• Boone, NC, Bookstore Hosts Hunger Games Night

    ByElizabeth
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    On April 13 (yes, Friday the 13th), Black Bear Books in Boone, NC, put on a wonderful Hunger-Games-themed evening, including a costume contest, trivia, and food from the cookbook based on the triology. In addition, I shared my thoughts on the way in which Collins elegantly wraps up all the major symbolic elements of her story in one very important little gold pin. Follow me after the jump for for more on this super event, presided over by bookstore owner Karen Hall, who makes a lovely Effie, but is far more experienced in the role of Cinna. Read More “Boone, NC, Bookstore Hosts Hunger Games Night”

  • Hogwarts Professor on Hunger Games Victory Tour: Appalachia, Academia, and it’s All in the Pin

    ByElizabeth
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    I have just returned from a wonderful whirlwind visit to the fabulous Barrett Honors College at Arizona State University where I was whisked to speak on The Hunger Games as Appalachian novel. I also had the opportunity to present that topic at the much closer but also wonderful Lees-McRae college, and I have been (and will be) doing other Hunger Games-type programs in the midst of the movie hoopla. As our month of Hunger Games movie madness winds down, these programs help bring readers and filmgoers into our on-going conversation about the complexity and artistry of Suzanne Collins’s Panem novels. Join me after the jump to hear more about the talks and about events with our students Mayland Community College where, for me, all this started. Read More “Hogwarts Professor on Hunger Games Victory Tour: Appalachia, Academia, and it’s All in the Pin”

  • Lionsgate Hunger Games Film A Satisfactory Movie Experience; Cinema Treatment Leaves Serious Readers Hungry for More

    ByElizabeth
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    Two years ago, I read The Hunger Games for the first time and decided I would start using the novel as part of my Expository Writing courses at Mayland Community College. On March 23, I had the great pleasure of seeing the film adaptation of the novel on opening day in the company of my students and colleagues at a special showing at the great old Yancey Theater in Burnsville, NC, just up the road from where large portions of the movie were filmed. Though I took notes the whole time, much to the amusement of my students (who laughed at the dandelions in my braid, too), I won’t share all of my many thoughts on the movie, though there will be spoilers for non-readers (Not many of those here, anyway, I imagine!). Join me after the jump to see what aspects of the film I (and my fellow MCC readers) found most satisfactory, and what left us feeling unsatisfied. Read More “Lionsgate Hunger Games Film A Satisfactory Movie Experience; Cinema Treatment Leaves Serious Readers Hungry for More”

  • Scenes from District 12 and Great Tourism Opportunities

    ByElizabeth
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    This past week, I had the opportunity to visit the abandoned Henry River Mill Community where many of the District 12 scenes were filmed for the upcoming Hunger Games film. Here are a few of the photographs we snapped. I was prepared for surly security guards, police officers, even, but it was a lovely day, and the only person we encountered was a delightful gentleman who had been wanting to photograph the site and was aware of the film only as something that blocked up traffic back in the summer. I was hoping for dandelions, but had to settle for daffodils, which, as Katniss would tell us, are completely inedible, but I like them because they linger on long after people have left a house or town site, beautiful yellow reminders of a past that is long gone. Read More “Scenes from District 12 and Great Tourism Opportunities”

  • Ladies and Gentlemen, Let the Countdown of Blogs begin!

    ByElizabeth
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    Since we are now only 23 days away from the official launch of The Hunger Games film, we are going to be featuring some of our favorite posts about the novels and the preparations for this movie. There is also plenty of news buzzing about, so maybe we’ll get to talk about some of that, too. (Yes, I do have a few things to say about the Glamour magazine photo shoot of Jennifer Lawrence. I’ve lost track of how many times I’ve said “Did you people even read this book?”) For starters, let’s just jump straight to the Cornucopia bloodbath. Here is a run-down of our first Hunger Games posts from 2010. Though we never did get some of the answers we were all hoping for back then, the analysis and insights here are still relevant. So, just in case you missed them the first time or would like to catch the re-runs, here is our first round up of posts on The Hunger Games. Watch for more as March 23 draws closer, and let us know if there are favorites you’d like to see!