TEEN INK EDITOR'S CHOICE AWARD!

A huge thanks to Rachel Herriman, who interviewed me about The Hunger Games for Teen Ink. Her wonderful interview received an Editor's Choice Award!

Here's a small excerpt followed by a link to the entire article.

Lois Gresh is the author of several popular novels, including the short story collection, Eldritch Evolution and her sci-fi thriller, Blood and Ice. She has also written many unofficial guides which belong in any collector's or fanatic's library, such as The Science of Superheroes, The Twilight Companion and most recently, The Hunger Games Companion.

Rachel: You recently wrote THE HUNGER GAMES COMPANION; how did that opportunity come about?

Lois: I was gripped by THE HUNGER GAMES trilogy, but I also felt that Suzanne Collins’ books were filled with important messages. For example, people should focus on what matters (kindness, peace, nurturing their children, health, food for all) than on things such as what they look like and how mean they can be to other people. Is it more important to get ahead -- literally to survive in THE HUNGER GAMES -- by stabbing other people in the back, or does it make more sense to get ahead by using your skills and intelligence and trying to help the people around you?

I was struck by the horrific nature of Katniss’ life from the first chapters of THE HUNGER GAMES. I saw the trilogy as a reflection -- a mirror -- of our own times, our own history as human beings. The trilogy is a bold warning, in my opinion, that as an intelligent species, we need to pull together and save ourselves from a future that could even remotely be anything like what we see in THE HUNGER GAMES. The novels are brilliant in that they acutely warn us about where we might be heading if we don’t take care of each other on a global level. Mass starvation isn’t right. Sending little children into the slaughterhouse of war isn’t right. Environmental meltdowns, terrorist acts, and nuclear warfare aren’t right. Set against these themes, Suzanne Collins brings us a story of rich beauty. Katniss, Peeta, Gale, Prim, Rue, and all the others: as readers, we care about them and desperately want everything to turn out okay. THE HUNGER GAMES novels are among the finest books I’ve read in quite awhile.

So when my longtime editor at St. Martin’s Press asked if I wanted to write THE HUNGER GAMES COMPANION, I immediately said, “Yes!”

Rachel: What can fans expect?

Lois: THE HUNGER GAMES COMPANION includes facts and insights into the main ideas and themes of the novels -- from the nature of evil to weaponry and rebellions to surviving the end of the world. I dig deep beneath the surface and offer opinions as to how the world has ended up in this hideous post-apocalyptic state; why Katniss agrees to be the Mockingjay, why she chooses Peeta, why she becomes intensely depressed, why she becomes addicted to morphling; why the Capitol is so evil, why the government lets their own people starve, why they send children into these deadly arenas, why they justify binge-eating and plastic surgery and fine clothing while letting everyone else die from grotesque torture. The book covers everything from the various type of muttations, including how they might be created in real life, to the poisons and medicines, the Avoxes, the hovercrafts, the Career Tributes; Thresh, Finnick, Plutarch Heavensbee, Haymitch, President Snow, Cato, Beetee, Johanna, Katniss’ mother, Buttercup, Effie Trinket, Caesar Flickerman; and very interesting to me, the complex nature of the arenas themselves. As you might have guessed by my answers thus far, I’m obviously FASCINATED by THE HUNGER GAMES!

Rachel: What is the biggest difference between writing children's books and adult fiction? Which do you prefer?

Lois: I enjoy both categories. I don’t hold back at all in my adult fiction.

As for children’s books, with DRAGONBALL Z, I very much wanted to make children laugh and have a good time. I wrote DRAGONBALL Z with my 10-year-old son, and we received more than 2,000 letters from children who wrote that they loved the book. I can’t tell you how happy that made me! The same thing happened with THE TRUTH BEHIND A SERIES OF UNFORTUNATE EVENTS -- so many wonderful letters, they made my heart sing.

That said, I don’t believe in treating teens as if they’re little children. They’re mature, responsible, and old enough to read THE HUNGER GAMES. Teens should have books that reflect the times in which we live now, and they should have books that help them think about tomorrow, too.

Read the entire story here:

TEEN INK EDITOR'S CHOICE AWARD: HUNGER GAMES INTERVIEW WITH LOIS GRESH