Marshmallow reviews The Hunger Games: The Illustrated Edition by Suzanne Collins and Nico Delort

Marshmallow has read and reviewed all three books making up the Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins. This week she was excited to get her paws on the new and illustrated edition of the first book: The Hunger Games: The Illustrated Edition. Sprinkles is taking notes and asking questions.

[You can check out Marshmallow’s reviews of the three Hunger Games books here: The Hunger Games, Catching Fire, Mockingjay.]

Sprinkles: So Marshmallow you read the original book and then watched the movie. How did this illustrated edition work for you?

Marshmallow: As far as I could tell, the text was the same as in the original book. But the illustrator added images every now and then, giving the book a fancy fairy tale feel.

S: I saw the illustrations. They look realistic but are all in black and white. I felt like maybe that matches the overall gloomy nature of the world the story is taking place in.

M: I think you might be right. The cover illustrations have other colors, too, but the illustrations inside the book are all in black and white, like you said. And the world of Katniss Everdeen is really gloomy.

S: Okay, maybe it makes sense for us to give our readers a quick recap of the main plot lines of the book. We cannot assume everyone has already read the original book or seen the movie version.

M: Well, I could just repeat what I said earlier: The book is set in a dystopian future, in North America. There are twelve districts and a Capitol city that make up a country named Panem. Katniss Everdeen, the main character, lives in District 12 with her mother and younger sister Prim. Everyone is very poor, except for the people of the Capitol, which hosts the Hunger Games every year. The Hunger Games are a big spectacle: Two children ages 12 to 18 are selected from each district. And they are brought to the Capitol and are to fight to the death in these Hunger Games. Katniss ends up being the girl representing her district in that year’s Games, along with a boy named Peeta. The book is about their trip to the Capitol and their time during the Games.

S: Okay, so the book is basically the same but there are illustrations in this version, right?

M: Yes. The format of the book is also bigger and the paper the pages are made of is much heavier, thicker paper. And there are a lot more words on a page. I think.

S: How many pages is it overall?

M: 357.

S: Comparing with the original paperback edition you read, which is 374 pages, do you think it is abridged?

M: I don’t think so. It seems that the large format allows more words on each page.

S: I see. So if the text is the same, then one could simply read this one instead of the original paperback you read.

M: Yes, and that could be a different kind of experience, I am sure. I mean, when you read the book, especially if you read it before having seen the movie, you completely are free when you are imagining Katniss and visualizing Panem. The illustrations would change that experience a bit. But I do not think it would be in a bad way.

S: So did you think the imagery was consistent with the book and how you imagined things to look like?

M: Yes. They match the movie images too. I mean Katniss is not Jennifer Lawrence in the illustrations, but the world and how every scene looks really resemble the movie images. But I am not saying the illustrations sort of simply copy the images form the movie. I thought the movie imagery was very faithful to the book, and only made the world seem richer and crisper. The illustrator of this book is very faithful to the book too, and the images just fit the mood of the book very well. Even, like you say, the fact that the illustrations are all in black and white adds to the general heaviness of the story.

S: Okay, that sounds like the illustrator did a really good job then.

M: Yes. I think if you want to read The Hunger Games series, this illustrated edition could be a good book to start your journey with.

S: So I am guessing you would rate this book rather highly?

M: Yes. Great story as before and very evocative imagery, so I’d rate it 100% for sure.

S: Thanks Marshmallow, this is all good to know. So maybe this would be a good time to wrap up this review. What would you like to tell our readers?

M: Stay tuned for more amazing reviews from the book bunnies!