A Sneek Peak at 'The Hunger Games'

I was sitting in a restaurant one afternoon a few weeks ago, waiting for my lunch and perusing Keith Richards' quite large autobiography, when a waitress approached and asked what I was reading. I gave the young lady, who looked about 20, a quick synopsis of Keef's life story before she got to the real reason for her question.

She didn't really care about Keith Richards at all. She'd spotted a fellow reader and wanted to share about her favorite books. "Have you ever read The Hunger Games books?" she asked excitedly. "They are sooooo good!"

This exchange demonstrates the extreme popularity of author Suzanne Collins' best-selling young-adult sci-fi series. I told the girl that I hadn't read them, but I did know a movie is being made based on The Hunger Games. Last night, during the MTV Video Music Awards, which I imagine my waitress was watching, an eager young public got their first peek at this upcoming film, which stars Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson and Elizabeth Banks.

The Hunger Games comes from Gary Ross, who directed the entertaining Pleasantville and the winning Seabiscuit. Ross has done especially good work as a writer over the years, penning the screenplays for the aforementioned flicks as well as Big and Dave. The script for The Hunger Games was written by Collins and rewritten by Billy Ray, though IMDb lists Ross as the writer.

There's not much to go on in this quick look at The Hunger Games, a dystopian fantasy in which Jennifer Lawrence stars as Katniss Everdeen, a girl who takes her sister's place in the country of Panem's Hunger Games, an annual televised death match between two children chosen by the government. At least, I think that's what it's about. As I told the waitress, I haven't read it. But I have read about it.

Collins' books have been well-liked by many critics and writers, with Stephen King being especially vocal in his admiration. It's encouraging that there are novels out there causing young people to actually read, let alone leading them to proselytize on their behalf. So, perhaps before this flick hits theaters on March 23, 2012, I'll pick up a copy of The Hunger Games and give it a look. I hear it's a quick read. Besides, people tell me it's "sooooo good!"