Title: Mockingjay
Author: Suzanne Collins
Publisher: Scholastic Press
Release: August 24, 2010
Rating: 5/5
Pages: 398
Series: The Hunger Games Trilogy #3
Synopsis:
My name is Katniss Everdeen. Why am I not dead? I should be dead.

Katniss Everdeen, girl on fire, has survived, even though her home has been destroyed. Gale has escaped. Katniss's family is safe. Peeta has been captured by the Capitol. District 13 really does exist. There are rebels. There are new leaders. A revolution is unfolding.

It is by design that Katniss was rescued from the arena in the cruel and haunting Quarter Quell, and it is by design that she has long been part of the revolution without knowing it. District 13 has come out of the shadows and is plotting to overthrow the Capitol. Everyone, it seems, has had a hand in the carefully laid plans -- except Katniss.

The success of the rebellion hinges on Katniss's willingness to be a pawn, to accept responsibility for countless lives, and to change the course of the future of Panem. To do this, she must put aside her feelings of anger and distrust. She must become the rebels' Mockingjay -- no matter what the personal cost.

Review:
Wow. Just wow. Just when I thought that this series couldn't get any better- it did. I, personally was counting down for this book with some of my friends. We knew exactly how many days there was until Mockingjay came out. And I got it the first day. And I read it slowly (as in it took me a week) as I knew it was going to be the last Hunger Games book and I wanted to make the most of it.

As with the two preceding books it follows the same mockingjay pin theme except on the cover of Mockingjay, the mockingjay has taken up most of the cover as to show the importance of The Mockingjay in this final book. So my personal break down of the cover is this: I believe that the reason that the mockingjay has taken up the majority of the cover is because of how huge a role the mockingjay plays in this particular book. Another thing that I noticed about this cover is that the standard Hunger Games design in the background, that reminds me of circuitry, has been broken on this cover. I find that it probably means to interpret that there is a rebellion happening and people are breaking out of the Capitol's control after many years of being under it. The other element to the cover that I find important to the book is how the mockingjay has full color now that it's not just a pin anymore. I think it was trying to show that the mockingjay was more than just the pin anymore, it was the icon of the rebellion; it was to, ultimately, represent Katniss as the spark and leader of the rebellion in Panem.

Over this whole series, I just can't believe the growth that occurred in these characters. Katniss started out as the provider of her family who would jump the fence to hunt a bit and talk with Gale while out. She was always brave with everything from getting extra rations by entering her name multiple times for the reaping, going past the fence even though it was illegal just to provide food and then going to sell her extra portions to The Hob for profit. That was in the beginning though when her life was simpler, then she saved her sister by volunteering to take Prim's place in the Hunger Games where she survived twice and lied to an entire nation. And in the end, she became a national icon by leading a revolution in an impossible dictatorship and she came out alive. That's a big jump from going past the fence for food to leading a successful revolution to overturn a terrible dictatorship. And then there's Peeta. When the first book started, we didn't know anything of Peeta or who he really was. Then he pulled many game changing moves in both the Hunger Games and in their tours after. But it wasn't until Mockingjay that I really fell in love with him. From his bravery to his love for Katniss, he was the perfect character for this book and an even perfecter (new word!) love interest for Katniss.

Though Mockingjay took a while to get into, once you did you were strapped in for the rest of the book. There was just as much action as the first two, even without the Hunger Games to help the story along. Along the way we also meet some beautifully introduced characters that can only be the handiwork of Suzanne Collins. The writing and story in this book were truly something to be in awe of. After getting into the book, there were few dull moments and even fewer times that the writing didn't make you feel something. The story was just as great as the writing. But I really just loved the darkness of the story that it didn't try and sugar coat what was happening in the book. She was out right with everything and she didn't tip-toe around death. And the ending. It will make anyone one cry. ANYONE. It just killed me what happened and it just crushed me into tears and extreme sadness. I was thinking about that ending for days and how devastated I was (in the best way possible).

In my oh-so-humble opinion, this was one of the best series I have ever read and this, by far, is also one of the best conclusions to a series that I have ever read. There is something for everyone in this series and I believe that everyone needs to read this book if not for the story, for the message behind it. That's why this book gets/ deserves a 5/5. In fact it deserves a 100000000000/5, but that's unfortunately not possible.