And people like "wtf why" looking out their hotel room window and there's this. This dragon just curled up in the pool chilling, literally, cooling itself down

ratties in the rain

it’s because every chapter ends in a cliffhanger. and i’m not kidding when i say that it is so flawlessly paced that you can’t put it down, but those beats are so crucial to why the book is so amazing to read. think of the end of the literal first chapter of the book: “it’s primrose everdeen.” that is a BOMB that she drops in that first chapter, and after the introduction, you as the reader are as blown away as katniss. so, you can’t help but turn the page and keep reading!! because you HAVE to know what happens next. and how does the second chapter end? like this: “of course, the odds have not been very dependable of late.” you, the reader, are instantly thinking, oh my god, what is going to happen? are the odds going to be in her favor? is she going to have to kill peeta? you HAVE to know. so you turn the page.

the reason this works so well is because suzanne collins wrote for television and you can tell. it is my personal belief that thg should have been adapted for television and not into films, because missing those beats, even just the white space of the page, i think fundamentally warps the pacing and the structure of the novels. i know i go on and on and on about the “because she came here with me” and “if it weren’t for the baby” lines but seriously this is why peeta is a media genius, it’s because suzanne COLLINS is a media genius. can you imagine watching that on television and the screen just cuts to black and goes to commercial or the episode ends and you have to wait to see what happens next?? it’s GENIUS

furthermore, the hunger games series as a whole is divided into a trilogy, but within that, divided into three sections each. and each section ends with an even bigger cliffhanger than the last. i see these, in the world of television, as mini season breaks within the larger three “seasons” of the show (that being the whole trilogy). here are the first three endings of all the sections. imagine you’re watching this on television and these lines drop, and then you have to wait several more weeks for the next installment. you would be climbing the walls for it. part 1 (the tributes): “peeta blushes beet red and stammers out. “because. because. she came here with me.” part 2 (the games): “before i can stop myself, i call out peeta’s name.” part 3 (the victor) (the end of the book): “i take his hand, holding on tightly, preparing for the cameras, and dreading the moment when i will finally have to let go.” those are ALL cliffhangers and make it impossible to stop reading.

(also, we can talk about the fact that all three of those beats are focused on peeta, the one who seems to most intrinsically understand dramatic timing and using his words to create a narrative.)

me: *sleeps a bit, is tired*

me: *sleeps average amount, is tired*

me: *sleeps a lot, is tired*

2 - a small brown bird sitting in a tree filled with pink flowers with the quote “There’s no room for any self-hate today; you are too BEAUTIFUL and PRECIOUS.”

3 - a bee hovering over several large yellow flowers with the quote “It may not feel like you’re holding everything together, but given everything you’re facing you’re actually doing a hell of a good job.”

4 - a firefly sitting on a leafy plant with a willow tree in the background next to a lake with several other fireflies in the distance and the quote “even while you are feeling truly awful, YOU DESERVE NICE THINGS”

5 - A long, fluffy, furry creature with curved horned and a long tail that is wider at the tip. Its fur is pink with a white belly, and the head looks vaguely like a fox’s. It is laying in a grassy field with some tree branches overhead and the quote “Your body is doing its best and deserves kindness today.”

6 - A fox sitting in a dark forest looking upward and the quote “Every time your mind told you that you wouldn’t make it through, it was always wrong. It is going to be okay.”

7 - a fox wearing a scarf sitting like a human under a tree holding a steaming cup of coffee in a forest in fall and the quote “there are plenty of good things left to see; you are far from done”

8 - a hedgehog contently laying back on a pile of fall leaves while holding one against its chest and the quote “Please try to be on your own side today.”

9 - an otter laying in a shallow pool of water lined with pebbles and the quote “you deserve full, entire rest days