The Hunger Games is a young adult novel written by American television writer and novelistSuzanne Collins. It was first published on September 14, 2008, by Scholastic, in hardcover. It is written in the voice of 16-year-old Katniss Everdeen, who lives in a post-apocalyptic world in the country of Panem where the countries of North America once existed. The Capitol, a highly advanced metropolis, holds hegemony over the rest of the nation. The Hunger Games are an annual event in which one boy and one girl aged 12 to 18 from each of the 12 districts surrounding the Capitol are selected by lottery to compete in a televised battle until only one person is left.

The book has been released as a paperback and also as an audiobook and e-book. The Hunger Games had an initial print of 200,000 – twice doubled from the original 50,000. Since its initial release, the novel has been translated into 26 languages and rights of production have been sold in 38 countries. The book received mostly positive feedback from major reviewers and authors. The Hunger Games is the first novel in The Hunger Games trilogy,followed by Catching Fire, published on September 1, 2009,and Mockingjay, published on August 24, 2010.

A film adaptation, co-written and co-produced by Collins herself and directed by Gary Ross, was released worldwide on March 23, 2012.

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The Hunger Games takes place in a nation known as Panem, after the destruction of North America by some unknown apocalyptic event. Panem consists of a wealthy Capitol and twelve surrounding, poorer districts under the Capitol's hegemony. District 12, where the book begins, is located in the coal-rich region that was formerly Appalachia.

As punishment for a previous rebellion against the Capitol in which a 13th district was destroyed, one boy and one girl between the ages of 12 and 18 from each district are selected by annual lottery to participate in the Hunger Games. This is an event in which the participants (or "tributes") must fight in an outdoor arena controlled by the Capitol, until only one individual remains. The story is narrated by 16-year-oldKatniss Everdeen, a girl from District 12 who volunteers for the 74th annual Hunger Games in place of her younger sister, Primrose. Also selected from District 12 is Peeta Mellark, a baker's son whom Katniss knows from school, and who once gave her bread when her family was starving.

Katniss and Peeta are taken to the Capitol where their drunken mentor, Haymitch Abernathy, victor of the 50th Hunger Games, instructs them to watch and learn the talents of the other tributes. They are then publicly displayed to the Capitol audience in a televised session with interviewer Caesar Flickerman. During this time, Peeta reveals on-air his longtime unrequited love for Katniss. Katniss believes this to be a ploy to gain audience support for the Games, which can be crucial for survival, as audience members are encouraged to send gifts like food, medicine, and tools to favored tributes during the Games. While nearly half the tributes are killed in the first day of the Games alone, Katniss relies on her well-practiced hunting and outdoor skills to survive. A few days into the games, Katniss develops an alliance with Rue, a 12-year-old girl from the agricultural District 11 who reminds Katniss of her sister, Primrose. The alliance is short-lived; Rue is killed by another tribute. At Rue's request Katniss sings to her, then spreads flowers over her body as a sign of respect—and of disgust towards the Capitol.

Supposedly due to Katniss and Peeta's beloved image in the minds of the audience as "star-crossed lovers", a rule change is announced midway through the Games, stating that two tributes from the same district can win the Hunger Games as a pair. Upon hearing this, Katniss searches for Peeta and eventually finds him wounded. As she nurses him back to health, she acts the part of a young girl falling in love to gain more favor with the audience and, consequently, gifts from her sponsors. When the couple is finally the last two tributes, the Gamemakers reverse the rule change in an attempt to force them into a dramatic finale, where one must kill the other to win. Katniss, knowing that the Gamemakers would rather have two victors than none, retrieves highly poisonous berries known as "nightlock" from her pouch and offers some to Peeta. Thinking that Katniss and Peeta intend to commit suicide, the Gamemakers announce that both will be the victors of the 74th Hunger Games.

Although she survives the ordeal in the arena and is treated to a hero's welcome in the Capitol, Katniss is warned by Haymitch that she has now become a political target after defying her society's authoritarian leaders so publicly. Afterwards, Peeta is heartbroken when he learns that Katniss's actions in the arena were part of a calculated ploy to earn sympathy from the audience. However, Katniss is unsure of her own feelings and realizes that she is dreading the moment when she and Peeta will go their