No since the latest Harry Potter, Twilight or Batman movie has the world gone so crazy for a flick as it has for 'The Huger Games' — debuting this Friday (March 23). Want to get caught up or probe deeper? Follow our guide.
1) What's it about?
First in Suzanne Collins's trilogy, 'The Hunger Games' it set in the totalitarian nation Panem, in what remains of post-apocalyptic North America. As penance for once rebelling, the county's 12 provinces must each send a boy and girl to an annual battle to the death — that is telecast live. Neither the only-one-shall-live idea ('Highlander') nor the televised bloodfest ('The Running Man') are brand new. But this one has all teens. The story features a kind of love triangle between the heroine, Katniss, and two young men — Peeta, a co-competitor — and Gale, her best friend from back home.
2) How do I catch up?
There are plenty of articles in entertainment and celebrity mags, as well as Wikipedia. But why not go to the source? The novel is cheap and easily skimmable. And Amazon is cheapest, at $5 for the paperback or Kindle ebook (which you can read on a computer or smartphone if you don't have a tablet).
3) What if I want to go deeper?
Fan sites abound, but two of the best are mockingjay.net and The Hunger Gamers. You can also follow the latter site's Twitter feed. Want to read the whole trilogy? Box sets are available. And if you were planning to buy a Kindle, anyway, you can also sign up at the same time for a free one-month trial of the Amazon Prime service that, among other things, allows you to borrow digital versions of all three books — and about 100,000 others.
4) What else is out there?
A Facebook-based game, ' The Hunger Games Adventures ' is coming "soon," says the game's web site. An iPad game is in the works, as well.