Every year, twenty-four teenage "tributes" are brought to the Capitol of Panem, and sent out into the arena to kill each other on live TV. Only one will survive. 
 This chilling premise is at the center of "The Hunter Games," the brilliant, powerful first book of Suzanne Collins' bestselling trilogy. It's a slow-burning, brutal, chilling thriller twined with some barbed satire (reality TV!) and an oppressive government -- but at heart, it's an uplifting story about a young woman fighting to be free. 
 Katniss Everdeen lives in the impoverished District 12, hunting food to provide for her mother and her beloved little sister Prim. But on the day of the reaping, Prim is selected. And Katniss does something no one else has done in a long time -- she volunteers to go instead. Along with the male tribute, Peeta Mellark -- a boy who once helped her at her lowest point -- she is swept away to the Capitol. 
 Once there, the tributes are pampered, tutored, styled and turned into celebrities -- until they're released into the arena, and start killing each other to survive. Katniss must evade murderous gangs, traps, and genetically engineered beasts. 
 But after their triumphant first appearance at the Capitol, the audience has taken a shine to the impoverished young "lovers" and are rooting for them to triumph. But if both Katniss and Peeta are to survive, they must learn how to play the game that the gamemakers and polticians are playing -- and use the Hunger Games against them. 
 A lot has been made of "The Hunger Games'" resemblance to the Japanese franchise "Battle Royale," but honestly the only real similarity is the core concept. Suzanne Collins' world is a far stranger place, set in a futuristic North America where rebellion is brewing against a tyrant. And it seems more to be a barbed, glass-sharp satire on reality TV and how easily people are swayed, either for evil or good. 
 Suzanne Collins' writing style here takes a little getting used to -- she not only writes everything in the first person, but in the present tense. It's.... a little strange, and it takes some getting used to. 
 But once you do get used to the odd style, Collins' writing is on fire. She writes in an intense, slow-burning style that is speckled with bittersweet scenes (Katniss singing to Rue) and colorful descriptions (the superficial, sparkly Capitol). But it's also brutally violent at times, with various teens being killed in some truly gruesome ways (broken neck, countless stings, arrows) -- and though Collins doesn't go into graphic detail, it's still pretty shocking. 
 But at heart, "The Hunger Games" is about one young woman's struggle. Katniss is a struly striking heroine -- she's strong, tough and fiery, as you'd expect of a girl who has been supporting her family, but she has the right amount of vulnerability and kindness. Peeta is a very sweet, sensitive love interest who complements her perfectly, and there's a strong round of supporting characters -- the clever stylist Cinna, the drunken ex-tribute Haymitch, the birdlike Rue, and many others. 
 "The Hunger Games" is one of those rare books that strikes a deep chord in people's souls -- and it's a beautifully (if oddly) written story with a brilliant heroine. Spellbinding.