This won’t be a list of things that I didn’t know before I read the series or watched the movies, but more a list of things I think people can reasonably take away from it.

1. Family is everything

We’ve all seen in movies or TV shows that family is the most important aspect of life. We’ve all probably been told by our parents or siblings too. Whether or not you believe it to be true, this series exemplifies the idea. From the start Katniss just wants to stay alive for her family. Her sister. Her mom. And then those immediately around her like Gale and Peeta. Family is everything. It’s why she fought so hard in her original Games.

2. It’s okay to voice unpopular opinions

Katniss is not outspoken before she enters the Games for the first time. She’s pretty average. But as time goes on and she embraces her role as the mockingjay we see that she does not like any of what’s happening in the districts and she speaks up. Sometimes her timing is bad and the consequences trouble her, but Katniss struggles to just keep her mouth shut when she’s instructed to do so. Her freedom of speech is all but nonexistent, but she still speaks out against the Games and the Capitol.

3. Love is a tricky thing

We all know that Katniss loves the people around her. Gale. Prim. Peeta. Her mom. Probably Haymitch and Effie. Cinna. She does. But it’s a different reason for each person. And she still struggles with choosing either Gale it Peeta. Things like love don’t always have to be so black and white like we’re made to believe.

4. War doesn’t solve every problem

And we know this. But it is so evident in the series. They go through this brutal war between the districts and the Capitol and what changes after it all?

5. You control your own actions

During the Games and the war Katniss and company had to do some bad things. She was forced to kill. And she did. To survive. But at the end of the day, the Capitol and whatever you think its real-world equivalent is, can only make you do so much. You still control you.

What did you take from it all?