I think that the best interests of this child mandate that she *should* have to fight to get her back - to prove that she's capable of parenting this child.

I'd actually rather see a stronger social safety net than an increase in the MW. Making $8/hr is one thing if you're a teenager and living with your parents and quite another if you're middle-aged and trying to support a family of your own. I'd like to see the working poor get more assistance paying for things like…

If he had had his way, there would be no child to fight over. So yeah, he lost his claim. Changing one's mind about giving a child up for adoption is different because adoption involves finding a home for the child, not denying the child his/her right to life.

A past abortion (by either parent) is not relevant but wanting to abort THIS baby absolutely is. Mr. Miller forfeited his claim to the child when he tried to get Ms. McKenna to have an abortion.

What makes Katniss such a great character is that she is a mix of good and bad. One moment she is selfless and heroic, the next totally selfish and manipulative.

I have read and enjoyed a lot of "classic" science fiction- Bradbury, Asimov, Wells, Verne, etc. What I dislike about modern science fiction written for an adult audience is the tendency to include graphic descriptions of sex and violence. That is why I tend mostly to read YA science fiction these days- I know that…

High-waisted ANYTHING has got to be the LEAST flattering look on anyone who isn't 5'10"+. I don't care if it's a skirt, shorts, bikini bottoms, jeans, etc. It looks TERRIBLE.

Three or more years continuously or 3+ years total?

Attractiveness is such a YMMV thing, though. I'm sure we've all been in a "girls' night out" situation where everyone else is crushing on someone that you think is just "meh". And then the person you think is totally drool-worthy everyone else goes "meh".

There are hints in the book that global warming took its toll on the food supply. Additionally, the districts outside the Capitol don't have access to good healthcare. So for me, it was believable that the population had shrunk dramatically in the years between now and whenever HG was supposed to take place.

I read Mockingjay in my mid-30's and hated the ending. I don't think it's age so much as did the reader want a basically happy ending. Obviously it's a dystopia so you are never going to get a totally happy ending, but most YA dystopian novels don't end on such a down note (Veronica Roth's Allegiant is an exception…

Battle Royale was more disturbing to me than Hunger Games because the participants all knew each other and in many cases were friends. Creepy!

Veronica Roth's Allegiant is the only series finale I felt had a worse ending than Mockingjay. It's a dystopia- I get that it's not going to have a totally happy ending. But I loathed how Collins and Roth chose to end their series. HUGE thumbs down for both!

Yeah, it was obvious. Irish name, from New England, green eyes, strawberry blonde hair. Jesse Williams is totally drool-worthy, but he's SOOOO not Finnick.

How do you get AA out of a character named "Finnick O'Dair" who is supposed to be from New England? Jesse Williams is totally drool-worthy but he is SO not Finnick. Aidan Quinn when he was young would've made a great Finnick.

Flabby vs. toned is not a size thing, but a fitness and bodyfat percentage thing. One of my sorority sisters from college is a triathlete and incredibly fit, but she's tall and larger framed so she will never wear a small size. In contrast, I'm a very petite person and if I did not exercise, I could absolutely be a…

I live in the suburbs of a major city, and I agree that the ideal age for a woman to have her first child is in her mid-to-late-20's. It makes me very sad that our economy & employment situation are so lousy and cost of basics (housing, healthcare, higher education, transportation, etc.) so high that it puts marriage…

There is no prenatal test for autism and it typically does not become noticeable until the child is 18 months to 3+ years. So no, abortion does not explain the parental age difference.

Sure, I know older moms who had neurotypical kids as well. But there is a big enough age difference as a group between the parents of the autistic kids and the neurotypical ones to make it noticeable.

Being nice doesn't seem to be the promotion-killer for men that it does for women. I've seen nice guys get the corner office but the only women I've seen promoted into higher-level management are the ones who are real witches. The nice women either get stuck in mid-level management for the rest of their careers or…