Uncreated Conscience

On the left, Jennifer Lawrence. On the right, my choice for Katniss, Hailee Steinfeld.

Ah, Twitter, you are always good for blog post ideas when I am running dry. Never let me down!

Today I was mostly inspired by this fascinating discussion on Malinda Lo’s blog about the casting of Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss Everdeen in THE HUNGER GAMES. There are some really interesting comments, so I would recommend you go check it out.

But my post isn’t really about Katniss’s ethnicity, so much as readers’ assumptions/expectations when it comes to race in YA fiction and our weird hangups about it.

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MOCKINGJAY by Suzanne Collins

Now that the last book of this trilogy is finished, what do I have to look forward to? I feel bereft, a bit like I did at the end of HARRY POTTER. Alas, alas, alas.

(Actually, I have plenty to look forward to. MONSTERS OF MEN, for one. Also, THE CLOCKWORK ANGEL is on my list of books to read next.)

That being said, I feel the need to write a slightly longer, more emotional reaction-based review of MOCKINGJAY because ZOMG. I got this book at midnight and finished reading in the wee hours of the morning because I COULD NOT PUT IT DOWN. Oh Suzanne Collins. You are good at writing teh crack.

Warning: SPOILERS BENEATH THE CUT.

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Um, can we just talk about this for a second?

MOCKINGJAY by Suzanne Collins

From the Scholastic Corporate Communications blog.

Do you hear that? That’s JJ squeeing from her desk in the Flatiron Building.

Since I’ve gotten my shiny new MacBook laptop and iPod Touch, I will confess to being more preoccupied with playing with my new toys than doing anything productive or useful, like blogging about the books I’ve read, the movies I’ve seen, or even finding someone—anyone in publishing who will hire me, or finishing revising my novel. (I have not even gotten coffee yet, which just attests to the awesome power of Apple and Steve Jobs.)

It’s mostly because YouTube videos will now actually play on my computer (and iPod!) instead of freezing and skipping about. Last night I stayed up until 4am binge-watching John Green and Hank Green‘s 2007 Brotherhood 2.0 project. Oh internet, never stop being awesome.

But I figure I do owe you a few reviews. This past weekend, I went down to see my Teddy Bear after a long hiatus. Our initial plans were to go paintballing (which I haven’t been since I was 13), but the weather decided it wanted to rain on our parade. Literally. Our Sunday plans to go skydiving also derailed due to inclement weather. Summer, she is mean in a different way from spring. Spring teases. Summer smothers. So Bear, The Inimitable Bex, Oz, and I decided to watch The Hangover instead.

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Just finished the ARC of CATCHING FIRE by Suzanne Collins.

Am incoherent.

And tragically impatient for the conclusion to the series. I hate cliffhangers! So unfair!