Editor:
The Hunger Games trilogy is a must read. I dove into the series, read all three books twice and back-to-back, and emerged on the other side an avid fan. I idolize Katniss, a survivor and admirable role model, and I relish the powerfully subversive message of the text: Unite against the Capitol, end the hunger.
But the upcoming film has raised some disturbing questions for me, prompting some web-based investigation.
Book copies sold in the U.S., more than 26,000,000. At $10 to $20 per book, this makes a rough income of nope, calculator broke.
Film budget: $100,000,000; box-office sales are predicted to double this.
You can buy a mockingjay pin - the symbol of working-class solidarity and rebellion against elitism - for $21.50 from Amazon.
But, book or film proceeds that have been or will be donated to hunger charities?
Is it just me, or is this grossly ironic for a series - no, a movement - allegedly dedicated to fighting the injustice of poverty and inequality?
Janis Joplin once wrote that freedom's just another word for nothing left to lose. As long as we hold onto hope that the system and those benefiting from it will somehow change on their own, we will not find the courage to make the changes ourselves.
Pay tribute to the real Hunger Games message. Refuse to be lulled into complacency by the bread and circuses - popcorn and movies - offered by Hollywood big business; they mock the cause with their greed. Boycott the movie, and give your money instead directly to a hunger charity.
Come on, people: districts unite. Fight the Capitol!
Marina La Salle
Halfmoon Bay
