29. The Hunger Games, by Suzanne Collins.

Book 1/3 of the Hunger Games series.

The Hunger Games is set in the Capitol of Panem, which is surrounded by - and rules over - twelve oppressed, starving Districts. As a symbol of their second-class nature, the Hunger Games are a yearly event - two children, twelve through eighteen, are drawn by lottery from each district and sent to an arena to fight to the death. This is televised and treated as a sporting event, but Katniss can't sit by and let that happen to her little sister.

I really like this book. It's the third time I've read it, because I like how Katniss expresses her thoughts, and how she faces the challenges before her, including that of what she's going to do about Peeta, her fellow tribute from District 12. Katniss is practical to the point of indifference, but that changes over the book as her true personality starts to surface, and as she's forced to contemplate a purely emotional world, where her skills in the field don't help her make the correct choices - not only for the short term, but for the long term as well. It is a young adult book, but I would definitely recommend it to anyone wanting a fast-paced emotionally charged read.

The Hunger Games movie is coming out in just over a month, and I'm pretty excited. I really hope that it captures the essence of the book (and doesn't just go for the easy-to-film appeals-to-target-audiences butchery as usual).