Life after: ‘The Hunger Games’

| Cadenza Reporter

Elizabeth Banks (left) as Effie Trinket and Jennifer Lawrence (right) as Katniss Everdeen in “The Hunger Games.”Murray Close | MCT

Elizabeth Banks (left) as Effie Trinket and Jennifer Lawrence (right) as Katniss Everdeen in “The Hunger Games.”

Admit it: Now that the midnight premiere of “The Hunger Games” has passed, you’re feeling a little let down. Sure, the weather is nice, but what you really want is more “Hunger Games.” You need to see more of (SPOILER ALERT) Gale’s plaintive stares after Katniss and Peeta have their cute time, and you are dying to see how the Victory Tour plays out in the next film. You can always read “Catching Fire,” but then again, if you’re going crazy after watching the movie, you’ve probably already read the trilogy. Not to worry, though! Here are some ways to get back on the path to a happy and fulfilling life after the movie:

1. If you’re burning to know what happens to Katniss and Peeta (and Gale and Prim and Seneca Crane and…)—yet can’t find time in your midterm schedule to cram in some young-adult fiction pleasure reading—listen to the audiobooks of the sequel and threequel on a long drive home or while working out or something.

2. Already read the books? Know, young nerd, that there are lots of books and movies with very similar thematic elements and even more delightful love triangles (maybe). Here are some examples.

-“Legend” by Marie Lu

-“The Magicians” by Lev Grossman

-“Uglies” by Scott Westerfeld

-“The Selection” by Kiera Cass (This one hasn’t come out yet, but it’s about a war-torn land in which there is a violent reality TV competition to find a wife for the young prince. It really seems like a copycat.)

3. If you feel like you might need to graduate to the next literary level, try “Ender’s Game” by Orson Scott Card or good old “1984” by George Orwell. If it’s kids and violence that you seek, William Golding’s “Lord of the Flies” is always a nice fallback.

4. And by all means, go see “The Lorax!”

If none of these options sounds good, you can always re-read “Harry Potter.”

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