The Hunger Games

I finished reading "The Hunger Games" today. I'd bought it for a dollar or two at the local thrift store a few days before (I also got a kitchen scale). I found the story disturbing and not suitable for youngsters. It was also a page-turner. I don't know whether it was the writing or me, but I found myself imagining scenes from the book very vividly as I read (and even when I was not reading). I was not doing that on purpose; it's just what came to me.

I haven't decided for sure, but I don't intend to get the other two books in the trilogy. The story is just too disturbing (second time I've used this adjective, but I cannot think of a better one right now). I was reading Amazon reviews of the novel today when I came across a spoiler for one of the other two books, and it sounded particularly brutal. Also, there seems to be a budding romance, and I hate that shit and don't want to read more of it.

However, it's always difficult for me to find novels I like, so I may get desperate enough to seek out at least the second book in the trilogy. My need to have something to read everyday has increased because I've found that sitting out in the sun for an hour a day greatly decreases my fatigue, and I need something to do while I'm out there, and I'd like to continue the routine I've established (reading fiction during that time).

I went back to the thrift store to find a new book this afternoon, but it was closed during what would normally be open hours. The used book store a block away had also just closed for the day, according to the hours posted on the door.

I was so keen on sticking to my new routine that I even tried the local bookstore, which I knew would probably have no books I'd like and is too expensive for me anyways. I was a bit surprised that I found something interesting in the science fiction/fantasy section (I hate that science fiction is mixed with fantasy), and doubly surprised that the author is Octavia Butler. I had been studiously avoiding her books for years. From the synopses I've read, I gather that at least a couple of her novels are more fantasy than science fiction, and that at least several of the others are too focused on the human element to fit my taste. I read science fiction for science and adventure, not for drama and psychological profiles. The latter is boring and annoying, especially in science fiction.

So I flipped through this Octavia Butler novel, I cannot remember the title, and found that it seems to fit one of my criteria: small amount of dialogue. What little I read also suggested a lack of drama. So now I'm willing to try it (albeit largely for lack of alternatives). I couldn't afford the price (seventeen dollars), and I'd found nothing terribly compelling on the book sale table (and even these books, at seven bucks and up, are a bit much for my budget), so I decided to stop wasting my time; I left the store empty-handed. In a couple of days, I might try the used book store over in the next town, which is the biggest town in this county and has way more options in general.

In the meantime, I got a book of short stories from one of our local...book cabinets. I don't know what to call them. In several places around town, there are these things that look like large bird houses. Inside are a bunch of books that locals have supposedly left for other locals to read. I passed by one on my way to buy some vitamins early this evening, so I checked it out and found something to read until I get a new novel.