Kids/Teens Book Club discussion

I was just looking through the Harry Potter vs Twilight debate, which isn't really a debate at all since it's so one sided. Does that change here? Are Harry Potter better books than The Hunger Games trilogy?

I'm personally for Harry Potter. While Suzanne started the series out AMAZINGLY, the following books weren't up to par with the first one and there seemed to be several things that appeared to be done on a whim. Nothing TRULY seemed planned out in the latter books, but especially not in Mockingjay.
In Harry Potter, however, everything fits- even Harry not seeing the thestrals at the end of book 4 in the carriages to Hogsmeade Station because JK has said that you only see them when you come to terms with the death of the person that you saw. And many people found, that while the series started out great, the better books were the latter ones (I'm of this opinion myself). And there's so much thought put into every single detail of the story, it's quite brilliant.

I personally believe Harry Potter is WAY better. It is an incredible series that got so many people to read, not just Harry Potter but other books as well, and it was just so well written and thought out.

The Hunger Games was a good book. I don't think even that one was great, although it was entertaining. Catching Fire was ok. I still haven't read Mockingjay. Even with the gigantic cliffhanger she left you on in Catching Fire, it wasn't enough to make me really want to read Mockingjay, in contrast to Harry Potter, where I read all of them starting with the fifth on the day they came out. I also don't think it had the same effect on people that Harry Potter did-some people read it who don't ordinarily read much, but I don't know of very many people who started reading more because of it.

To be honest, it all comes down to personal opinion. But my opinion is that Harry Potter is by far better.

HARRY POTTER all the way!

There, the only annoying character was Hermione, and she wasn't the main character. It got harder and harder for me to like HUNGER GAMES because I came to despise Katniss, and think she's one of the worst characters I've ever read.

Plus, HARRY POTTER is a way more inventive and creative series. I think Suzanne Collins got popular with her series because it shocked people, not necessarily because it was well-written, nuanced, or especially creative. JK Rowling practically created a new language with all the spells, incantations and so forth.

PS to Rae and Kate - Agree and agree. :D

I think that they were both excellent series, however I prefer Harry Potter. I felt like the Hunger Games lost a lot of steam after the first book. The characters and quirks in Harry Potter are, at least to me, a lot more likable. The Katniss/Peeta/Gale relationship irritated me a bit as well.

Agreed, for sure.

Plus, look at the villains. Voldemort and the Death Eaters - plus all the others throughout the series (Umbridge!) were truly VILLAINOUS. I hardly saw President Snow at all until MOCKINGJAY, and he didn't really seem very put-together.

Plus, the characters in HP were way more likable. Hermione irked me throughout, and sometimes I didn't like Harry, but there were always other characters I could root for. In HUNGER GAMES, if you don't like Katniss (like I didn't) you're pretty much screwed.

I agree, Amelia! :) I like harry potter better too.

Harry Potter is a classic novel of magic, friendship and the whole good-meets-evil shabang. Since there are so many characters you are sure to like at least one.

The Hunger Games is a good dystopian novel but lacks the amount of characters that you really feel like rooting for (besides Katniss/Peeta, of course).

Both books have elements of suspense and twists/turns but I must say that Harry Potter is the winner!

Harry Potter all the way. I love both, but Potter is way better.
Like Amelia said, the characters are way more fleshed out in Potter, especially the villains.
Plus, it is way more creative and imaginative-Hogwarts and the wizarding universe were so well explained. We new different shops and towns and street names and newspapers. It was like a mirror of our own world, the terrific way Rowling described it.
I hardly knew anything about The Capitol in terms of appearance or liestyle by the end of Mockingjay.
Plus the morals and themes in Potter are so more diverse and complex than THG.
I like both, but Potter wins hands down. Plus, Jo was consistent with her work across 7 books. Each book is superb. Each swiftly relates to the other, and its clear the end was planned when she began.
Collins did not have Mockingjay planned from the beginning. Infact, I doubt she even had intentions to write a trilogy. THG would have been a fantastic stand alone book. However, a trilogy/series is only as strong as its finale. For HP, that is exceptional. For THG, that is very poor.

Harry Potter!!

No contest! I love THG too, but HP rocks xD

★ Jess wrote: "Harry Potter all the way. I love both, but Potter is way better.
Like Amelia said, the characters are way more fleshed out in Potter, especially the villains.
Plus, it is way more creative and im..."

VERY well said, Jess! You could write a dissertation on the subject, haha! :D

I feel awkward here, since I'm gonna vote Hunger Games. Oh boy. Lol, I mean, Harry Potter just never really appealed to me. When I was younger? Sure. But, it's wizardry. Hunger Games is something that's not really magical at all, which I prefer. Maybe that's why I also chose Twilight over Harry Potter? Lol, werewolves simply make my day. Just saying. :)

I prefer Harry Potter... My childhood. Gives me nostalgia. XD. But I like Hunger Games too.

Andrea wrote: "I feel awkward here, since I'm gonna vote Hunger Games. Oh boy. Lol, I mean, Harry Potter just never really appealed to me. When I was younger? Sure. But, it's wizardry. Hunger Games is something t..."

Here. We can feel akward together. Team Hunger Games.

Hey, look up Harry Potter Hunger Games Trailer Mashup on YouTube. Really funny since Dumbledore has Effie's voice.

i pick hunger games im sorry i just like the series even though the last one sucked -_-

harry potter. it's very interesting and everything ties together. not that the hunger games doesn't, but it leaves you with an empty, sad, feeling while harry potter (the end) gives you a sense of closure. the hunger games is great though, close second, and i can't wait for the movie to come out!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

★ Jess wrote: "Harry Potter all the way. I love both, but Potter is way better.
Like Amelia said, the characters are way more fleshed out in Potter, especially the villains.
Plus, it is way more creative and im..."
my feelings exactly!!!!!!! mockingjay just made me sad...

Ummm...... What kind of battle is this?
One side is too strong and it will beat the other with just one spell :P

This is so hard to choose between because I fell in love with both series. If I was to choose between the first hunger games book and one of the Harry Potter books, I would choose the Hunger Games hands down. However if I was to compare both of the series, I'd have to choose Harry Potter as the Hunger Games went slightly downhill from the first book whereas Harry Potter just got better and better.

NO IDEA!!! so hard, I've only read the first HG though so I will reserve judgement till after i've read the others!

harry potter hands down. hunger games cant even begin to compare. the characters in the hunger games are one dimensional. the main character is weak and shallow. i feel like harry potter had so much more thought and effort put into it.

Harry Potter! The Hunger Games was great, until Mockingjay, and Harry Potter was much more complex and really nothing can compare to Harry Potter!

I'd have to say Harry Potter. The entire series kept my attention. In the Hunger Games I loved the first book, but I didn't feel the same about the following books. I was disappointed by Mockingjay because something about it just didn't seem right.

Harry Potter series is much better, i think. Harry Potter lives in a world that is so interesting and takes you away. And the books are so great that after you start reading you can not leave them, i do not say that the Hunger Games series is bad, i think it's a good series, too. But if we are talking about Harry Potter series, everything gets different for me. Harry Potter series is the series that i had been reading when i was growing up; i met a different, really different world because of that series, it changed my life. it was so imaginative, i still want the world that J.K. Rowling had created to become real. So, if you want to get rid of the stress of your life, just have a look at Harry Potter books, and you'll see what can be created by a good imagination, you'll start reading about a good, much different world. i do not think that the Hunger Games series can do it like Harry Potter books do.

i agree with everything said. i loved the 1st hunger games book, it would probably be a 4.5/5 for me, but it went to a 3.5 for catching fire and then maybe a 2.75 for mockingjay (btw these arent the goodreads ratings, how 5 is amazing, 4 is very good, 3 is good, 2 is ok and 1 is bad. does anyone else find that confusing? cause 3 normally means mediocre but anyway...)
but with the harry potter series it just keeps getting better and better and even more intricate! also the hp books are more positive and they make you wish like you were part of that world. even thoughs there is the super baddies, theres magic (and really who didnt long for a letter coming from hogwarts on their 11th birthday!)
so my vote goes to harry potter!but kudos to suzanne collins on a amazing 1st book
:)

I like both so far, but I don't really have a full opinion. I have only read the first Hunger Games book as of right now, but I want to read the next two as soon as possible.

Harry Potter had a certain epicness to it that will leave a legacy from its books and films. THe books, in my personal opinion, were written well. The characters were believable, relatable, and had their own individual personalities that were very memorable as a reader. I never found myself bored reading a HP book.

I think that the Hunger Games was also a great book, but it is hard for me to elaborate without finishing the series. Even when I do finish the 2nd and 3rd book, I will probably look at HP as a superior series. Both are very good though and have had a HUGE anount of positive reception.

I would definately say the HUnger games are the best books ever, no book can ever beat the hunger games, although many have come close. The hunger games just combines everything people want in a book, and more! harry potter is ok, it just isnt one of my favorites. everyone should read the hunger games and watch the movie!

Frank wrote: "I like both so far, but I don't really have a full opinion. I have only read the first Hunger Games book as of right now, but I want to read the next two as soon as possible.

Harry Potter had a c..."

I agree, the characters are the major strength of the HP series. So relatable and well fleshed out.

And then so tragic in book 7 :'(

I preferred the Hunger Games. I thought Harry Potter was overrated to be honest. Don't get me wrong, it was an ok book, but Harry Potter himself is not a great main character. Ron Weasley would have been a better main character, even if Harry was still the Hero. And it went on for way too long. The series should have been a trilogy, so much of it was unnecessary.

I totally disagree, not many authors can pull of a long series, and Jo did it beautifully. In seven books she built an entire UNIVERSE. People, locations, businesses. The attention to detail in just seven books was mind blowing.
Collin's probably could have done the same thing with Panem, if she had paid more attention to detail, and drawn it out longer (but frankly the story wasnt as flexible as HP was.)

I also really disagree with Harry not being a great main character. I think he was EXCELLENT. We knew literally everything about him, he has an entire backstory, he was heavily flawed. All that made him believable. We watched him grow from an innocent eleven year old to an angst filled fifteen year old, then finally a courageous young adult. Just becuase Ron was funnier to read about, it doesnt mean Harry was good.
As far as book characters/character development goes, Harry was utterly perfect.

Katniss didnt have the room or time to grow like Harry, but ultimately he was more fleshed out. Katniss was flawed as well, and she developed heaps over the trilogy, but Harry was more relatable and in depth.

Nafiul, I'm not going to touch on your entire post-- you did make some valid points. However, I AM going to bring up your mention of Rowling and Tolkien having stolen some ideas from elsewhere. First, Tolkien was a devout Catholic, so to me it seems only natural that several biblical stories found their way into his books. Another thing- I'm asking you to name me any 'modern' work of literature that has not taken ideas from anything else in the world of literature or history. There simply is nothing that you can come up with (although if you find one, I will have to bake you cookies and send them to you for your feat) since all that you come into contact with plays into what you write about and comes out in the finished product.

to be fair Im pretty sure Rowling her self admits some where that she takes inspiration from other works.. I think she mentions how she got the name for hogwarts from the movie labyrinth (great movie)

but like Rae said almost everything comes from somewhere now its the same with the eragon books apparently coping from star wars and LOTR but really I liked both SW and LOTR and eragon was another great way to visit a favorite is a different light.

as to THG over HP
HP all the way from yr 2 til yr 10 I waited for those damn books to come out each year, I almost didnt want to read the last one as I didnt want the series to end. JK has a real way of making you attached to her characters almost as if you really do know them. I could honestly care less about THG characters I read the first book but struggled to even get through the first chapter of the second, I just find myself not caring, but I can go back to HP over and over again.

Nafiul wrote: "★ Jess wrote: "Frank wrote: "I like both so far, but I don't really have a full opinion. I have only read the first Hunger Games book as of right now, but I want to read the next two as soon as p..."

Im really busy right now, so dont have much time for a proper rebuttal, save this little one:

"The magic for one, is simply a Deus Ex Machima, and serves no real purpose in the world of HP, it seems like magic has been forced upon our world and does not appear as something natural. Children are taught how to use magic, but are never taught where it originates from, and how the system of magic is governed."

If Rowling explained exactly how magic worked and was discovered, pinning it down to the finest detail and technicality...Do you think that is still magical?

Kyle! wrote: "You guys want to see that City of Bones review?
http://www.goodreads.com/review/show....

And be prepared, because this girl rips it apart like a lion, and has a crap load of ..."

I've read that review, and I agree that some concepts are 'borrowed' from star wars and Harry potter, but not to a extent that it put my of the book (cougheragoncough). I have read the first three books and the first prequel. They were enjoyable, 3 star books, not good enough to propel me to read city of fallen angels. Possibly 3.5 if it weren't for the messed up Luke and Leia thing going on *shudders*. I agree, at this time it is really hard to find a concept that hasn't been done before. At least they didn't steal whole plot lines of star wars (ERAGON achoo)
Oh I just released this is Harry potter vs hunger games topic. Oops

I feel like I need to like Harry Potter, because all of my friends are H P geeks. But honestly, I thought they were average books. J.K Rowling was a good writer, but I don't think she's as good as Suzanne Collins. I think The Hunger Games world is much more creative than the Harry Potter world. I mean extrordinary kids with powers who go to train or a distopian novel where kids are thrown into an arena to fight to the death. I know The Hunger Games is a sick concept, but just so much more creative than J.K Rowlings wizarding world. I'm not saying the Harry Potter books aren't good, it's just I don't think they're as special as everyone teaches them.

If you can tell, I'm Team HG.

*as special as everyone treats them*
Sorry! Typo!

every one is pointing out HP is a rip of...
have any of you read Battle Royale?
THG is pretty much a direct rip of save its in a different country..also almost identical to tekken with out the superpowers
so the argument that hp is a rip of a THG isn't is a little mute if they both take from other stories

Battle Royale was based off Lord of the Flies...

see the plot thickens so I dont think the one was a rip of and the other wasnt is a valid argument you can always trace one story back to another...and according to most english teachers Shakespeare or Jesus is somehow always involved (at least at my school they were)

Melanie. You keep saying rip of when you mean rip off...

typing on a phone, picks the words for me and does not care what I want to write lol

I personally think The Hunger Games are a tiny bit better. Although if your looking for what's a better series I have to go with Harry Potter.

I don't even have to think about it.
Harry Potter wins hands down.
I think it's amazing. J.K Rowling is a legend and i don't think anyone can compare to what she has created.
Don't get me wrong, i absolutely LOVE The Hunger Games but i was slightly disappointed at the end of Mockingjay. It felt rushed and parts were missing that didn't make it complete for me. But with Harry Potter i was completely satisfied.
It also had something overall missing, it didn't really have any shocks or twists. With Harry Potter J.K Rowling kept me guessing and always had a good twist.
I also think the characters in Harry Potter are more enjoyable to read about and i can't even describe how amazing and incredible the world in Harry Potter is.
In my opinion Harry Potter has it all. Humour, Heartache, romance and plently of action. Not many authors can do that.
Both authors are great at what they do, but i don't think Suzanne created something as good as Harry Potter, and i think J.K Rowling is the better writer.
J.K is and always will be a legend.
Both series are epic and deserve all the success they get, if anything manages to become more popular than Harry Potter i'm glad it's The Hungers games. But i'll always think that Harry Potter and J.K Rowling will be the greatest thing to happen to the literature world :)

Amanda (Gale's Wife) wrote: "I don't even have to think about it.
Harry Potter wins hands down.
I think it's amazing. J.K Rowling is a legend and i don't think anyone can compare to what she has created.
Don't get me wrong, i ..."

Couldn't of said it better myself, this sums it up awesomely... totally agree!! :)

Ash wrote: "Amanda (Gale's Wife) wrote: "I don't even have to think about it.
Harry Potter wins hands down.
I think it's amazing. J.K Rowling is a legend and i don't think anyone can compare to what she has cr..."

Thank you! :)

Amanda (Gale's Wife) wrote: "Ash wrote: "Amanda (Gale's Wife) wrote: "I don't even have to think about it.
Harry Potter wins hands down.
I think it's amazing. J.K Rowling is a legend and i don't think anyone can compare to wha..."

It's amazing what a few words can do! =)

Ash wrote: "Amanda (Gale's Wife) wrote: "Ash wrote: "Amanda (Gale's Wife) wrote: "I don't even have to think about it.
Harry Potter wins hands down.
I think it's amazing. J.K Rowling is a legend and i don't th..."

Haha true :) I'm a massive Potterhead so i could go on and on about why it's better :D

Amanda (Gale's Wife) wrote: "I don't even have to think about it.
Harry Potter wins hands down.
I think it's amazing. J.K Rowling is a legend and i don't think anyone can compare to what she has created.
Don't get me wrong, i ..."
Thank you. Exactly what I think

Emily wrote: "Amanda (Gale's Wife) wrote: "I don't even have to think about it.
Harry Potter wins hands down.
I think it's amazing. J.K Rowling is a legend and i don't think anyone can compare to what she has cr..."

You're welcome, thank you :)

Amanda (Gale's Wife) wrote: "Emily wrote: "Amanda (Gale's Wife) wrote: "I don't even have to think about it.
Harry Potter wins hands down.
I think it's amazing. J.K Rowling is a legend and i don't think anyone can compare to w..."

I love Harry Potter too! What's your favourite book in the series?