Katniss Everdeen

That's all right.

Rich? Which actress played Katniss Everdeen in The Hunger Games?

J-Law, Jennifer Lawrence.

Correct.

movie? What do I have to learn here? The mistake that I didn't realize at the time, I wonder if Suzanne Collins is under the impression that the hook is interesting, whereas it is the characters who are interesting.

was an interesting character.

It's just Battle Royale.

What makes them work is that Katniss is a really interesting protagonist to put in that situation, I

think.

Yeah.

Yes.

I'm not with the level of like enthusiasm as Katniss Everdeen with this one, but yeah, I think maybe I'm volunteering as tribute.

It's interesting that they're inviting people in since they're now announced that their campus will be surrounded by gated fences.

And actually when former mayor John Cooper sold this to everybody as a great deal, he talked about all the public green space the campus would feature.

know? So, um, but archery also, um, is one of those things that I do think is kind of popular because it's very, very few people do it at home.

And so there is this like, interest and curiosity that, you know, and of course the Katniss.

I was going

to say Hunger Games really propelled it.

Welcome to Hazel and Katniss and Harry and Star, a young adult literature podcast, their film and television adaptations, and everything in between.

I'm Joe.

And I'm not afraid.

And on one hand, I get it, but it also used to make me really frustrated because I'd be like, what is it that this kid likes? Does he like history? Because if it's a good enough story, it shouldn't matter the gender of the protagonist.

now if a kid is looking for their experience if they want to see themselves in a book then yeah then i might think okay so if this is a kid who's struggling with pretty and he is a boy and this is a book about a boy going through puberty then i might recommend that book ahead of another but i don't i don't think gender is the number one thing kids are looking for and i often find That's one of the places that adults really disrespect the intelligence of kids the most is like, well, I'm not even going to recommend that book to you because Katniss Everdeen is a girl and millions of people love The Hunger Games.

And I just think that, again, it's gender might be one of the things that people are coming to when they're looking for a character, but I don't think it's number one.

And I think often adults say it's number one.

Yeah.

And she's just like... and then thinks that she's going to be able to walk off the hovercraft and no one will notice that she's Katniss Everdeen.

I don't know.

Yeah.

Star Wars, every movie ever has done it.

And it's going to require a Jon Snow, a Katniss Everdary.

We're all just, we know that's where it's heading.

So let's do something about it now.