Of Bread, Blood and The Hunger Games

246 pages. This is what I would call a scholarly book and is written in a very readable style. This covers a very wide range of information and some of the material includes:

History, politics, economics, culture, ethics, aesthetics, identity and resistance of Panem.

The book had not yet gotten 'scholarly' attention. (Here's one thing I center on.
'Scholarly' has two approaches as far as I have seen. One form is full of information but is also very readable. The other is written in such an incredibly complicated. One book on Alice in Wonderland I read was this way to the point when I just ended up laughing at the written style. Pompous would be a good way to describe it.)

The book has loads of information it and I will note some of the topics below:

The book involves, in relation to the story, the study of history, politics, economics, culture, ethics, aesthetics, identity, resistance, surveillance, thematic parallels and literary traditions.

The author said that The Hunger Games had not (at time time of the review) gotten the 'scholarly study' that it deserves.
What was being done was reshaping history through the use of violence.
The games are a symbol of the absolute power of the Capitol.
Observation and cultural memory.
District 12 is tied in to Appalachia.
There are many similarities between The Hunger Games and our reality shows such as Survivor.
The Capitol seems to have withheld any medical advances it made from the Districts.
An imbalance of power leads to an imbalance of the amount of food available.
Hunger for food can lead to a hunger for justice.
The Capitol is beautiful on the outside but is rotten on the inside.
There does not seem to be any widespread use of any religion in Panem.
Spirituality is not the same as religion.
The importance of the lullaby sung to Rue. (That scene was so sad. Probably hit me the hardest of anything in any of the movies.)
The sending of bread to Katniss by District 11 is something that had never been done before. No district had ever sent someone anything from a different district during the games.
Katniss has a lot of typical male qualities in her.
The importance of fashion.
The use of surveillance by the Capitol.
Punishment as a spectacle.
The effects of today's reality shows.
The relationship of Shakespeare to the series.
The masks of feminity.
Roles and expectations.
How adults and children perceive each other.
What makes a romance story.

This is not, of course, all that is discussed but it gives you an indication of just how thorough this book is and yet at the same time is very readable and understandable.

Main Index