It has come to my attention that I criminally underrated this book when I first read it in high school.

Picture this: 2012. The first "Hunger Games" movie was coming out and everyone was super stoked. I, a former homeschooled kid, was not. I was only saved from hopeless hipsterhood by not being hip enough. I was DEEPLY uncool, and incredibly out of touch. I have no excuse, my siblings were popular.

Figuring I'd give this a shot, I read the first two books. My 16-year-old self was turned off by the (I thought, gratuitous) violence. Oh, sweet summer child.

Upon rereading, I find wonderful writing and a moving plot. The characters learn and change, or our perceptions of them do. I'm picking up on clues in the language ("Haymitch"=Hamish, "Peeta"=Peter, both VERY Appalachian Scots-Irish..."Avox"= without voice, etc). There is a great deal of exposition, but it's layered with action so it seamlessly flows instead of infodumping. You get information as you need it. Katniss is flawed. She isn't the "chosen one". She isn't special. She's hungry and angry, that's all.

This is the type of anti-totalitarian fiction to unite readers of all political stripes. It clearly kicked off a movement, and many imitators. Having had to deal with reading those imitations for the last ten years, then coming back to this prize, I freely admit I was wrong. The violence is very well handled, no smut, no instalove, no clunky tropes. I need to read the rest of the series.

The cliffhangers still tick me off, though.