Could you survive on your own in the wild, with every one out to make sure you don't live to see the morning? In the ruins of a place once known as North America lies the nation of Panem, a shining Capitol surrounded by twelve outlying districts. The Capitol is harsh and cruel and keeps the districts in line by forcing them all to send one boy and one girl between the ages of twelve and eighteen to participate in the annual Hunger Games, a fight to the death on live TV. Sixteen-year-old Peeta Melark, who lives with his parents and two brothers, regards it as a death sentence when his name is called for the 74th annual Games. With his lack of survival skills, he becomes an unlikely contender. But if he is to win, he will have to start making choices that weight survival against humanity and life against love.