Reading – Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins, p. 367- 400

In chapter 26, while the group carries out Beetee’s plan, Katniss and Peeta get split up.  At the end, Katniss remembers what Haymitch told her before the Games – “you just remember who the enemy is.”  She has always known, deep down, who the enemy is – who starves and tortures and kills them in the arena.  She turns to the force field and sees a wavering square, the chink in the armor.  She shoots an arrow at the mark and it vanishes, pulling the gold wire connected to the lightning tree behind it.  Lightning then strikes just at that moment and the force field around the arena dissolves.  Then the explosions begin.

In chapter 27, the Gamemakers are bombing everything then.  But suddenly, a hovercraft materializes above her and she is pulled up into it.  She thinks it the Capitol, who has come to make her death as slow and public as possible.  The first face she sees is Plutarch Heavensbee, the Head Gamemaker.  She goes unconscious.  When she wakes up, she is in some sort of hospital and is next to Beetee.  When she truly wakes up, she finds Haymitch is there with Finnick and Plutarch.  They explain that they are the good guys and that Plutarch has been, for several years, part of an undercover group aiming to overthrow the Capitol.  They are part of a now full scale rebellion and the rumors about District 13 are absolutely true.  Finnick, Johanna, and Beetee were both in on the plan, but Katniss and Peeta were not told any of it.  She finds out that while she lives, the revolution lives.  She is the mockingjay – the symbol of the rebellion.  She also finds out that Peeta was picked up by the Capitol along with Johanna and Enobaria.  She freaks and is drugged and put back in the little hospital on the hovercraft.  Gale is somehow there and comes to see her.  He tells her that both Prim and her mother are alive.  He got them out of District 12 in time before the firebombs.  Katniss asks, “They’re not in District 12?” and he says softly, “Katniss, there is no District 12.”

Oh my gosh! That’s so horrible! I can’t believe District 12 was destroyed.  What about all of the people in there?  I mean, Gale made it sound like not everyone got out in time.  And what about Peeta!  The Capitol is going to just torture him and he doesn’t know any information.  They might even use Peeta as bait or something to catch and kill Katniss.  That is so intense.  He better not die, because I would not be very happy if that happened.  Over all, I really liked that book.  It wasn’t all about the Games because it was more of the start of a revolution, but it did have the Games in there.  I also really liked the new characters in this book.  I kind of wish there was more of Gale in this book and the first book.  But I think he’ll probably be in a lot of the third book because that has to be about the rebellion.  I wonder what role Katniss will play in the rebellion.  I guess I’ll just have to wait and see.