![]() ![]() The country is called Panem, after the Latin phrase "panem et circenses," or bread and circuses - what the Roman satirist Juvenal identified as the formula for quieting a restive population. The series has a distinct Roman imperial vibe - far-flung districts sending their harvests to the glorious and corrupted Capitol, feasts complete with vomitoria, gladiatorial contests to the death (but for kids!). ![]() But much of the series' appeal came from the spiky charisma of protagonist Katniss Everdeen, the sharpshooting teenager who wins the games and starts a revolution while choosing between two boys who are as alike in cuteness as they are different in Weltanschauung. The premise was unbeatable: Authoritarian regime forces children to fight to the death on live TV rebellion ensues. ![]() With her Hunger Games novels, Suzanne Collins harnessed a combination of twisty plots, teen romance, dystopian worldbuilding and subtle intimations of cannibalism to sell more than 100 million books around the world. Your purchase helps support NPR programming. Close overlay Buy Featured Book Title The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes Author Suzanne Collins ![]()
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