THE FILIPINO TRANSLATION OF SUZANNE COLLINS’ “THE HUNGER GAMES”: MORE, MORE, MORE!

I have just finished reading the Filipino Translation of Suzanne Collins’ The Hunger Games. If I were to describe it in one word, it would be this:  WOW. 

I’m not exactly what you would call a literary expert when it comes to reading/writing in Filipino, but I really loved the Filipino translation of The Hunger Games.  I didn’t care whether it was material I wasn’t used to reading.  I didn’t care that I had to look up some words in the dictionary (like the word “lambak,” which I probably haven’t encountered in ages). 

I have to commend Precious Pages Corporation for coming up with a very good translation of one of my favorite books this year.  I can only imagine how difficult it was for the translator, Janis delos Reyes, to translate such material.  Yet, she managed to come up with a translation that is not only a fairly accurate translation of the material, but also a translation that captures the writing “voice” of Suzanne Collins. 

While this book isn’t exactly light reading fare (at least, for me) --- it IS a challenging book to read --- I loved the way it was translated.  This translation only confirms what I have always believed in my heart, that there’s magic in the written Filipino word. 

The translated prose of Suzanne Collins has a very beautiful, lyrical quality to it.  It’s exactly what I expected, given the excellent quality of the original material. And just like what I experienced when I read the Filipino translation of Twilight, the story became more visually alive and real to me when I read it in Filipino.

Have a Tagalog or Tagalog-English dictionary by your side, if you’re intimidated by heavy Filipino words.  But don’t be afraid to read this book.  And by all means, read more books in Filipino!  I definitely can’t wait to read more books in Filipino.

RATING:  5 

SUZANNE COLLINS’ MOCKINGJAY: DARK, BRUTAL, SAVAGE STATEMENT AGAINST WAR

RATING GUIDE:

 

5 – A keeper!   

4 – Very good

3 –  Passable

2 –  I’d rather read a telephone book

1 – An absolute bomb.  Read at your own risk!

If I were asked to describe this book in three words, they would be dark, brutal and savage.  This book was actually torture to read, from beginning to end.  But it’s not because it was badly written.  In fact, Suzanne Collins paints such a grim picture of war at its worst that you would actually wonder why war still exists. 

In Mockingjay, the last installment in Suzanne Collins’ trilogy, Katniss has decided to lead the revolution against the evil President Snow.  Gale has turned into a bomb expert, while Peeta has become President Snow’s ultimate weapon against Katniss (you have to find out how this happened.  It’s so telenovela-like, but so riveting!)  At this point in time, they are just shadows of the teenagers they once were.  All of them have somehow turned into pawns of the powers-that-be, or hunters or killers.  Their transformation is actually painful to read about, and that’s just the tip of the iceberg.  Suzanne Collins paints such a terrifying picture of the final showdown, so to speak, that reading about it makes you want to close your eyes and fling the book across the room.  My mind screamed in horror as I read about Katniss’ last, painful moment with her sister Prim.  The book is that horrifying and compelling.

As painful as it was to read this book, it does have a happy ending of sorts (I won’t tell you whether Katniss chose Gale or Peeta in the end, you’ll have to find out for yourself).  But the ending is mostly bitter than sweet, a grim reminder from Suzanne Collins that in war, no one really wins … and it’s the young who lose the most.  Katniss went through so much in this book that I really wanted her to die so she could finally have some peace.  No one deserves a life like hers.

I don’t know about you, but this book scared the crap out of me.  I think it’s because the world Suzanne Collins created in her trilogy is something I can envision happening, if mankind isn’t careful.  Who’s to say the Hunger Games won’t ever happen?  We already live in a world where our resources are fast dwindling and prices of the most basic of commodities are skyrocketing.  Suzanne Collins’ world could be the world we’d be living in.  If that’s not enough to scare you, I don’t know what is.

RATING:  5

SUZANNE COLLINS’ CATCHING FIRE: LOVE, LOVE, LOVE … IN THE MIDST OF DEATH AND CARNAGE

RATING GUIDE:

 

5 – A keeper!   

4 – Very good

3 –  Passable

2 –  I’d rather read a telephone book

1 – An absolute bomb.  Read at your own risk!

Catching Fire, the second installment in Suzanne Collins’ trilogy, focuses on its heroine Katniss’ life after the recently concluded Hunger Games.  For Katniss and her family, the period following the Hunger Games is a respite of sorts from the material scarcity that has long become their life.  There’s more food on the table and even money to spend.  And yet, Katniss’ victory is neither fulfilling nor permanent.  As hard as she tries to go back to her old life, Katniss comes home a changed woman. The trauma of participating in the Hunger Games brings Katniss nightly terrors.  Her relationship with her best friend (and almost-boyfriend) Gale has been strained, just like her relationship with her former opponent (now pseudo-love partner) Peeta.  But worst of all, this hollow victory of sorts is short-lived, for the evil President Snow soon forces Katniss to participate in another round of the Hunger Games as “punishment” for her “rebellion”.  This time, Katniss is forced to fight former champions of the Hunger Games … AND Peeta.

Unlike the first installment of the trilogy, Catching Fire is less action-packed.  This is not to say that reading this is less heavy on the mind and heart.  The angst is just as overwhelming, for this time, the battle is internal, as Katniss struggles with the creation she has inadvertently created.  Without meaning to, she has turned herself into the Mockingjay, the symbol of the people’s revolution against President Snow’s oppressive regime.

Despite Katniss’ agonizing internal struggles, there’s one bright spot in her life (if not for her, then for the readers, at least), and that’s her blossoming love life.  As I already said, there’s her longtime best friend and blossoming revolutionary Gale, who’s all brawn and simmering anger … and then there’s the now-one-legged Peeta, who, despite his own traumatic experiences, is the model of resilience, inner strength and utter goodness.  As I read the book, I couldn’t help but think, Ay, ang haba-haba ng hair mo, Katniss!

As thoroughly depressing as this book was, it surprisingly scores high in terms of kilig.  One especially moving and intimate scene was when one of the boys (I won’t say who, so as not to spoil your fun) wrapped his arms around Katniss to comfort her following one of her nightmares.  Sigh.

But beyond the kilig moments, the book’s value really lies in its power to make people think about the nature of war and of people.  As I read about Katniss’ agonizing ordeal, I couldn’t help but think of people in real life who became symbols of the revolution in their own countries.  People like Ninoy and Cory Aquino, or Martin Luther King, Mahatma Gandhi and Aung San Suu Kyi.  Were they also reluctant symbols of the revolution like Katniss?  Were they as scared for their own lives and that of their respective families?  Did they also have their own PR people dressing them up and teaching them what to say or do to influence their followers?  I also asked myself, if people asked me to lead a revolution, would I run away from the challenge, or risk everything, including my life and that of my loved ones?  What would YOU do?  It’s something you might want to think about, on the occasion of the 40^th anniversary of Martial Law. 

RATING:  5