Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins (American, 2010)

Summary:
Set in the dystopian Panem, Mockingjay narrates the final part of a war between the Capitol and the rebels, who stand up against the totalitarianism imposed by president Snow. The novel follows Katniss Everdeen, a girl who is the face of the revolution, known as the “Mockingjay”. After being sent to District 13, the main base of the revolution, she participates in the elaboration of propaganda to unite all Districts. She travels to different places over the Districts to spread the message of union against the Capitol, and once the District 2 is taken by the rebels the final attack at the capital starts. Once at the Capitol, Katniss’ team is discovered by President Snow and attacked. The attack takes the life of the unit’s leader, leaving Katniss as the leader. The unit then agrees on a plan to kill Snow so they head to the president’s house. On their way they witness an attack from the rebels to the president’s house, but the attack is directed to the children around the building, who are mercilessly killed by bombs disguised as parachutes. Katniss’ sister is killed in that attack, which makes Katniss enter into a dreamlike state and misses witnessing the Capitol’s downfall. Katniss is given the chance to kill President Snow, but decides to kill new President Coin instead; the girl realizes everything would stay the same if she let her live. A new President rises from the leaders of the Districts, things change for good by changing the system and eliminating the Hunger Games,

Another summary:
After the start of the rebellion against The Capitol and President Snow, District 12 is destroyed. This novel begins with the survivors of District 12 finding District 13, a district that was supposed to have been destroyed in a previous war. Katniss Everdeen is asked by the leader of District 13, Alma Coin, to become the symbol of the revolution, “the mockingjay”, and record propaganda that would inspire the rest of the districts to rebel against the main oppressors (The Capitol). Katniss agrees, but wants her friends to be granted immunity. This is specially important because some of her friends, including the boy that has accompanied her in previous Hunger Games, Peeta Mellark, have been captured by the Capitol and are being forced to make propaganda too, but to invite people to surrender and to align with the Capitol’s ideals (also, as the rebels suspect, to attract Katniss and capture her). Alma sees the actions from the captured friends as betrayal, but agrees to grant them immunity. However, when they rescue Peeta from The Capitol, they discover that he has been tortured and brainwashed, and now wants to kill Katniss. Peeta is then kept under surveillance until they can restore his identity, but the rebels start to lose faith in the rebellion after they see what happened to Peeta. Katniss and her other friend, Gale, go to District 2 to try to give a blow to the Capitol, but Gale’s plan results in creating avalanches that trap innocent miners. This is a victory for the rebellion, but Katniss starts to question if their tactics are the correct ones. She also wonders if she wants to represent the revolution, especially since she is The Mockingjay. In another attack from the Rebels, Katniss and Gale reach The Capitol, while losing a lot of her team members. Once there, they find that The Capitol is making a human shield with children, and a ship drops bombs in the area. This kills both oppressors and rebels, including Katniss’ younger sister Prim. This causes Katniss to enter a depression, and meanwhile, the rebels finally take over The Capitol and Capture President Snow. When Katniss finally confronts him, he reveals that the bombs that killed all the innocent children and, ultimately, her sister, were sent by Alma Coin. Katniss realizes that her friend Gale was also involved in the bombing, and that the new order that Alma Coin is suggesting, is just as barbaric as the one by President Snow. This is reinforced when Coin suggests new Hunger Games with the children from the Capitol and asks her allies to vote for or against this idea. Katniss votes in favor of it, and asks to be the one to execute President Snow. When the execution day arrives, she points an arrow at Snow, but instead kills Coin and tries to kill herself, but a riot arises and she is arrested. After things calm down, Commander Paylor of District 8 is named the new president, and she declares Katniss as insane, so she is acquitted of murder, and is instead sent back to District 12. Peeta also goes back to district 12, where he gets together with Katniss and they comfort each other as both have survived the same things. The book ends with an epilogue, of Katniss and Peeta’s family living peacefully and happily. The Hunger Games were abolished, and memorials are founded. A new order has been established for the better.

Another summary:
The novel opens with Katniss Evergreen, the girl on fire who has been rescued from the Quarter Quell arena by the Rebels from District 13. Soon, she realizes that her hometown, District 12, has been bombed by the Capitol. Also, she learns that her family is safe in District 13, where the organizing force of the rebellion is, powered by President Coin, whom Katniss does not trust completely.
 The Twelve Districts in Panem have taken up arms against the cruelty of President Snow and the exploitation by the Capitol. President Coin insists that now Katniss must be the face of the rebellion, their Mockingjay. With some conditions, to rescue Peeta and immunity to the victors of the Hunger Games.
 Katniss goes to some Districts to film propaganda; she realizes she has become the pawn in someone else's game. Rebels are just using her as a symbol to unify the districts.
 Katniss's main goal to become the Mockingjay is to kill president Snow as revenge for the Hunger Games and for all the deaths and damage he has caused.
 Then Katniss starts to train to go to battle at the Capitol. She goes under the command of Boggs. The squad will not see much action in the Capitol because their task is to film propaganda to boost morale as the rebels close in on President Snow’s mansion. Some members of the squad are killed including Boggs.
 Boggs before passing away tells Katniss not to trust anyone, especially president Coin, that is willing to do anything to get to power.
 Katniss, Gale, and Peeta decide to split up to reach Snow’s mansion. Where peacekeepers form a barrier around it and use the Capitol's children as shields. At that moment, a Capitol hovercraft drops a bomb on the children, and then another on the aid workers. Many are killed, including Prim, Katniss’s little sister. Katniss herself gets badly injured and loses consciousness. When she wakes, she learns that the Rebels have won. She also learns that the bombs were dropped by the rebels under now Pandem’s new President, Coin.
 President Coin proposes to continue with the Hunger Games, some are against it and some others agree, including Katniss. President Coin keeps her promise that Katniss will be the one to kill Snow, but Katniss aims at President Coin and kills her.
 After a few days, Panem is under new leadership, and everyone is free to live their lives in peace.

World view: The world portrayed in the story is an hypothetical society which seems to be worse than the one the author lives in.
Future projections: It’s a negative emotional reaction against technological (transcendental, evolutive) or social progress. As such, It shows the horrible consequences of utopia or at least portrays skepticism or disappointment in regard to scientific or technological miracles.
Ideology: The majority is oppressed by a ruling elite or an individual powergroup that come to dominate society to their own interests.
Characters, plot and writing style: The story features a rebellion against the adverse circumstances (revolutionaries may exploit newer technologies for these ends).
Classification: Non-dystopia