The Hunger Games Haiku

List of things I’m looking forward to this summer, not in any particular order:

1) In-N-Out (animal style cheeseburger)
2) Los Altos Arts & Wine Festival (I love you Bay Area)
3) California Academy of Sciences (4-story rain forest and Steinhart Aquarium)
4) Garage sales (I love you Bay Area)
5) Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins (release date August 24!)

Saving my thoughts on The Hunger Games trilogy for another day, suffice to say, I LOVE the series. Amazing on so many levels. I haven’t been so excited for the release of a book since the last Harry Potter.

I’ve decided to try writing a haiku every day, a form I haven’t written since I learned about it in middle school. Not only was I rusty, but I was stumped for inspiration until…I was rereading Catching Fire (Book Two) and in this read, came down squarely in the Peeta Camp. Who doesn’t like Peeta? He’s such a good guy. And nice guys shouldn’t finish last!

So I wrote a character haiku series for Peeta from The Hunger Games as a warm-up for the haiku exercise. Other than keeping to the 5-7-5, I played fast and loose with the haiku guidelines (even by haiku in English standards). No season word. Ok, here it goes, Ode to Peeta:

Peeta the bread boy
Not like pita pocket bread,
but Peter the rock.

Which makes me think of
The “Like a rock” commercial
For Chevrolet trucks.¹

Heaves heavy objects
Icing skills are camouflage
Plus, smooth talker too.

Decorating cakes
Is just like painting face
Katniss is in awe.

¹ See: Bob Seger’s “Like A Rock” ad campaign for Chevy’s pick-up trucks in the ’90s

Advertisement