No replies? Wow. Well, i'll make up for it with a huge post.

I was probably introduced to Suzanne Collins via Narniaweb, as i rarely read books i haven't heard of from someone/somewhere else. I enjoyed The Underland Chronicles a lot - i found the characters easy to root for, the story not too unrealistic, and just in general a good read.

I found out about The Hunger Games on Amazon, i think. The premise made me skeptical, as did the reviews mentioning all the violence. But for one reason or another, i picked up a copy from the library. I finished it the next day, and read the next one just as eagerly.

My dad bought Mockingjay just a few days after it came out. I was second in line to read it. I finished it in one day, and once everyone who wanted to had read it, i re-read the whole trilogy in three days.

After reading that, anyone surprised to learn Suzanne Collins is one of my most favorite authors?

One of the things i like about her writing is how easily readable it is. I can read Jane Austen and Shakespeare and Dickens and enjoy it, but i like the more "modern" style as well. It pulled me in with each book.

I like her sense of humor, and the characters (it might be shorter to list the characters i didn't like than the ones i did - and those that i didn't like, i didn't like because of their nature, not her writing).

Another thing that stood out to me was the touches of realism, and how dark each series was without ever seeming bleak or utterly hopeless. In The Underland Chronicles, things don't magically get better for Gregor's family when

I'll end by noting that one other thing i like about the books is that my dad, my sister (two years younger), my brother (eight years younger) and i all like them. There aren't a whole lot of books that we could discuss together, and there's plenty of material for discussion in both series.

yay! awesome thread!

I have read The Underland Chronicles numerous times and I love them!
I really need to read The Hunger Games.....I will get them out of the library as soon as I can!

I was a big fan of the Underland Chronicles from the very beginning and pounced upon The Hunger Games as soon as my library got it in. For some reason it took me a year to read Catching Fire despite the fact that I bought it. I guess it wasn't such a bad thing though, since it meant I only had to wait a few weeks after finishing it to read Mockingjay.

I don't think I could choose between the two series when picking a favorite. I enjoy both for different reasons. I especially like the fact that Collins doesn't glamorize the effects war has on a person. I imagine that's due to the fact she comes from a military family. She doesn't shy away from reality even though she's writing sci-fi and fantasy.

Anyone else find it ironic that they're making The Hunger Games into a movie?

I read somewhere that casting was supposed to start around now. I don't come up with my own ideas of ideal actors for roles in movie adaptions, but what about other people?

Directors, too, since one hasn't been picked yet.

I am 5th on hold for The Hunger Games at my library. ack!

meanwhile:
I guess what really drew me to The Underland Chronicles was how personal and real life the characters are. I just love how I can relate to something in almost every one of the characters, even the bats sometimes!
and I love Boots need I say more?

I first heard of Suzanne Collins through NW. I remember hearing Jo talk to someone about the Underland Chronicles once on the Books thread a while back, and I think it piqued my interest a bit. I didn't actually pick up the books till last January, though, and I'm afraid I can't quite remember what made me pick them up. All I do know was that I was hooked and---for some reason---read The Hunger Games and Catching Fire when I was about halfway through the other series, rather than waiting till I was done with it first.

Arwenel, I definitely think THG is darker than TUC, but you're right---that was one thing that impressed me about TUC. TUC was darker than what I'd normally think of for the genre, but it wasn't all depressing, either. I've got notes down in my reading record that it has "gravity" to it. That's what I came up with after I read it, but I'm still not sure if that's the right way to describe it.
I have yet to get any of my family to read the books. But, on the upside, I recommended TUC to my youngest sister, and one of my other sisters has expressed interest in THG.
I do find it a bit ironic that they're making The Hunger Games into a film, but I find all the interviews the actors will have to do for the film slightly more ironic.
Also, since you've read Mockingjay, what did you (and anyone else who wants to weigh in) think about I have some thoughts on the matter, but I'm curious to see what you think. In addition, in the Books thread, if I remember right, you mentioned reading some complaints about Katniss elsewhere. What were people complaining about exactly?

Booky, I'm not positive I could say which series was my favourite, either. I'd definitely need to reread both of them before I could make any such judgment.

Liberty, are you also in the queue for Catching Fire and Mockingjay? Or are you just going to read the first one and see how it goes from there, rather than trying to have them all out at one time?
And, oh, yes, I love Boots! And, Tick and Temp. Ripred is another character I like. *coughs* I obviously need to reread the series, as I looked at my records and can't remember one the characters who I'd marked down liking.

Currently, every single copy of The Hunger Games, Catching Fire, and Mockingjay is checked out of both the public and the university libraries (for some reason, though, they don't have the last book yet). Very good for the series, very bad for me wanting to reread it!
And, yes, Jo, I am kicking myself yet again for not buying the first book last Feb at the booksale. (There was a lovely hardcover copy of The Hunger Games complete with dustjacket for 2 or 3 dollars at a booksale last year, and I didn't buy it because I hadn't read the series yet, though it was very tempting, partially because I'd really liked what Collins books I'd read by then. I got back from the booksale and was telling Jo what I had bought and I mentioned the book; she very rightly scolded me and told me that I shouldn't've passed it up. A couple weeks later, I read the book and have been kicking myself ever since then. )

@ValiantArcher -

THG is definitely darker than TUC.

Re: spoiler

As for other people's complaints, i can only comment generally - i don't usually read negative reviews of things i like - but it seems to me they objected to

I bought the first two in Wal-Mart some time ago. A very good decision, i think. I have the complete Underland Chronicles as well; mostly through an on-line book swap site.

Mockingjay:

I am in the middle of re-reading The Underland Chronicles.....I am re-reading Gregor and the Marks Of Secret right now! love these books!

Briefly, I thoroughly enjoy Suzanne Collins' writing, whether in younger The Underland Chronicles or the older The Hunger Games trilogy—tight, exciting storytelling, whose key characters one grows attached to. I'm about halfway through Mockingjay now and really wonder how Collins is going to wrap it up. (If anyone meaningful dies, I'm not sure I'll know how to handle that. *avoids the Spoiler boxes above*)

But what I came on to post, specifically, is this article. I found the link whilst reading another piece on the struggling MGM in relation to The Hobbit films. I really hope they choose unknowns for Katniss, Gale, and Peeta!

Looked up Gary Ross on IMDb ... saw only a few snatches of "Seabiscuit", so i have no idea what he's like as a director. Of course, i know very little about directors in general.

I think good quality unknowns would probably be the best choice for the lead characters, but i wouldn't mind a few better-known actors/actresses in some of the other roles.

On a different trajectory, i noticed the other day that in The Underland Chronicles, the main villain - the Bane - is a white rat, and one of the leading scumbags in The Hunger Games trilogy is President Snow. I just found that interesting.

ValiantLucy suggested Hunger Games to me, but I never did read it I put it on hold at the library, and I'm number #30! I'll be waiting a while....

^^ #30? yikes! and I thought that being #5 was bad..... that's no fun......

my mom is reading The Underland Chronicles for the first time and we were talking about book 4 "Gregor and the Marks Of Secret" and she was saying that

So I just spent all afternoon reading The Hunger Games online Loved it! I would love to see a movie of it, if it was done right. The contrasts are so brilliant.