hunger Games.
The result is that past winners are thrown back into the ring and the reader becomes even more attached to even more characters, knowing full well that not all of them will make it. Collins upped the tension with a brilliant new game for these veteran tributes.
It’s a watch where every hour on the hour a new deadly creature is released, ready to attack. From poisonous mist to killer monkey mutants to literal blood rain, it’s insane. The book is gripping from start to finish, and the ending sets up the final part perfectly.
Katniss has been rescued and kidnapped by the rebels in District 13, Peeta has been captured by Snow, and the uprising has officially begun. And this is where Catching Fire ends with a killer cliffhanger and a perfect preparation for what is to come.
Meredith G. White covers entertainment and culture for The Arizona Republic and azcentral.com. She has the latest news on video games, television and recreation in the Phoenix metropolitan area. Follow her on X and Instagram @meredithgwhite and on Facebook as Meredith G. White. email to [email protected].
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