This is actually going to be fun. Truth be told, I’m kind of excited to read Catching Fire; first of all, you won’t have to hear me whine about how it’s like Battle Royale anymore. (That’s assuming my prediction is correct.) Plus, I’m now entering unknown territory. No one has spoiled or biased me (to my knowledge) towards what happens in the next two books.
I’m taking a day off from normal review on Mark Reads so that I can get a bit ahead of myself and advance post reviews for the Christmas weekend. The first review of Catching Fire goes up tomorrow, I’m taking Christmas off, and then chapter two goes up on Sunday.
So, let’s get down to some predictions. You are welcome to post your own theories IF YOU HAVE NOT READ THE BOOK. I know there are quite a bit of you reading along with me, so let’s all attempt to out-see Trelawney. Please, please, PLEASE read the updated Spoiler Policy, which is now in the header, and do NOT screw this up. Yesterday’s final Hunger Games review had a slew of spoiler-y comments because….I DON’T KNOW. HOW HARD IS IT NOT TO TALK ABOUT THIS.
Onwards we go!
~My Totally Accurate Predictions For Catching Fire~
- We will see Effie in a new color wig.
- Gale and Katniss will start off being friends; Gale teases Katniss about what she did in the Games, but he eventually starts growing apart from her.
- Peeta is going to act indifferent to Katniss at the opening of the novel, a continuation of the end of the first book.
- We will not see President Snow until the end of the book.
- The title is a reference to Katniss herself. I’m guessing that since she is The Girl On Fire, she gets….caught? Wow, that sounded much better in my head than it does when I type it out.
- Katniss’s mother will have improved.
- Katniss will meet Rue’s parents on that tour she mentioned in the last chapter of The Hunger Games. They will thank her for what she did in the arena.
- Conversely, she will meet the parents of the boy from District One who she killed and they will hate her.
- Someone will find out that Katniss and Gale have been leaving the district to hunt. (Maybe that relates to how she is caught?)
- We will see the Capitol again.
- This is a no-brainer, but should be said: We will get a much better idea of where the districts in Panem are and what they each specialize in.
- And let’s just get to the big predictions. I think Katniss’s mom and Gale will die by the end of the book. Collins clearly has no reserves about killing off characters, so I think they’ll both die.
- Katniss will not figure out if she likes Gale or Peeta more by the end of the book.
- I think we will finally hear about hints of some sort of rebellion or war by the end of the book as well. These dystopian novels usually deal with someone standing up against the tyrannical government in it.
Ok, your turn!
I can't wait for you to read it, that's all I can say 🙂
I'm so excited to start reading this one! I will actually make an effort to not read ahead this time. 😛 Last time I planned on reading Hunger Games with you and… I might've finished it in one day… so yeah.
Uhr… I predict a lot of love triangle bullshit that I'm going to just not be okay with. Ever. And I think Prim will not be able to look at her sister the same way.
I love you and u r a kool person thanks for being there for me Celina
BLESS IT.
And Mark, it was so much fun reliving Hunger Games through your (awesome) eyes. Merry Christmas to you!
I think your prediction should just be: I AM NOT PREPARED.
Really.
I do like seeing what you come up with, though.
nice predictions. I can not wait for you to post your first review tomorrow! On my birthday as well.
But… I already read the book so i will leave the predictions up to everyone else. So excited!
Man, these predictions are the best part of your reads to me, because it's so crazy fun to see what you think is going to happen, when I know what is going to happen. Obviously, I can't comment on the veracity of any of these because hello, spoilers, but for the most part, they sound pretty much exactly like what I thought going into Catching Fire!
FIRST!
haha, I’m sure the part about Effie’s wig was necessary
did you have predictions for Book 1? How did they fare?
From the first review:
Mark’s Totally Accurate ~Predictions~ For The Hunger Games
1) The Hunger Games are some sort of game and people die, but no one will die until book two.
2) The main character will get chosen for The Hunger Games.
3) There will be people.
4) Look, I don’t know.
haha i laughed so hard at "no one will die until book two"
Yeah, I was like "Oh Mark, you have NO idea"
I'm pretty sure everybody who actually read Hunger Games previously were laughing at that part.
Yeah, I cracked up while reading that prediction. Sooo wrong.
When I read the first book of the Hunger Games, I had to throw out a lot of the predictions I had developed as a result of watching and reading too many cliché books/movies. Thank you Collins, for being able to surprise me in that first book.
Pretty accurate, except for the no one dying part
Right? There were totally people.
And you knew nothing
You are Trelawney and I claim my five gold galleons.
I love the absolute honesty of #4
Thanks! I thought I saw those somewhere, but for some reason couldn't find them this afternoon.
Keeping. Mouth. Tightly. Shut.
Until tomorrow. Catching Fire, yay!
is it wrong that I have NO PREDICTIONS? D: I feel like a failure.
But I'll try!
Uhhh, I predict that….
Katniss will catch on fire (I'm not sure if i mean that figuratively or literally)
Peeta will be all sulky around Katniss cause you know, he got snubbed.
Gale will totally realize he is in love with Katniss too
I hope to god this does not end up to be ANYTHING like Twilight…
and uhh.. in true MRHP Fashion, THERE WILL BE WORDS AND PHRASES AND STUFF
Hmmm interesting. I don't want to say more and risk spoiling but, interesting. Are you going to go back to your first predictions?
I'm just going to sit here and laugh at your predictions because I am evil like that. Oh Mark.
Yeah… It is quite fun to know what happens at the end of the books/ series before most people who are reading along with Mark know. I just hope everyone enjoys the books like I did!!
Me and my sister did just that.
Here are my totally inaccurate and ridiculous predictions! I fully expect to laugh at them later.
~ Katniss and Peeta will go on their Victory Tour. The only new people who will have names/be described will be the friends/relatives of the District 12 and the District 2 tributes. Or okay, maybe Foxface's family. They'll be referred to as something like Catsmile and Raccooneyes.
~ Gale will be caught hunting, and the Capitol will execute his family. He will be totally distraught and start a rebellion that Katniss/Peeta eventually get caught up in.
~ We will learn more about how Haymitch won his Hunger Games.
~ Effie will become a revolutionary (wouldn't that be wild!)
~ Katniss will continue not being able to figure out her feelings.
~ We will learn more about the sinister secret police of the Capitol.
~ Katniss' mother will have discovered her inner strength and she and Prim will be doing just fine. This will help Katniss finally forgive her.
~ Peeta will have some serious anger/trust issues with Katniss. Having to pretend they're a happy couple all through the Victory Tour will cause him considerable psychological distress.
LOL @ Catsmile and Raccooneyes.
Effie's wig will catch fire!
Maybe that's what the title is referring to? Forget Katpee, the second book will star Effie's wig! I'd read it
Somebody needs to draw that. PLEASE.
I'm just really curious as to how this whole thing has affected Prim. Besides Katniss's feelings for her and the fact that she adores animals, we really don't know much about her.
Well we also know she has more patience in dealing with the sick and a much better bedside manner than Katniss.
I really wish I had made predictions before reading the series. I just know I was super unprepared! This whole series is full of WTF?! moments..can’t wait to re-read along with you!
Since I've already read all three, I can't really comment on this post. HOWEVER, since I like to reply to every review, I will say this– YAY for putting the spoiler policy on the header. Now if we can only get people to read it :PCan't wait for you to continue!!!
i siriusly LOVE your first prediction
But will there be people?
No. No people at all. The second and third books are all about the Mockingjays and their love triangles.
I can't say anything except that I am excited! And I love reading people's predictions. I read THG and CF so quickly I didn't have time to predict anything.
I can't really say I have any predictions but I am hoping for some kind of narrative on the houses Peeta and Katniss are going to move into. I want to know what emotions they have by being rewarded by having to kill the other contestants.
So, while I love your predictions Mark, I also like looking at everyone else's predictions. And since so many people are reading along with you, there could be tons of predictions. Would there be a way to keep track of everyone's predictions and do a post after the book to see the results of all of them? Maybe there could be a contest (I don't know what the winning person would get). But it'd be interesting to see how everyone compares. I don't know, I just think it would be fun
When I first read this book, I didn't have a chance to make any predictions since I just went out to the bookstore and bought the second one straight away. Then I needed to wait 8 months for Mockingjay.
Obviously I'm not going to make any predictions, but I like commenting on every post, so I'm going to talk about the theory that Cato and Clove were secret lovers that some commenters mentioned. I'm not sure I buy it, it seems way too subtle for Collins' style, but it's an interesting idea. Think about it. The girls are chosen first in the Reaping. Maybe if the two of them were dating back in District 2, they had a pact to volunteer if one of them was chosen so that they could protect one another for as long as possible. Cato is the only Tribute we know volunteered besides Katniss. Maybe after Clove was chosen, he decided to try and keep her safe for as long as he could. That could be why he was begging Clove to stay with him after Thresh broke her.
Like I said, I'm not convinced because subtlety isn't Collins' forte, but it's interesting to think about.
also, you should consider that they were both Careers and would both volunteer anyways.
I loved reading your predictions and I hope you enjoy the book! I’ll be re-reading along with you. Unless I accidentally finish the book in one sitting like I did with the first one.
Predictions with GIFs time
1. Katniss will literally catch fire. she will liegit burn. and it will hurt, a lot.
<img src="http://i1000.photobucket.com/albums/af123/Outinthe_black/firefly%20gifs/simonhmm.gif" border="0">
2. Gale will transform into RPatz, who will care solely for the amount of sparkle that is in the book. there won't be a lot, so he'll get pretty pissed about that.
<img src="http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j315/avocat123/attacked.gif" border="0">
3. Peeta will be the second coming of Christ (what? It's Christmas )
<img src="http://i634.photobucket.com/albums/uu67/blackshady22/soccergif02.gif" border="0">
4. Haymitch will get drunk at least 27 times
<img src="http://i915.photobucket.com/albums/ac354/sah0004/GIFS/Firefly-Maldancin.gif" border="0">
5. All of the other tributes will come back as zombies
<img src="http://i850.photobucket.com/albums/ab70/bluesky1212/Other%20GIFs/zombielandtallahassee.gif" border="0">
2. Despite my extreme hatred of Twilight, I kind of love RPattz for his opinions on those movies & feel so bad for him having to deal with crazy fans.
3. Is that soccer play allowed??
4. OMG Nathan Fillion should be Haymitch so we can have drunk Mal in the movies.
5. Rule #1: Cardio. (That works for the Hunger Games as well, neat!)
I'm pretty sure that's not allowed in football/soccer. It's still hilarious!
LOVE that twilight gif! plus, love the haymitch prediction!
That soccer gif is hilarious!
THAT SOCCER GIF IS BRILLIANT.
Ahhhahaha Zombieland, I love you
Flawless gif useage, would lol again.
The biggest prediction I have going into this book is that the capitol will punish Katniss by rigging the next reaping so that Prim's name will be drawn and Katniss will have to mentor her through the games. Yep, b/c the capitol really is that evil and that would be the most evil revenge I can think of for Katniss' act of rebellion!!
Oh, this is super depressing and it is only a prediction, and MY GOD if this happened, it would certainly make for really unexpected reading.
Predictions:
Shit will get real.
No one will be prepared.
I will whine a lot about my book being stuck in my school locker so I'll have to read it on Onread which is LESS FUN.
There will be gifs.
There will be spoilers.
There will be people telling people off for being so spoilery.
We will all find ways to relate the book to Harry Potter.
Ummm . . .
Hopefully MOAR HAYMITCH?
and a lot of people will whine about the love triangle, regardless of how much or how little of it is in the actual book.
"We will all find ways to relate the book to Harry Potter. "
"After all this time?" "Always!"
Hmm… I haven't read any of these books yet, but I'm dreading that we'll have to deal with a stupid love triangle. Katniss doesn't seem to actually like Peeta at all, and the more the capitol forces him on her, the more she doesn't want anything to do with him. She'll probably try to run off with Gale and leave Peeta heartbroken with no real explanation for the capitol but 'it didn't work out' and he'll probably get killed or captured or something because of it.
Really, she doesn't seem to like Peeta at all? What book have you been reading?
He or she hasn't read any of these books yet!
My predictions!
1) The victory tour thing will not be a huge part of the story, maybe we wont even see it
2) I still think that something big will be revealed about district 13… And I still think we will find out it didn't exist!
3) She will have to coach someone (with Peeta (and maybe not Haymitch?) coaching the boy)
4) Gale will drift away from her but end up saving her? somehow? or something?
I've already read it but my predictions WERE:
1) The love triangle is going to drive me fucking insane.
2) Something will burn because, well fire in the title…LOOK I DIDN'T KNOW.
3) There will be people and perhaps they will do things.
Gaaaahhhhh *flailflailflail* ogudyTjcjvgdbjfa~^!
… That was my brain on spoiler resistance. Read faster! *excite* >.>
Excited to see what you have to say about Catching Fire. No predictions because I've already read the trilogy. 🙂
Also- this is my first comment, and I just started reading your reviews relatively recently. Read all of the Twilight ones first (and I so agree on pretty much everything you said) and am now in the midst of Harry Potter — which has inspired me to re-read the series along with you!
Thanks for all the entertainment!
I've already read it, but I had one prediction that was different from everyone elses:
• There will be MOAR GAMES and not as much time spent on the tour as everyone thinks.
I don't know, I kind of liked the intensity and the "HOLY SHIT WHAT"-ness of the games. A prayer disguised as a prediction?
I really really want to say what my my prediction was going into Catching Fire because I predicted it before I read the book, but the fact that I know it's actually what happens makes its spoilerish. Sad Panda. 🙁 I'll just stick with the others in saying: You are not prepared.
I just want to applaud you for withholding! YOU ARE A GOOD EXAMPLE TO OTHERS 🙂
When I was prediction Catching Fire, the only thing I wanted to see was Katniss to get off the train and Gale to punch her in the nose. Oh and Haymitch and Effie to get together. What? Haymitch needs someone happy in his life. And Effie, well, maybe she has a thing for surly drunks? DON'T JUDGE ME.
Oh, and there will be people. And lots of cliffhangers. And we might as well say it right now, a LOVE TRIANGLE. Oh well, it's an amazing book regardless.
I like the idea of Haymitch and Effie. They balance each other out as characters. I think it would be fun to peek into Haymitch's mind as he makes surly, sarcastic comments to/about himself, ruminating over his attraction to Effie. It would be so much more interesting than the nascent love triangle.
Actually, this whole book seems to be full of characters I find more interesting than Katniss and Peeta.
I'm so excited for you to start Catching Fire!
Yay for the spoiler link in the header! Any chance you can put a link to markwatches.net up there as well (and a link to markreads.net on the Mark Watches site)? You mention the Watches site here once in a while in your reviews, and mention the Reads site over on the Watches site every now and then, but you don't have any links to get from one to the other easily. Especially for people just stumbling into your little universe, these links would be very helpful.
He's said that this is in the final design of the site, I think. What's up now is kind of a placeholder.
I think Gale dying is an overly optimistic prediction. The love triangle is probably going to last until the (literally) bloody end. 🙁
I have not read the book, and I think that Prim and Katniss will have some tension between them, because while Katniss did what she could to survive, she still did some pretty terrible, terrible things. So Prim's image of her sister will never be the same.
Ah man, you're starting tomorrow!? I don't even have the next book yet! Santa Claus, HURRY UP!
Predictions:
PART ONE THE HOMECOMING – Everything predicted about Gale, Peeta, and Katniss in the comments above will come true! But what they didn't know is that the coal mine will explode, killing off half the town and shutting down the electrical power for good. There's no time for love as a chorus of nightmarish moans closes in on District 12 the first night….
PART TWO THE FLESH-EATERS – Remember the creatures mentioned in the first book's first chapter? I'm sure you guys thought that Katniss was just talking about bears––but no! ZOMBIE ABOMINATIONS! There is little time before they gnaw their way through the now un-electified fence! Hurry Katniss! You have a plan––but does it involve enough napalm to work!?
PART THREE THE PROCONSUL FIVE – It worked, but this ordeal was not accidental. Now President Snow's elite team of assassins must step forward to complete their mission: erase District 12! Will it get too hot in the kitchen for Peeta as he faces off against demolitions expert "Fuego Fantastico?" And can Gale get there in time to lend his old rival a reluctant hand? Katniss has little problem with the rest of the team––until she meets the leader of the Proconsul: Nero! Haymitch and his collection of sawed-off shotguns might save the day, but what in the world!? These two battle-hardened veterans seem to know one another! It's time for Haymitch to explain all, and what he reveals just might blow your mind! You won't want to miss book two of the Hunger Games: Catching Fire! On sale now!
Wtf? If you've read the book (as you obviously have), you're not supposed to post predictions!! This is such a spoiler! I can't believe you told everyone about the zombie army AND Nero. Well, since you've already started this, I may as well fill in what you missed. I can’t believe you left out the part where it’s revealed that Cinna has been creating the wigs for Effie (an undercover assassin for the rebellion). When placed in fire (which is where the name of the book comes from), every strand of the synthetic hair turns into razor-sharp, diamond-strong wire. This wire is perfect for garroting the Capitol Assassins, whose one weakness is stopping to appreciate pretty, pink-colored objects.
Now I'm picturing Peeta facing off in a strange post-apocalyptic version of Iron Chef. Or possibly Top Chef: Just Desserts, since he's a baker and all.
Where do the giant samurai mechas come in?
I’m going to go for the more literal interpretation of the title and something will actually catch fire. I’m going to guess Katpee but I hope it will be the Capital, not really though because that would be awful and Collins would make it awful.
Cute predictions 😉
I can’t wait to re-read along with you!! I hope you be patient at the beginning though, because it does start a little slow. I’m also glad now that you can dissociate this series from Battle Royale, because they’re essentially totally different.
Sorry, this has nothing to do with predictions, but now that you've finished HG I thought I'd share this:
"People often ask me for reading suggestions, and I'm always happy to share because books are exciting things to me. My latest excitement is this: The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. I was so obsessed with this book I had to take it with me out to dinner and hide it under the edge of the table so I wouldn't have to stop reading. The story kept me up for several nights in a row, because even after I was finished, I just lay in bed wide awake thinking about it. I've been recommending it to total strangers in Target. And now to everyone who reads my website. The Hunger Games is amazing."
Stephenie Meyer, author of the multi-million-selling Twilight Saga, has recommended The Hunger Games to fans on her website <a href="http://www.stepheniemeyer.com” target=”_blank”>www.stepheniemeyer.com
NOW COMPARE:
"As negative Utopias go, Suzanne Collins has created a dilly. The United States is gone. North America has become Panem, a TV-dominated dictatorship run from a city called the Capitol. The rest of Panem is divided into 12 Districts (the former 13th had the bad judgment to revolt and no longer exists). The yearly highlight in this nightmare world is the Hunger Games, a bloodthirsty reality TV show in which 24 teenagers chosen by lottery – two from each District – fight each other in a desolate environment called the "arena." The winner gets a life of ease; the losers get death. The only "unspoken rule" is that you can't eat the dead contestants. Let's see the makers of the movie version try to get a PG-13 on this baby.
Our heroine is Katniss Everdeen (lame name, cool kid), a resident of District 12, which used to be Appalachia. She lives in a desperately poor mining community called the Seam, and when her little sister's name is chosen as one of the contestants in the upcoming Hunger Games, Katniss volunteers to take her place. A gutsy decision, given the fact that District 12 hasn't produced a Hunger Games winner in 30 years or so, making them the Chicago Cubs of the postapocalypse world. Complicating her already desperate situation is her growing affection for the other District 12 contestant, a clueless baker's son named Peeta Mellark. Further complicating her situation is her sorta-crush on her 18-year-old hunting partner, Gale. Gale isn't clueless; Gale is smoldering. Says so right on page 14.
The love triangle is fairly standard teen-read stuff; what 16-year-old girl wouldn't like to have two interesting guys to choose from? The rest of The Hunger Games, however, is a violent, jarring speed–rap of a novel that generates nearly constant suspense and may also generate a fair amount of controversy. I couldn't stop reading, and once I got over the main character's name (Gale calls her Catnip – ugh), I got to like her a lot. And although "young adult novel" is a dumbbell term I put right up there with "jumbo shrimp" and "airline food" in the oxymoron sweepstakes, how many novels so categorized feature one character stung to death by monster wasps and another more or less eaten alive by mutant werewolves? I say more or less because Katniss, a bow-and-arrow Annie Oakley, puts the poor kid out of his misery before the werewolves can get to the prime cuts.
Collins is an efficient no-nonsense prose stylist with a pleasantly dry sense of humor. Reading The Hunger Games is as addictive (and as violently simple) as playing one of those shoot-it-if-it-moves videogames in the lobby of the local eightplex; you know it's not real, but you keep plugging in quarters anyway. Balancing off the efficiency are displays of authorial laziness that kids will accept more readily than adults. When Katniss needs burn cream or medicine for Peeta, whom she more or less babysits during the second half of the book, the stuff floats down from the sky on silver parachutes. And although the bloody action in the arena is televised by multiple cameras, Collins never mentions Katniss seeing one. Also, readers of Battle Royale (by Koushun Takami), The Running Man, or The Long Walk (those latter two by some guy named Bachman) will quickly realize they have visited these TV badlands before.
But since this is the first novel of a projected trilogy, it seems to me that the essential question is whether or not readers will care enough to stick around and find out what comes next for Katniss. I know I will. But then, I also have a habit of playing Time Crisis until all my quarters are gone."
Stephen King, Entertainment Weekly Online
Wow, it's like Stephen King actually read the book and didn't fall asleep dreaming about a rendezvous with Gale in the woods.
ha smeyer was probably kicking herself about how this book came out after Twilight so she couldn't rip it off.
I still can't believe she actually read it.
okay okay, I don't like Twilight any more than the rest of you, but the only reason people write books is because they love books. The problem is all the fangirl love over a series that is not good, not that a woman with no writing experience attempted to write a story like all the ones she loved.
But yeah, her recommendation sounds like a gushing 14 year old. Stephen King, however, is spot on! It's a funny comparison.
Oh, I don't really have anything against her. I thought it was interesting to compare the two reviews, particularly because a lot of the things that King mentions came up here too.
I LOVE that he puts that it's written with an "authorial laziness that kids will accept more readily than adults" because I really thought that was key in this book. To remember that it's written for young people who haven't (necessarily) fully developed and who often put a book down because of the WAY it's written and not the story itself. Her writing made it possible for the kids who say they hate reading to feel involved in the story by staying in the mind of a teen the whole time. I think as an adult or a frequent reader, it's easy to ask questions like "where are these damn cameras?!" or "how is that possible?" and to want the technicalities to be explained but in the end it doesn't REALLY matter and the target audience is entranced by the story.
Since it's obligatory by this point: You are not prepared.
I think you're better prepared than when you started off the Hunger Games (remember how you thought no one would die? HA!) but one thing I admire about Collins is her ability to continually throw new things at you.
One thing's for sure, you're in for a crazy ride.
I just finished Catching Fire at about 1:30 this morning, so I can't make any predictions 'cause I already know what's going to happen. 🙂 And I agree with others that you are definitely not prepared. I sure wasn't.
Can't wait for the first review to go up!!
Hurry up and start reading, Mark! I wanna find out what happens. xD
I predict that President Snow will show up early, because I am contrary like that. xD Also that Katniss will be the girl on fire at least once more, probably twice. And that Haymitch will get a chance to show off why he won the Games. And that the Gamemakers will do something horrible, because that seems to be their MO. And that Gale or Peeta gets Avox'd.
Catching Fire is my personal favorite of the trilogy–I'm so excited to see what you think!
My own, *~*sooper speshul*~* predictions:
– The will be much angsting about the Peeta/Kat/Gale triangle
– Some reiteration of that sign they all gave Kat at the reaping will appear on the tour
– We'll get to see more of the oppression the Capitol places on the districts
– Haymitch Dies
– We find out that District 13 is actually a secret camp for rebels, and that's where the avox girl was going before she was…avoxified?
– Kat and Peeta's actions in the arena start to stir up dissent amongst the Districts, particularly District 12
– Lot's of nameless people will die
– words
– actions
– Something utterly ridiculous that I will mock until the end of time
– Peeta will play the game
As long as Collins keeps things fresh, I think I'll enjoy "Catching Fire" and I hope we get to see more world building in this one. Last book was pretty much just the Arena, and we didn't get to see the true vileness of the Capitol.
I've read all 3 books so I can't say anything prediction-y, BUT, I want to say that I LOVE that you do predictions Mark, I really do! 😀 So thanks!
Also, I can't wait for you to start this book! Yay!
Okay, I promise to be on my best behavior.
Semi o/t: I just took my dad to see True Grit, eat Indian food, and air grievances, and all I have to say is Hailee Steinfeld for Katniss. Oh, and Jeff Bridges can be Haymitch. Thank you in advance, casting directors.
I totally said the same thing about Hailee Steinfeld today! But I'm still holding onto the idea of Robert Downey Jr. for Haymitch…
She's fantastic, she can do the serious, straightforward thing, and she looks like Katniss. She's perfect. I will accept any beloved middle-aged actor as Haymitch, and I would love to see RDJ with a paunch.
I vote for RDJ for Haymitch over Hugh Laurie, at least. Really I think they should get a relative unknown. Jeff Bridges would be ok, I guess.
Hailey Steinfeld looks like she stepped out of the book. Siriusly. She would be brilliant.
This time I can read along with you YAAAAAAAAAAAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
It's actually quite sad how excited I am, lol
Predictions!:
-someone will get burned, either physically or emotionally.
-MOAR DOCTOR WHO GIFS
-Katniss's mom will act exactly the same as before.
-more people will die.
I have not read the books, so my predictions will be wayyyy off.
1. The Capitol's goons will be looking for reasons to arrest Katniss, and will do anything they can to antagonize her.
2. Gale will be obnoxious and all hang-dog.
3. Katniss will waste time being angsty, and will throw tantrums when her mother attemtps to give advice.
4. Locals will snub Peeta, despite his survival, but fuss over Katniss, because that's what happens in YA books.
5. Gale will be thrown into the next Hunger Games?
6. I will giggle like a 10-year-old whenever Mark mentions Peeniss.
But you won't giggle when I say Katpee?
:'(
Oh, and 14. "Catching Fire" will refer both literally – someone will get burned – and metaphorically – the rebellion we all know is coming will "catch fire" with something that happens on the Victory Tour.
I've already read this so all I'll say is thank you for the reviews. I squeal like a little girl every time a new one comes up. True story.
And if anyone is having trouble getting their hands on a book you can read the first chapter online (legally even!) at Scholastic's website here: http://software.libredigital.com/bookrdr/dp-live/…
It's the actual link to the book since their Hunger Games homepage has the book description for Mockingjay, and that's all kinds of spoilers.
NPR has chapter 2 here: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?stor…
Oh, for the NPR one, do NOT read the stuff in italics at the very beginning. Sorry, I didn't realize it was kind of spoilery.
Ah, I always loved reading your Harry Potter predictions, since you were always so wrong. xD You'll just see how close you are when you read Catching Fire.
Oh Mark, you'd like to think you're prepared, wouldn't you?
Catching Fire was spoiled for me. And I didn't believe it. I literally thought everyone was playing a joke on me.
This book is awesome, I can't wait to read your thoughts!
I'm just excited for you to start reading hehehe 🙂
Why is nobody making predictions about the fact that she has to tutor the next girl tribute??
My Insane Predictions
-The person she has to tutor will be a 12 year old
-The games will be canceled for some reason/something will go horribly wrong with the games
-Katniss will volunteer and go into the games again.
-Gale will be mad at Katniss
-The games will end in a not normal way
-Someone will MAJORLY screw up the games
-It will end with Katniss escaping from the Capitol
-District 13 is real, and there are secret people hiding in it who have been trying to infiltrate the Capitol, and have lots of spies everywhere. They put up a magical force field so the Capitol can't see them 😀
-Cinna is a spy.
-People Katniss cares about will die
My prediction for the girl tribute is that it won't happen until book 3. Book 2 is the Victory Tour.
My reaction to each of your predictions: OH GOD I WANT TO SAY SOMETHING BUT I CANT DAMN IT. D: Like I said yesterday, Catching Fire is my favorite of the series, and I think (hope?) you’ll enjoy it a lot.
I really am glad that you’re unspoiled, though. I wish I had better self control and didn’t spoil myself for Mockingjay- it didn’t ruin my experience, but the suspense was gone.
I'm totally with you here. I'm reading all these predictions and cackling to myself. I love that 'YOU ARE NOT PREPARED" has become a constant refrain because I can just shout that gleefully and wait for the reviews to happen and the freaking out to commence.
It will be glorious. None of you are prepared.
Also, the predictions themselves are quite interesting to see. I read straight from the end of Hunger Games into Catching Fire. I didn't even stop to think about what would happen, so it's very neat to see people listing what they think will happen. :DDDD
I was accidentally spoiled for Mockingjay like a day after it came out! I WAS SO MAD. STUPID YOUTUBE COMMENTERS. DON'T THEY KNOW NOT EVERYONE HAS READ THE BOOK YET
I was spoiled for the movie Serenity, too. WHYYY
You are nowhere near prepared. Not at all. You are even less prepared than you think.
My prediction involves the Capital Dying In All the Fires, (or Catching on Fire as the case may be). Book three picking up after the capital's defeat and then involving the formation of a new government under Katniss' rule.
never read the book, but i bet katniss will end up joining La Resistance
More food porn for sure, it's Katniss.
Omg you guys do not even realise how damn hard it is not to spoil you.
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7: It's Scut Farkus
I just bought Catching Fire yesterday and I'm going to read along with you, Mark! Here are my totally ~awesome~ predictions.
-Katniss will have drama with Peeta and Gale
-Something bad will happen during the victory tour?
-Peeta will bake bread 😀
-Maybe Haymitch backstory? (one can dream, can't they? :p)
-An important character will die!
I looooove your predictions!
I just finished CF and just found your site, so I'm excited to read your reviews while the book is still fresh in my mind. I've skimmed some of your old stuff, but I'm lazy, so this is like a brand new start!
My only prediction is that I think Catching Fire will be mostly about the Victory Tour thing and that Katniss and Gale will be very rarrghhy at each other over Katpee.
My predictions:
-The Capitol will announce a rule change in which the past winner(s) of the Hunger Games must compete in the next ones unless they are over-age, which would force Katniss and Peeta to compete in the next Hunger Games (and possibly the one after that, since they're both sixteen now). The way I see it, there's no way the Capitol is leaving them unpunished and no way they'd let Katniss coach future tributes, since she'd probably coach them to be even more rebellious than she was. They could exempt Peeta (since they know it's not his fault), but that would make their real intentions too obvious to the people at large, and they probably think that making them kill each other will be a fun punishment, anyway. Either that, or they'll just rig the lottery so Katniss's name is drawn again, but Peeta's isn't.
-When I first read the part with Madge and the mockingjay pin, I thought it would be a spy device similar to Leon Theremin's Thing, and that Madge would turn out to be like O'Brien in Nineteen Eighty Four. I'm (sort of) reprising that prediction with the amendment that the pin might be a communication device, instead, with Madge being on Katniss's side.
-The title refers to the growing revolutionary fervor in the districts, with Peeta and Katniss as the *igniting spark.* I'll complain about how unrealistic it is for the Capitol to have left that footage uncensored/how weak the Capitol seems in response, and how Big Brother would have quashed that kind of behavior before it even had a chance.
I've not read the books at all – just been following the reviews (I plan to tho!) but I have a prediction based on nothing at all xD : I think we'll learn more – hopefully a lot more – about the mysterious District 13 (it was 13 right?) and I predict that the secret will be it still exists and was never wiped out – destroyed, but enough citizens escaped to elsewhere, and they are the heads of the rebellion.
OR conversely
District 13 is a lie
I hope it's the former, it's a little predictable but I would still find that intriguing.
Okay, I am making some predictions; some silly, some not-so-much.
1) We will get more info on the tribute mutts.
2) Cinna will make more awesome clothing.
3) The capital will kidnap Prim.
4) Gale suddenly realizes he is in ~*twu luv*~ with Katniss and will try to break up Peenis.
5) Love triangles will bore Mark.
6) Harry Potter will not appear in the book, but will appear in the reviews.
Re: #6
Funny how that works, right? 😀
Funny and wonderful all at the same time. ^_^
We could all use more Potter in our lives.
I throw out the possibility of all out battle for Katniss between Gale and Peeta, involving stale bread, katniss roots and a background army of mockingjays fighting on Gale's side.
I really, really want Cinna to be in the rebellion. He seems like one of the few sane Capitol characters. ):
I haven't read the first or second books. I've only read your reviews.
I do think there is going to be an eventual conflict directly with the folks in power. Katniss has been pulled into the fray. She will be beaten down at first. She will eventually overcome and bring down the system but that is probably into the next book.
My gut feel is that the powers that be have not finished punishing her. She will probably lose a lot of people she cares about. That means that Mom, Prim, Gale, and others are probably going to leave in a violent fashion.
She probably will have her tour turn into another game of them trying to eliminate her through "accidents".
Maybe she will have to go on the run?
Maybe Gale will be held hostage to get her?
Oh, the possibilities are endless. I know I'll be surprised. Cool!
Okay, I read the spoiler policy carefully, and I am wording this as delicately as I can…
YOU ARE NOT PREPARED.
I think Kat will realize she loves Peeta but he won't trust her anymore. Blam!
Ok. That comment about who will die? i was like that when i read the trilogy. "Collins has no soul. She kills anyone she pleases!" and i always get surprised… and sad. Collins write it so wonderfully brutal.
I think Katniss will choose Peeta officially by the end of the book. I also think there will be something to do with District 13, which I mentioned in an earlier comment and I'm sticking to it! I also think we'll get a lot more Cinna backstory. At least, I hope we will. I guess I can throw in Haymitch and Effie too. I imagine we'll get more on them as well.
Oh, and that Avox girl will become more of a prominent character.
Okay, so I haven't read Catching Fire, so here are my own predictions;
1) The title relates to the idea of rebellion spreading among the districts, the idea itself is catching fire (or the people's minds are, or something equally inspiring).
2) Gale will be pissed off at Katniss for being lovey-dovey with Peeta, because he secretly luuuurrrrves her.
3) Peeta will be pissed off at Katniss for lying about being lovey-dovey with him because he really does luuuuuurrrve her.
4) Katniss will be pissed off at the boys for being love-sick idiots and tell them both to eff off.
5) Katniss will meet Rue's parents, who will be the leaders of the fledgeling rebellion in District 11.
(second half of my predictions because it was too long a comment apparently :S )
6) There will be an assassination attempt on Katniss before we get to the second half of the book.
7) We will find out what the flesh eaters are. (Katniss mentions they live in the woods beyond the fence right at the start of HG, but there is no more elaboration, I think. Correct me please if I am wrong)
8) We find out about an encapment/ city of people outside of Panem and Katniss will set out to join them at the end of the book.
So now I get to find out if my *super accurate 100% guaranteed* predictions will come true!
my predictions, having read the book:
People in comments will STILL not understand the spoiler policy, and will STILL continue to spoil Mark, just as they have in this very discussion thread. WTF, people? READ. THE. SPOILER. POLICY.
People will bitch and whine and moan about anything that even remotely resembles a "love triangle," instead of *dealing with the fact that they're reading YA fiction*, and just letting it go and enjoy the fucking awesomeness of the plot.
People who have already read the book will pretend that they haven't, so they can make predictions in this thread and then look oh-so-clever as Mark and the rest of the group reads the book, as some have clearly done already.
People in comments will continue to suggest white actresses to play Katniss, when Collins made sure to describe her in such a way that she is NOT BLONDE-HAIRED-BLUE-EYED JESUS.
And, as per usual, Mark will not be prepared.
Hey, your prediction is just like mine (below)! Only with more detail.
Um. I read every single comment people post, and I have yet to spot anything spoilery. A few people have made an accurate prediction here or there, but no one's posted one long list of totally correct plot points. What are you talking about? I do wish people would get over the love triangle though. I don't like romance either, but here it's so obviously not the point of the story.
P.S. Not all white people are blonde haired and blue eyed. And nowhere does it say that Katniss ISN'T white, she's just "olive skinned." Besides, shouldn't the casting be more about picking an actress talented enough to pull off the part than what she looks like? There are things like hair dye, makeup and contacts…
Actually, now that I think about it, Katniss probably is "white," at least partly. Her sister IS blonde and blue eyed!
My prediction is not about the book itself, but about the comments on the posts about the book:
HATERS GONNA HATE
I predict that haters will hate.
"We will meet Foxface’s family and still not ever learn her name. "
My only prediction:
We will learn Foxface's name.
-haven't read the book yet and I'm bad at predictions-
I've already read the books soooo:
SHIT IS GONNA GET REALLY REALISTICALLY REAL.
A direct quote from Mark's predictions for The Hunger Games:
"1) The Hunger Games are some sort of game and people die, but no one will die until book two."
How wrong he was about THG. How wrong he was. This in no way is a spoiler for CF. I have yet to read it. I'm just pointing out how ridiculously wrong Collins proved you.
I keep expecting that this will end on a similar note to 1984 – that's right, the protagonists lose.
However, since it's YA, they will set up future/other people to take out the capital, possibly through an epilogue.
Alternately, they overthrow the Capital, but then have to deal with fallout and lack of a government.
One of my gifts feels suspiciously like a trilogy of books, and seeing as these are the only ones I asked for……..
Maybe I'll finally be able to read along properly! If I can restrain myself that is!
Thanks for introducing me to these books Mark, I've been yearning for something new 🙂
Merry Christmas
I’ve been reading all your reviews for a while now but haven’t yet posted but i LOVE all these predictions. For fear of spoiling I will say nothing except you are totally not prepared for this!!!
Thanks and merry Christmas
🙂
Oh dear, predictions… Always a good laugh 🙂
I haven't read Catching Fire yet. When I finished Hunger Games, I think I would have stopped reading the series then and there if I hadn't already bought the next two books. I really hate the lover's triangle. Here ae my predictions:
1. The town will hero worship Katniss, and she will hate it.
2. Gale will be jealous and Katniss will have issues with him.
3. Katniss still won't know how she feels about Peeta by the end of this book. Maybe she'll figure out by the end of the third book.
4. I was really convinced that somehow the Capitol would get her back into another Hunger Game when I finished the first book. They would make up some lame excuse or something. They need to make her look bad in order to make themselves look good again. But she will manage to show them up again, somehow.
Ooh! I have not read anything past the first chapter of Catching Fire, which I read in the Bookstore (I know, bad… but it means I really have not looked farther, because I did not buy the book… not because it was bad, but because I'm cheap and waiting on the library!).
And I know you've read that far now, Mark, because the next chapter if up. SO IF YOU HAVE NOT READ THE FIRST CHAPTER OF CATCHING FIRE, STOP NOW because it may taint my predictions a tiny bit. Not a lot, actually. But still.
PREDICTIONS!
-The Avox (?) girl and her story will be explored further, and it will turn out the Avox girl was part of a rebellion against the Capitol. This rebellion will be something that exists outside of the districts and Katniss will be roped into it because she already sort-of accidentally rebelled.
-We will find out what lies between the districts/beyond the fences
-We will encounter more Bio-engineered/mutant creatures created by the Capitol, like Mockingjays
-Katniss will realize she loves Gale more, but she's going to continue to rely on Peeta as the aftermath of their winning happens
-At one point, a confrontation will happen between Gale and Peeta
-At one point, Katniss will have to talk about her feelings with Gale
-Gale will not ever be a tribute to the Hunger Games, but he will be targeted by the Capitol to keep Katniss in line.
MY PREDICTION
President Snow will have a little chat with Katniss, "girl to girl"
Lips = sealed. Although I love that your first prediction was about Effie's wig. Hee.
I cannot thank you sufficiently for the discussions on your web site. I know you put a lot of time and energy into all of them and truly hope you know how considerably I enjoy it. I hope I’ll do exactly the same person sooner or later.
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I cannot thank you enough for the content on your web site. I know you set a lot of time and effort into all of them and hope you know how much I enjoy it. I hope I’ll do exactly the same person sooner or later.
I don’t even know how I ended up here, but I thought this post was good. I do not know who you are but definitely you are going to a famous blogger if you are not already 😉 Cheers!
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Hugh,
I know I'm super late but I just started reading this series after getting a Kindle for Christmas and borrowing THG from their online library. But what the hell, figured I'd throw down some predictions too just for my own amusement.
1) President Snow will actually show up much earlier like in the first quarter of the book.
2) Gale won't die because why would Collins foreshadow a love triangle so hard if that were the case?
3) While on the victory tour, a fire will start at Katniss' house, killing a family member.
4) Katniss will attempt to try and help Gale's family out by giving them food and money but he'll refuse it because of his broken heart, which will lead to an argument in which he finally gets to finish his sentence from the first book.
5) Peeta will bake something.
6) Peenis will get involved in the resistance after they get ambushed on tour and maybe kidnapped.
7) I don't think you can be sent back into the Hunger Games after having already won so I call BS on those predictions though if the Capitol finds some other way to screw her over, that is totally plausible.
Haha just read the first chapter of Catching Fire and I see why you guys deleted my predictions. But I swear, they weren't intended to be spoilers.