The Hunger Games Quotes (showing 1-30 of 531)
“Remember, we're madly in love, so it's all right to kiss me anytime you feel like it.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“You don’t forget the face of the person who was your last hope.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“I am not pretty. I am not beautiful. I am as radiant as the sun.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Happy Hunger Games! And may the odds be ever in your favor.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Destroying things is much easier than making them.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Deep in the meadow, hidden far away
A cloak of leaves, a moonbeam ray
Forget your woes and let your troubles lay
And when it's morning again, they'll wash away
Here it's safe, here it's warm
Here the daisies guard you from every harm
Here your dreams are sweet and tomorrow brings them true
Here is the place where I love you.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“I'm coming back into focus when Caesar asks him if he has a girlfriend back home. Peeta hesitates, then gives an unconvincing shake of his head.
Handsome lad like you. There must be some special girl. Come on, what’s her name?" says Caesar.
Peeta sighs. "Well, there is this one girl. I’ve had a crush on her ever since I can remember. But I’m pretty sure she didn’t know I was alive until the reaping."
Sounds of sympathy from the crowd. Unrequited love they can relate to.
She have another fellow?" asks Caesar.
I don’t know, but a lot of boys like her," says Peeta.
So, here’s what you do. You win, you go home. She can’t turn you down then, eh?" says Caesar encouragingly.
I don’t think it’s going to work out. Winning...won’t help in my case," says Peeta.
Why ever not?" says Caesar, mystified.
Peeta blushes beet red and stammers out. "Because...because...she came here with me.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Stupid people are dangerous.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“I don't want to lose the boy with the bread.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“I can feel Peeta press his forehead into my temple and he asks, 'So now that you've got me, what are you going to do with me?' I turn into him. 'Put you somewhere you can't get hurt.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“You’ve got about as much charm as a dead slug.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“You here to finish me off, Sweetheart?”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“And then he gives me a smile that just seems so genuinely sweet with just the right touch of shyness that unexpected warmth rushes through me.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Yes, frosting. The final defense of the dying.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Peeta, you said at the interview you’d had a crush on me forever. When did forever start?
Oh, let’s see. I guess the first day of school. We were five. You had on a red plaid dress and your hair...it was in two braids instead of one. My father pointed you out when we were waiting to line up."
Your father? Why?"
He said, ‘See that little girl? I wanted to marry her mother, but she ran off with a coal miner.'"
What? You’re making that up!"
No, true story. And I said, 'A coal miner? Why did she want a coal miner if she could’ve had you?' And he said, 'Because when he sings...even the birds stop to listen.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“May the odds be ever in your favor!”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“It crosses my mind that Cinna's calm and normal demeanor masks a complete madman.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“District 12: Where you can starve to death in safety.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“If Peeta and I were both to die, or they thought we were....My fingers fumble with the pouch on my belt, freeing it. Peeta sees it and his hand clamps on my wrist. "No, I won't let you." "Trust me," I whisper. He holds my gaze for a long moment then lets go. I loosen the top of the pouch and pour a few spoonfuls of berries into his palm. Then I fill my own. "On the count of three?" Peeta leans down and kisses me once, very gently. "The count of three," he says. We stand, our backs pressed together, our empty hands locked tight. "Hold them out. I want everyone to see," he says. I spread out my fingers, and the dark berries glisten in the sun. I give Peeta's hand one last squeeze as a signal, as a good-bye, and we begin counting. "One." Maybe I'm wrong. "Two." Maybe they don't care if we both die. "Three!" It's too late to change my mind. I lift my hand to my mouth taking one last look at the world. The berries have just passed my lips when the trumpets begin to blare. The frantic voice of Claudius Templesmith shouts above them. "Stop! Stop! Ladies and gentlemen, I am pleased to present the victors of the 74th Hunger Games, Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark! I give you - the tributes of District 12!”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“One more time? For the audience?" he says. His voice isn't angry. It's hollow, which is worse. Already the boy with the bread is slipping away from me.
I take his hand, holding on tightly, preparing for the cameras, and dreading the moment when I will finally have to let go.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Katniss, the girl who was on fire!”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Kind people have a way of working their way inside me and rooting there.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Yes, and I’m sure the arena will be full of bags of flour for me to chuck at people.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Here's some advice. Stay alive.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Rue, who when you ask her what she loves most in the world, replies, of all things, “Music.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Because when he sings...even the birds stop to listen.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“For there to be betrayal, there would have to have been trust first.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“And while I was talking, the idea of actually losing Peeta hit me again and I realized how much I don't want him to die. And it's not about the sponsors. And it's not about what will happen when we get home. And it's not just that I don't want to be alone. It's him. I do not want to lose the boy with the bread.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“You’re not leaving me here alone,” I say. Because if he dies, I’ll never go home, not really. I’ll spend the rest of my life in this arena, trying to think my way out.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Sometimes, when I clean a kill, I feed Buttercup the entrails. He has stopped hissing at me.
Entrails. No hissing. This is the closest we will ever come to love.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Remember, we're madly in love, so it's all right to kiss me anytime you feel like it.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“You don’t forget the face of the person who was your last hope.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“I am not pretty. I am not beautiful. I am as radiant as the sun.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Happy Hunger Games! And may the odds be ever in your favor.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Destroying things is much easier than making them.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Deep in the meadow, hidden far away
A cloak of leaves, a moonbeam ray
Forget your woes and let your troubles lay
And when it's morning again, they'll wash away
Here it's safe, here it's warm
Here the daisies guard you from every harm
Here your dreams are sweet and tomorrow brings them true
Here is the place where I love you.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“I'm coming back into focus when Caesar asks him if he has a girlfriend back home. Peeta hesitates, then gives an unconvincing shake of his head.
Handsome lad like you. There must be some special girl. Come on, what’s her name?" says Caesar.
Peeta sighs. "Well, there is this one girl. I’ve had a crush on her ever since I can remember. But I’m pretty sure she didn’t know I was alive until the reaping."
Sounds of sympathy from the crowd. Unrequited love they can relate to.
She have another fellow?" asks Caesar.
I don’t know, but a lot of boys like her," says Peeta.
So, here’s what you do. You win, you go home. She can’t turn you down then, eh?" says Caesar encouragingly.
I don’t think it’s going to work out. Winning...won’t help in my case," says Peeta.
Why ever not?" says Caesar, mystified.
Peeta blushes beet red and stammers out. "Because...because...she came here with me.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Stupid people are dangerous.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“I don't want to lose the boy with the bread.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“I can feel Peeta press his forehead into my temple and he asks, 'So now that you've got me, what are you going to do with me?' I turn into him. 'Put you somewhere you can't get hurt.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“You’ve got about as much charm as a dead slug.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“You here to finish me off, Sweetheart?”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“And then he gives me a smile that just seems so genuinely sweet with just the right touch of shyness that unexpected warmth rushes through me.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Yes, frosting. The final defense of the dying.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Peeta, you said at the interview you’d had a crush on me forever. When did forever start?
Oh, let’s see. I guess the first day of school. We were five. You had on a red plaid dress and your hair...it was in two braids instead of one. My father pointed you out when we were waiting to line up."
Your father? Why?"
He said, ‘See that little girl? I wanted to marry her mother, but she ran off with a coal miner.'"
What? You’re making that up!"
No, true story. And I said, 'A coal miner? Why did she want a coal miner if she could’ve had you?' And he said, 'Because when he sings...even the birds stop to listen.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“May the odds be ever in your favor!”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“It crosses my mind that Cinna's calm and normal demeanor masks a complete madman.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“District 12: Where you can starve to death in safety.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“If Peeta and I were both to die, or they thought we were....My fingers fumble with the pouch on my belt, freeing it. Peeta sees it and his hand clamps on my wrist. "No, I won't let you." "Trust me," I whisper. He holds my gaze for a long moment then lets go. I loosen the top of the pouch and pour a few spoonfuls of berries into his palm. Then I fill my own. "On the count of three?" Peeta leans down and kisses me once, very gently. "The count of three," he says. We stand, our backs pressed together, our empty hands locked tight. "Hold them out. I want everyone to see," he says. I spread out my fingers, and the dark berries glisten in the sun. I give Peeta's hand one last squeeze as a signal, as a good-bye, and we begin counting. "One." Maybe I'm wrong. "Two." Maybe they don't care if we both die. "Three!" It's too late to change my mind. I lift my hand to my mouth taking one last look at the world. The berries have just passed my lips when the trumpets begin to blare. The frantic voice of Claudius Templesmith shouts above them. "Stop! Stop! Ladies and gentlemen, I am pleased to present the victors of the 74th Hunger Games, Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark! I give you - the tributes of District 12!”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“One more time? For the audience?" he says. His voice isn't angry. It's hollow, which is worse. Already the boy with the bread is slipping away from me.
I take his hand, holding on tightly, preparing for the cameras, and dreading the moment when I will finally have to let go.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Katniss, the girl who was on fire!”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Kind people have a way of working their way inside me and rooting there.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Yes, and I’m sure the arena will be full of bags of flour for me to chuck at people.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Here's some advice. Stay alive.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Rue, who when you ask her what she loves most in the world, replies, of all things, “Music.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Because when he sings...even the birds stop to listen.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“For there to be betrayal, there would have to have been trust first.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“And while I was talking, the idea of actually losing Peeta hit me again and I realized how much I don't want him to die. And it's not about the sponsors. And it's not about what will happen when we get home. And it's not just that I don't want to be alone. It's him. I do not want to lose the boy with the bread.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“You’re not leaving me here alone,” I say. Because if he dies, I’ll never go home, not really. I’ll spend the rest of my life in this arena, trying to think my way out.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Sometimes, when I clean a kill, I feed Buttercup the entrails. He has stopped hissing at me.
Entrails. No hissing. This is the closest we will ever come to love.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
The Hunger Games Quotes (showing 31-60 of 531)
“We could do it, you know."
"What?"
"Leave the district. Run off. Live in the woods. You and I, we could make it.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“You have a... remarkable memory."
"I remember everything about you. You're the one who wasn't paying attention.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“They're already taking my future! They can't have the things that mattered to me in the past!”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“But because two can play at this game, I stand on tiptoe and kiss his cheek. Right on his bruise. ”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“The cat that Prim got hates me, I think partly because I tried to drown it.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Oh, and I suppose the apples ate the cheese.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“No. Now, shut up and eat your pears.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Well, I don't have much competition here."
"You don't have much competition anywhere.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Here your dreams are sweet and tomorrow brings them true, here is the place where I love you.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“I realize, for the first time, how very lonely I've been in the arena. How comforting the presence of another human being can be.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Deep in the meadow, under the willow
a bed of grass, a soft green pillow
lay down your head, and close your sleepy eyes
and when again they open, the sun will rise.
Hear it's safe, here it's warm
hear the daisies guard you from every harm
hear your dreams are sweet and tomorrow brings them true
hear is the place where i love you.
Deep in the meadow, hidden far away
a clock of leaves, a moonbeam ray
forget your woes and let your troubles lay
and when again it's morning, they'll wash away.
Hear it's safe, hears its' warm
hear the daises guard you from every harm
Hear your dreams are sweet and tomorrow bring them true
hear is the place where i love you.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Well, I knew that goat would be a little gold mine," I say.
Yes, of course I was referring to that, not the lasting joy you gave your sister you love so much you took her place in the reaping," says Peeta drily.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Only I keep wishing I could think of a way...to show the Capitol they don't own me. That I'm more than just a piece in their Games.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
tags: hunger-games-peeta
“All right, so give me some idea of what you can do," says Haymitch.
I can’t do anything," says Peeta, "unless you count baking bread."
Sorry, I don’t. Katniss. I already know you’re handy with a knife,” says Haymitch.
Not really. But I can hunt,” I say. “With a bow and arrow.”
And you’re good?” asks Haymitch.
I have to think about it. I’ve been putting food on the table for four years. That’s no small task. I’m not as good as my father was, but he’d had more practice. I’ve better aim than Gale, but I’ve had more practice. He’s a genius with traps and snares. “I’m all right,” I say.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Peeta opens his mouth for the first bite without hesitation. He swallows, then frowns slightly. "They're very sweet."
"Yes they're sugar berries. My mother makes jam from them. Haven't you've ever had them before?" I say, poking the next spoonful in his mouth.
"No," he says, almost puzzled. "But they taste familiar. Sugar berries?"
"Well, you can't get them in the market much, they only grow wild," I say. Another mouthful goes down. Just one more to go.
"They're sweet as syrup," he says, taking the last spoonful. "Syrup." His eyes widen as he realizes the truth. I clamp my hand over his mouth and nose hard, forcing him to swallow instead of spit. He tries to make himself vomit the stuff up, but it's too late, he's already losing consciousness. Even as he fades away, I can see in his eyes what I've done is unforgiveable.
I sit back on my heels and look at him with a mixture of sadness and satisfaction. A stray berry stains his chin and I wipe it away. "Who can't lie, Peeta?" I say, even though he can't hear me.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“It's lovely. If only you could frost someone to death."
"Don't be so superior. You can never tell what you will find in the arena. Say it's a gigantic cake-”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Why not? It's true. My best hope is to not disgrace myself and..." He hesitates.
And what?" I say.
I don't know how to say it exactly. Only... I want to die as myself. Does that make any sense?" he asks. I shake my head. How could he die as anyone but himself? "I don't want them to change me in there. Turn me into some kind of monster that I'm not."
I bite my lip feeling inferior. While I've been ruminating on the availability of trees, Peeta has been struggling with how to maintain his identity. His purity of self. "Do you mean you won't kill anyone?" I ask.
No, when the time comes, I'm sure I'll kill just like everybody else. I can't go down without a fight. Only I keep wishing I could think of a way to... to show the Capitol they don't own me. That I'm more than just a piece in their Games," says Peeta.
But you're not," I say. "None of us are. That's how the Games work."
Okay, but within that frame work, there's still you, there's still me," he insists. "Don't you see?"
A little, Only... no offense, but who cares, Peeta?" I say.
I do. I mean what else am I allowed to care about at this point?" he asks angrily. He's locked those blue eyes on mine now, demanding an answer.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
tags: grace, identity
“He became my confidante, someone with whom I could share thoughts I could never voice...In exchange, he trusted me with his.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“No, it happened. And right when your song ended, I knew - just like your mother - I was a goner,' Peeta says.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“I'm more than just a piece in their Games.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Peeta, you were supposed to wake me after a couple of hours," I say.
"For what? Nothing's going on here," he says. "Besides, I like watching you sleep. You don't scowl. Improves your looks a lot."
This, of course, brings on a scowl that makes him grin.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“I want to do something, right here, right now, to shame them, to make them accountable, to show the Capitol that whatever they do or force us to do there is a part of every tribute they can't own. That Rue was more than a piece in their Games. And so am I.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“My spirit. This is a new thought. I'm not sure exactly what it means, but it suggests I'm a fighter. In a sort of brave way. It's not as if I'm never friendly. Okay, maybe I don't go around loving everybody I meet, maybe my smiles are hard to come by, but i do care for some people.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“She has no idea. The effect she can have.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“My mother says healers are born, not made.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“I have kept track of the boy with the bread.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“I just...I just miss him. And I hate being so alone.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Peeta,” I say lightly. “You said at the interview you’d had a crush on me forever. When did forever start?”
“Oh, let’s see. I guess the first day of school. We were five. You had on a red plaid dress and your hair... it was in two braids instead of one. My father pointed you out when we were waiting to line up,” Peeta says.
“Your father? Why?” I ask.
“He said, ‘See that little girl? I wanted to marry her mother, but she ran off with a coal miner,’” Peeta says.
“What? You’re making that up!” I exclaim.
“No, true story,” Peeta says. “And I said, ‘A coal miner? Why did she want a coal miner if she could’ve had you?’ And he said, ‘Because when he sings... even the birds stop to listen.’”
“That’s true. They do. I mean, they did,” I say. I’m stunned and surprisingly moved, thinking of the baker telling this to Peeta. It strikes me that my own reluctance to sing, my own dismissal of music might not really be that I think it’s a waste of time. It might be because it reminds me too much of my father.
“So that day, in music assembly, the teacher asked who knew the valley song. Your hand shot right up in the air. She stood you up on a stool and had you sing it for us. And I swear, every bird outside the windows fell silent,” Peeta says.
“Oh, please,” I say, laughing.
“No, it happened. And right when your song ended, I knew—just like your mother—I was a goner,” Peeta says. “Then for the next eleven years, I tried to work up the nerve to talk to you.”
“Without success,” I add.
“Without success. So, in a way, my name being drawn in the reaping was a real piece of luck,” says Peeta. For a moment, I’m almost foolishly happy and then confusion sweeps over me. Because we’re supposed to be making up this stuff, playing at being in love not actually being in love. But Peeta’s story has a ring of truth to it. That part about my father and the birds. And I did sing the first day of school, although I don’t remember the song. And that red plaid dress... there was one, a hand-me-down to Prim that got washed to rags after my father’s death.
It would explain another thing, too. Why Peeta took a beating to give me the bread on that awful hollow day. So, if those details are true... could it all be true?
“You have a... remarkable memory,” I say haltingly. “I remember everything about you,” says Peeta, tucking a loose strand of hair behind my ear. “You’re the one who wasn’t paying attention.”
“I am now,” I say.
“Well, I don’t have much competition here,” he says. I want to draw away, to close those shutters again, but I know I can’t. It’s as if I can hear Haymitch whispering in my ear, “Say it! Say it!”
I swallow hard and get the words out. “You don’t have much competition anywhere.” And this time, it’s me who leans in.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“So that day, in music assembly, the teacher asked who knew the valley song. Your hand shot right up in the air. She stood you up on a stool and had you sing it for us. And I swear, every bird outside the windows fell silent...and right when your song ended, I knew - just like your mother - I was a goner.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Because...because...she came here with me.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“We could do it, you know."
"What?"
"Leave the district. Run off. Live in the woods. You and I, we could make it.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“You have a... remarkable memory."
"I remember everything about you. You're the one who wasn't paying attention.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“They're already taking my future! They can't have the things that mattered to me in the past!”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“But because two can play at this game, I stand on tiptoe and kiss his cheek. Right on his bruise. ”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“The cat that Prim got hates me, I think partly because I tried to drown it.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Oh, and I suppose the apples ate the cheese.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“No. Now, shut up and eat your pears.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Well, I don't have much competition here."
"You don't have much competition anywhere.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Here your dreams are sweet and tomorrow brings them true, here is the place where I love you.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“I realize, for the first time, how very lonely I've been in the arena. How comforting the presence of another human being can be.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Deep in the meadow, under the willow
a bed of grass, a soft green pillow
lay down your head, and close your sleepy eyes
and when again they open, the sun will rise.
Hear it's safe, here it's warm
hear the daisies guard you from every harm
hear your dreams are sweet and tomorrow brings them true
hear is the place where i love you.
Deep in the meadow, hidden far away
a clock of leaves, a moonbeam ray
forget your woes and let your troubles lay
and when again it's morning, they'll wash away.
Hear it's safe, hears its' warm
hear the daises guard you from every harm
Hear your dreams are sweet and tomorrow bring them true
hear is the place where i love you.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Well, I knew that goat would be a little gold mine," I say.
Yes, of course I was referring to that, not the lasting joy you gave your sister you love so much you took her place in the reaping," says Peeta drily.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Only I keep wishing I could think of a way...to show the Capitol they don't own me. That I'm more than just a piece in their Games.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
tags: hunger-games-peeta
“All right, so give me some idea of what you can do," says Haymitch.
I can’t do anything," says Peeta, "unless you count baking bread."
Sorry, I don’t. Katniss. I already know you’re handy with a knife,” says Haymitch.
Not really. But I can hunt,” I say. “With a bow and arrow.”
And you’re good?” asks Haymitch.
I have to think about it. I’ve been putting food on the table for four years. That’s no small task. I’m not as good as my father was, but he’d had more practice. I’ve better aim than Gale, but I’ve had more practice. He’s a genius with traps and snares. “I’m all right,” I say.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Peeta opens his mouth for the first bite without hesitation. He swallows, then frowns slightly. "They're very sweet."
"Yes they're sugar berries. My mother makes jam from them. Haven't you've ever had them before?" I say, poking the next spoonful in his mouth.
"No," he says, almost puzzled. "But they taste familiar. Sugar berries?"
"Well, you can't get them in the market much, they only grow wild," I say. Another mouthful goes down. Just one more to go.
"They're sweet as syrup," he says, taking the last spoonful. "Syrup." His eyes widen as he realizes the truth. I clamp my hand over his mouth and nose hard, forcing him to swallow instead of spit. He tries to make himself vomit the stuff up, but it's too late, he's already losing consciousness. Even as he fades away, I can see in his eyes what I've done is unforgiveable.
I sit back on my heels and look at him with a mixture of sadness and satisfaction. A stray berry stains his chin and I wipe it away. "Who can't lie, Peeta?" I say, even though he can't hear me.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“It's lovely. If only you could frost someone to death."
"Don't be so superior. You can never tell what you will find in the arena. Say it's a gigantic cake-”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Why not? It's true. My best hope is to not disgrace myself and..." He hesitates.
And what?" I say.
I don't know how to say it exactly. Only... I want to die as myself. Does that make any sense?" he asks. I shake my head. How could he die as anyone but himself? "I don't want them to change me in there. Turn me into some kind of monster that I'm not."
I bite my lip feeling inferior. While I've been ruminating on the availability of trees, Peeta has been struggling with how to maintain his identity. His purity of self. "Do you mean you won't kill anyone?" I ask.
No, when the time comes, I'm sure I'll kill just like everybody else. I can't go down without a fight. Only I keep wishing I could think of a way to... to show the Capitol they don't own me. That I'm more than just a piece in their Games," says Peeta.
But you're not," I say. "None of us are. That's how the Games work."
Okay, but within that frame work, there's still you, there's still me," he insists. "Don't you see?"
A little, Only... no offense, but who cares, Peeta?" I say.
I do. I mean what else am I allowed to care about at this point?" he asks angrily. He's locked those blue eyes on mine now, demanding an answer.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
tags: grace, identity
“He became my confidante, someone with whom I could share thoughts I could never voice...In exchange, he trusted me with his.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“No, it happened. And right when your song ended, I knew - just like your mother - I was a goner,' Peeta says.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“I'm more than just a piece in their Games.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Peeta, you were supposed to wake me after a couple of hours," I say.
"For what? Nothing's going on here," he says. "Besides, I like watching you sleep. You don't scowl. Improves your looks a lot."
This, of course, brings on a scowl that makes him grin.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“I want to do something, right here, right now, to shame them, to make them accountable, to show the Capitol that whatever they do or force us to do there is a part of every tribute they can't own. That Rue was more than a piece in their Games. And so am I.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“My spirit. This is a new thought. I'm not sure exactly what it means, but it suggests I'm a fighter. In a sort of brave way. It's not as if I'm never friendly. Okay, maybe I don't go around loving everybody I meet, maybe my smiles are hard to come by, but i do care for some people.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“She has no idea. The effect she can have.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“My mother says healers are born, not made.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“I have kept track of the boy with the bread.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“I just...I just miss him. And I hate being so alone.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Peeta,” I say lightly. “You said at the interview you’d had a crush on me forever. When did forever start?”
“Oh, let’s see. I guess the first day of school. We were five. You had on a red plaid dress and your hair... it was in two braids instead of one. My father pointed you out when we were waiting to line up,” Peeta says.
“Your father? Why?” I ask.
“He said, ‘See that little girl? I wanted to marry her mother, but she ran off with a coal miner,’” Peeta says.
“What? You’re making that up!” I exclaim.
“No, true story,” Peeta says. “And I said, ‘A coal miner? Why did she want a coal miner if she could’ve had you?’ And he said, ‘Because when he sings... even the birds stop to listen.’”
“That’s true. They do. I mean, they did,” I say. I’m stunned and surprisingly moved, thinking of the baker telling this to Peeta. It strikes me that my own reluctance to sing, my own dismissal of music might not really be that I think it’s a waste of time. It might be because it reminds me too much of my father.
“So that day, in music assembly, the teacher asked who knew the valley song. Your hand shot right up in the air. She stood you up on a stool and had you sing it for us. And I swear, every bird outside the windows fell silent,” Peeta says.
“Oh, please,” I say, laughing.
“No, it happened. And right when your song ended, I knew—just like your mother—I was a goner,” Peeta says. “Then for the next eleven years, I tried to work up the nerve to talk to you.”
“Without success,” I add.
“Without success. So, in a way, my name being drawn in the reaping was a real piece of luck,” says Peeta. For a moment, I’m almost foolishly happy and then confusion sweeps over me. Because we’re supposed to be making up this stuff, playing at being in love not actually being in love. But Peeta’s story has a ring of truth to it. That part about my father and the birds. And I did sing the first day of school, although I don’t remember the song. And that red plaid dress... there was one, a hand-me-down to Prim that got washed to rags after my father’s death.
It would explain another thing, too. Why Peeta took a beating to give me the bread on that awful hollow day. So, if those details are true... could it all be true?
“You have a... remarkable memory,” I say haltingly. “I remember everything about you,” says Peeta, tucking a loose strand of hair behind my ear. “You’re the one who wasn’t paying attention.”
“I am now,” I say.
“Well, I don’t have much competition here,” he says. I want to draw away, to close those shutters again, but I know I can’t. It’s as if I can hear Haymitch whispering in my ear, “Say it! Say it!”
I swallow hard and get the words out. “You don’t have much competition anywhere.” And this time, it’s me who leans in.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“So that day, in music assembly, the teacher asked who knew the valley song. Your hand shot right up in the air. She stood you up on a stool and had you sing it for us. And I swear, every bird outside the windows fell silent...and right when your song ended, I knew - just like your mother - I was a goner.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Because...because...she came here with me.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
The Hunger Games Quotes (showing 61-90 of 531)
“I noticed just about every girl, but none of them made a lasting impression but you.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“It sends out a very clear message: "Mess with us and we'll do something worse than kill you. We'll kill your children.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“This is the first kiss that we're both fully aware of. Neither of us hobbled by sickness or pain or simply unconscious. Our lips neither burning with fever or icy cold. This is the first kiss where I actually feel stirring inside my chest. Warm and curious. This is the first kiss that makes me want another.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Then he smiles as if he'd be happy to lie there and gaze at me forever.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“If you appeal to the crowd, either by being humorous or brutal or eccentric, you gain favor.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“As long as you can find yourself, you’ll never starve.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“And there I am, blushing and confused, made beautiful by Cinna’s hands, desirable by Peeta’s confession, tragic by circumstance, and by all accounts, unforgettable.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“That's very funny," says Peeta. Suddenly he lashes out at the glass in Haymitch's hand. It shatters on the floor, sending the bloodred liquid running toward the back of the train. "Only not to us.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“He’s dozed off again, but I kiss him awake, which seems to startle him. Then he smiles as if he’d be happy to lie there gazing at me forever.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“I'll never know what it was he wanted me to remember.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“I feel like I owe him something, and I hate owing people. Maybe if I had thanked him at some point, I'd be feeling less conflicted now. I thought about it a couple of times, but the opportunity never seemed to present itself. And now it never will. Because we're going to be thrown into an arena to fight to the death. Exactly how am I supposed to work in a thank-you in there? Somehow it just won't seem sincere if I'm trying to slit his throat.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“You know, you're kind of squeamish for such a lethal person”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“You know what my mother said to me when she came to say good-bye, as if to cheer me up, she says maybe District Twelve will finally have a winner. Then I realized she didn't mean me, she meant you!" bursts out Peeta.
"Oh, she meant you," I say with a wave of dismissal.
"She said, 'She's a survivor, that one.' She is," says Peeta.
That pulls me up short. Did his mother really say that about me? Did she rate me over her son? I see the pain in Peeta's eyes and know he isn't lying.
Suddenly I'm behind the bakery and I can feel the chill of the rain running down my back, the hollowness in my belly. I sound eleven years old when I speak. "But only because someone helped me.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“But just the fact that he was sparkling leads me to doubt everything that happened.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“You're not going to die. I forbid it. All right?"
"All right," he whispers.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“What must it be like, I wonder, to live in a world where food appears at the press of a button? How would I spend the hours I now commit to combing the woods for sustenance if it were so easy to come by? What do they do all day, these people in the Capitol, besides decorating their bodies and waiting around for a new shipment of tributes to rill in and die for their entertainment?”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Sick and disoriented, I'm able to form only one thought: Peeta Mellark just saved my life.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“I take his hand, holding on tightly, preparing for the cameras, and dreading the moment when I will finally have to let go.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Hope is the only thing stronger than fear.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“I've been down by the stream collecting berries. Would you care for some?"
I would, actually, but I don't want to relent too soon. I do walk over and look at them. I've never seen this type before. No, I have. But not in the arena. These aren't Rue's berries, although they resemble them. Nor do they match any I learned about in training. I lean down and scoop up a few, rolling them between my fingers.
My father's voice comes back to me. "Not these, Katniss. Never these. They're nightlock. You'll be dead before they reach your stomach."
Just then the cannon fires. I whip around, expecting Peeta to collapseto the ground, but he only raises his eyebrows. The hoovercraft appears a hundred metres or so away.What's left of Foxface's emaciated body is lifted into the air.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Peeta?" I creep along the bank.
"Well, don't step on me.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“When I break into the clearing, she's on the ground, hopelessly entangled in a net. She just has the time to reach her hand through the mesh and say my name before the spear enters her body.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Betrayal. That’s the first thing I feel, which is ludicrous. For there to be betrayal, there would have had to been trust first.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“She reaches in, digs her hand deep into the ball, and pulls out a slip of paper. The crowd draws in a collective breath, and then you can hear a pin drop, and I'm feeling nauseous and so desperately hoping that it's not me, that it's not me, that it's not me.
Effie Trinket crosses back to the podium, smoothes the slip of paper, and reads out the name in a clear voice. And it's not me.
It's Primrose Everdeen.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“The mayor finishes the dreary Treaty of Treason and motions for Peeta and me to shake hands. His are as solid and warm as those loaves of bread. Peeta looks me right in the eye and gives my hand what I think is meant to be a reassuring squeeze. Maybe it's just a nervous spasm.
We turn back the crowd as the anthem of Panem plays.
Oh well, I think. There will be twenty-four of us. Odds are someone else will kill him before I do.
Of course, the odds have not been very dependable of late.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Go to sleep," he says softly. His hand brushes the lose strands of my hair off my forehead. Unlike the staged kisses and caresses so far, this gesture seems natural and comforting. I don't want him to stop and he doesn't. He's still stroking my hair when I fall asleep.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Birds are settling down for the night, singing lullabies to their young.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Agreed," I say. "It's going to be a long hour."
"Maybe not that long," says Peeta." what was that you were saying just before the food arrived? Something about me ... no competition ... best thing that ever happened to you ... "
" I don't remember that last part," I say, hoping it's too dim in here for the cameras to pick up my blush.
" Oh, that's right. That's what I was thinking," he says " Scoot over, I'm freezing.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“It's funny, because even though they're rattling on about the Games, it's all about where they were or what they were doing or how they felt when a specific event occurred. . . . Everything is about them, not the dying boys and girls in the arena”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Let the Seventy-forth Hunger Games begin, Cato, I think. Let them begin for real.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“I noticed just about every girl, but none of them made a lasting impression but you.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“It sends out a very clear message: "Mess with us and we'll do something worse than kill you. We'll kill your children.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“This is the first kiss that we're both fully aware of. Neither of us hobbled by sickness or pain or simply unconscious. Our lips neither burning with fever or icy cold. This is the first kiss where I actually feel stirring inside my chest. Warm and curious. This is the first kiss that makes me want another.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Then he smiles as if he'd be happy to lie there and gaze at me forever.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“If you appeal to the crowd, either by being humorous or brutal or eccentric, you gain favor.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“As long as you can find yourself, you’ll never starve.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“And there I am, blushing and confused, made beautiful by Cinna’s hands, desirable by Peeta’s confession, tragic by circumstance, and by all accounts, unforgettable.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“That's very funny," says Peeta. Suddenly he lashes out at the glass in Haymitch's hand. It shatters on the floor, sending the bloodred liquid running toward the back of the train. "Only not to us.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“He’s dozed off again, but I kiss him awake, which seems to startle him. Then he smiles as if he’d be happy to lie there gazing at me forever.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“I'll never know what it was he wanted me to remember.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“I feel like I owe him something, and I hate owing people. Maybe if I had thanked him at some point, I'd be feeling less conflicted now. I thought about it a couple of times, but the opportunity never seemed to present itself. And now it never will. Because we're going to be thrown into an arena to fight to the death. Exactly how am I supposed to work in a thank-you in there? Somehow it just won't seem sincere if I'm trying to slit his throat.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“You know, you're kind of squeamish for such a lethal person”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“You know what my mother said to me when she came to say good-bye, as if to cheer me up, she says maybe District Twelve will finally have a winner. Then I realized she didn't mean me, she meant you!" bursts out Peeta.
"Oh, she meant you," I say with a wave of dismissal.
"She said, 'She's a survivor, that one.' She is," says Peeta.
That pulls me up short. Did his mother really say that about me? Did she rate me over her son? I see the pain in Peeta's eyes and know he isn't lying.
Suddenly I'm behind the bakery and I can feel the chill of the rain running down my back, the hollowness in my belly. I sound eleven years old when I speak. "But only because someone helped me.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“But just the fact that he was sparkling leads me to doubt everything that happened.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“You're not going to die. I forbid it. All right?"
"All right," he whispers.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“What must it be like, I wonder, to live in a world where food appears at the press of a button? How would I spend the hours I now commit to combing the woods for sustenance if it were so easy to come by? What do they do all day, these people in the Capitol, besides decorating their bodies and waiting around for a new shipment of tributes to rill in and die for their entertainment?”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Sick and disoriented, I'm able to form only one thought: Peeta Mellark just saved my life.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“I take his hand, holding on tightly, preparing for the cameras, and dreading the moment when I will finally have to let go.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Hope is the only thing stronger than fear.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“I've been down by the stream collecting berries. Would you care for some?"
I would, actually, but I don't want to relent too soon. I do walk over and look at them. I've never seen this type before. No, I have. But not in the arena. These aren't Rue's berries, although they resemble them. Nor do they match any I learned about in training. I lean down and scoop up a few, rolling them between my fingers.
My father's voice comes back to me. "Not these, Katniss. Never these. They're nightlock. You'll be dead before they reach your stomach."
Just then the cannon fires. I whip around, expecting Peeta to collapseto the ground, but he only raises his eyebrows. The hoovercraft appears a hundred metres or so away.What's left of Foxface's emaciated body is lifted into the air.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Peeta?" I creep along the bank.
"Well, don't step on me.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“When I break into the clearing, she's on the ground, hopelessly entangled in a net. She just has the time to reach her hand through the mesh and say my name before the spear enters her body.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Betrayal. That’s the first thing I feel, which is ludicrous. For there to be betrayal, there would have had to been trust first.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“She reaches in, digs her hand deep into the ball, and pulls out a slip of paper. The crowd draws in a collective breath, and then you can hear a pin drop, and I'm feeling nauseous and so desperately hoping that it's not me, that it's not me, that it's not me.
Effie Trinket crosses back to the podium, smoothes the slip of paper, and reads out the name in a clear voice. And it's not me.
It's Primrose Everdeen.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“The mayor finishes the dreary Treaty of Treason and motions for Peeta and me to shake hands. His are as solid and warm as those loaves of bread. Peeta looks me right in the eye and gives my hand what I think is meant to be a reassuring squeeze. Maybe it's just a nervous spasm.
We turn back the crowd as the anthem of Panem plays.
Oh well, I think. There will be twenty-four of us. Odds are someone else will kill him before I do.
Of course, the odds have not been very dependable of late.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Go to sleep," he says softly. His hand brushes the lose strands of my hair off my forehead. Unlike the staged kisses and caresses so far, this gesture seems natural and comforting. I don't want him to stop and he doesn't. He's still stroking my hair when I fall asleep.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Birds are settling down for the night, singing lullabies to their young.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Agreed," I say. "It's going to be a long hour."
"Maybe not that long," says Peeta." what was that you were saying just before the food arrived? Something about me ... no competition ... best thing that ever happened to you ... "
" I don't remember that last part," I say, hoping it's too dim in here for the cameras to pick up my blush.
" Oh, that's right. That's what I was thinking," he says " Scoot over, I'm freezing.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“It's funny, because even though they're rattling on about the Games, it's all about where they were or what they were doing or how they felt when a specific event occurred. . . . Everything is about them, not the dying boys and girls in the arena”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
“Let the Seventy-forth Hunger Games begin, Cato, I think. Let them begin for real.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games
