Let me start by saying that there are NO spoilers in this post. So if you’re like me, and you haven’t been able to finish Mockingjay because for some reason you’re expected to actually WORK at yr job (I mean, what?!), fear not. This post will focus solely on the INCREDIBLY AMAZING EXTRAVAGANZA known as the FYA Mockingjay Midnight Release TaleGate Party! Some of us may also know it by the name of The Night I Got Bruised By a Nerf Battle Axe And Drank Too Many Effies.
Cos when it comes to parties, the citizens of the capitol ain’t got NADA on FYA. Sure, they have those bulimia pills and that tasty lamb & plum stew, but do they have CHAMP CANS? DIY T-SHIRTS? CUPCAKES DECORATED LIKE EACH DISTRICT? And, most importantly, do they have the awesome readers of FYA who totally know how to BRING ON THE FIESTA? I don’t think so! Plus, no one actually died in our Hunger Games, which is honestly all the proof you need to realize that we are the superior hosts.
Before the official party began, Meghan and I met up at Jenny’s place for dinner. This was a momentous occasion because 1) well, dinner! duh! 2) Meghan and Jenny had never met! Plus Jenny & I got to introduce ourselves to the youngest member in the FYA family, Thomas! Or as we like to call him, Mr. T, because HE PITIES THE FOOL THAT IS NOT AS CUTE AS HE IS.
Jenny and I were instantly smitten by his preciousness, and I have the feeling that all of us would volunteer to take his place in the Hunger Games if need be (although I’m pretty sure he could slay all tributes just by being adorable).
Around 9 PM, we headed over to the parking lot of BookPeople to GET OUR TALEGATE ON! So you know how people tailgate because they’re excited about a game and want to support their team? Well, we talegate because we’re SPAZZING ABOUT A BOOK AND WANT TO BUY IT IMMEDIATELY! And also because we exploit any opportunity to enjoy cocktails.
Now, if you’ve ever tailgated before, you know there’s a few rules that MUST be followed (and I’m not talking the police kind). So when it comes to talegating, we take those higher laws of public intoxication and run with them transform them with a whimsical layer of literary references!
Rule #1: Talegates must have appropriate signage, i.e. posters that resemble student council campaign posters:
That’s my friend Talena, whom I’ve known since 6th grade. She loaned me my first L.J. Smith book, and for that, I owe her a great debt.
Rule #2: One should never, ever, EVER run out of adult beverages.
As you can see, we went with a mix of classy and cheapass. Which is basically, uh, what we are.
Rule #3: Invite fans of the book who aren’t afraid to express their inner YA (or in this case, their inner Hunger Games).
That’s right, Anna Marie and Lee CAME IN COSTUME! ALL THE WAY FROM HOUSTON! What the WHAT!!!!! Not only were they v. believable inhabitants of District 12, but they also played extremely convincing dead tributes in the arena. It should come as no surprise to you that these ladies are ABSO CHARMING, and you should totes check out their account of our party.
Speaking of good company, LOOK IT’S ALL FOUR OF THE FYAERS IN ONE PLACE!!!! Y’all that has NEVER HAPPENED BEFORE IN THE HISTORY OF TIME!!! Factor in our excitement for Mockingjay, plus the extremely strong Effies in those red plastic cups, and you can imagine JUST HOW SPAZZTASTIC WE WERE. INTENSITY IN TEN CITIES.
Rule #4: Bring your (Hunger) game face.
I asked Lauren and Mary Claire to give me their best Katniss and this is what happened. Dude, even President Snow would not mess with that fierceness!
Rule #5: Indulge in tasty business, because you need to keep yr energy up if you’re going to make it to midnight (not to mention survive in the arena).
In a tribute (HAR) to Peeta, Erin baked some DELISH cupcakes and provided icing and sprinkles so that people could decorate them like different districts in Panem before totally devouring them (hey! just like the Capitol!). I believe Trish is displaying District 4, while Hur-Shiu is presenting a bloody battle scene from the arena. Violence has never looked so appetizing.
Rule #6: Show support for your book/team (Peeta!) by wearing the appropriate wardrobe.
For Mockingjay, we took it a step further and provided stencils and paint so people could pull a Cinna and design their own! Thanks to the ever crafty Meghan and her DIY screenprinting skills, folks could choose from a variety of messages (“I like boys who bake”) and images to represent their inner revolutionary. Check out Reeves, aka REBEL GIRL:
We also offered the classic Mockingjay (modeled by Erica) because people need to know which side you’re on! Although with Katniss’ observation skills, Erica may need to tattoo one on her forehead.
The screenprinting got a little messy, but that’s ok, because it’s really fun to pretend like red paint is blood. At least, if you’re eight-years-old like I am.
But all of this awesomeness pales in comparison (ok, except #2) to the seventh and final rule:
Rule #7: Engage in a highly ridiculous activity that somehow relates to the book. In other words: WE HAD OUR OWN HUNGER GAMES BISHES!!!!!!
Since we did, in fact, want to avoid actual death, we went with Nerf, although those foam bullets can still inflict some damage if you’re intoxicated strong enough. Henri is modeling the Katniss weapon of choice, and we also had guns, swords and battle axes!
One of our guests, Sadie, totally careered it up and brought HER OWN BOW & ARROW. HOLLA!
Unlike Katniss and Peeta, our tributes came PREPARED. Not only to party, but to KICK SOME MAJOR ASS.
As you can see, this TaleGate had more attitude than a Beyonce video.
You know how Tyra teaches us to “smize”? Well, Lucy and Lily were basically KILLIZING.
Don’t even get me started on Trish’s bloodlust. That’s some Cato shizz right there.
Ok, enough stalling! Let’s GET TO THE GAMES, which will begin at the Cornucopia:
Per tradition, tributes must take what they need to survive: weapons… OR CHAMP CANS?!! I’m sure you can guess what I ran for.
Warning: the following videos depict massive Nerf carnage and the innocent faux death of many tributes. HAPPY HUNGER GAMES! And may the odds be ever in your favor!
After five vicious rounds, we followed in the steps of the Capitol and invited forced the five victors to compete in THE QUARTER QUELL! I played like Caesar Flickerman and asked the tributes to introduce themselves:
And now, ladies and gentlemen, THE FYA QUARTER QUELL! HOLY SHIZZ! WATCH OUT FOR THE MONKEYS!
There you have it, THE CHAMPION OF THE 2010 FYA HUNGER GAMES!!! The good news is that he didn’t have to kill anyone to achieve this honor. The bad news is, we don’t have a Victor’s Village for him to move into, unless you count my crappy one bedroom apartment with plumbing problems.
The Quell ended right at the stroke of midnight, launching a mad rush towards BookPeople, the likes of which would’ve overwhelmed even the most ardent Bieber fan cos OMGGGG IT’S MOCKINGJAAAAAAAAAY!!!!!!
I don’t think I’ve squealed this much since the NKOTB concert in ’89. And I don’t think I’ve known such YA bliss, such unhinged happiness, such champagne-fueled “OMG I CAN’T BELIEVE THIS IS FINALLY HAPPENING I LOVE YOU GUYS!” as this moment, right here:
I can’t even handle the amount of win in that picture. Nor can I recall why we thought it was a good idea to make Effies without proper measuring tools.
To everyone who came to our TaleGate, THANK YOU!!!! It was such a blast to actually hang out in *real life*, and we’ll definitely do it again soon. To those of you who held yr own celebrations, tell us about ‘em in the comments (and remember, NO BOOK SPOILERS!)! And to Suzanne Collins, thank you for giving us a reason to throw a party that was OTC TO THE MAX!
and finally, to president snow, YEAH YOU WEREN’T INVITED TO THE PARTY SO SUCK MY PANTS LOSER.
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It’s so great to see this monumentous occasion chronicled here! In part, because, due to the Effies I consumed, my memories of the latter part of the night are a little hazy. I do remember that the entire night was full of awesome! Thank you, awesome FYA readers and HG fans, for making our first ever FYA party so kick-ass!!!
I was so curious about the talegate so I’m so glad you let us know!! Rockin’ party! SO wish we could have been there!!!!!!!!!
YAY thank you for this crazy awesome account!!! It sounds FANTASTIC and OH MAN I WISH I’D BEEN THERE! Not least because I’d actually HAVE a copy of Mockingjay in my hot little hands already instead of waiting for it to leave ATFUCKINGLANTA ALREADY.
I’m so glad I’ll get to participate for the next FYA reunion this weekend!!! And I’m glad I finally get to read a post on here without having read Mockingjay yet!
meredith, i have no doubt you will bring yr game face saturday night when we finally play THE SWEET VALLEY HIGH BOARD GAME OH SHIZZ.
Miz Posh-
I was trying to remember how the heck to play the SVH game with my roommate, a friend, and my very accepting bf. (We made him be Enid.) What the heck are the rules? We started making them up since no one could remember. In the end, we started playing the, “Drink if someone keeps stealing your SVH bf!” game. I think it turned out well in the end, but I am curious.
maggie g, i have NO IDEA beyond the basic rule that drinking must be involved. i will definitely report back to you early next week!
I knew I missed the best party ever!! Thanks for the recap. So wish I could have been there. And how cute and awesome is it that baby Mr. T got to be a part of it!! Those pictures should definitely go in his baby book for his first Talegate party!!
dubs true on mr. t’s baby book. and now i’m thinking someone should write a satirical children’s book called “my first tribute training book” because it would be hilarious. frightening, maybe, but even toddlers need survival skills!
I truly resent people having a good time without me. And I think it says something about my family that if we were still childless we just might have driven to a book release party a three states away.
hey, as mr. t demonstrated, the hunger games IS a place for children. i mean, that’s exactly who it was intended for so… NO EXCUSES BRIAN.
Hey, I DID drive from 3 states away with a kid to go to this party, so dubs true on no excuses!
No excuses? We’ll see if you all feel that way when I invite you to my next book release party.
be careful what you wish for, brian. my inlaws live in missouri — i could show up anytime.
Haha, awesome party! Loved all the pictures!
Let me just tell you people about getting to this party.
I left work early, in order to get to Jenny’s in time for dinner. On my way home from work (to go pick up the cupcakes/all the supplies), the cables that control the automatic windows snapped (on my passenger side) and the window fell into the door.
Deciding I couldn’t bear a nearly 3 hour drive in 104 heat with a window down, I went to get it fixed. They didn’t have the parts, of course, so they had to just tie the window back in place (don’t ask me).
An hour late to leave, I go to pick up my car. The mechanic says, “you can’t drive to Austin in that car. Look at this tire.” Indeed, my tire was about one sharp rock from a blowout. But did he have a tire that fit my Honda Fit? Nay. Did the next two places I went to? Nay. I finally found a Firestone that did have the apparently insanely random tires, and I went over there. Gave the man my keys, he drove my car into the garage, and the hydraulic lift started.
And then? The power blew out. Yes, quite a large storm swept in, hail, 60+ mph winds, the works. The power was out until 1 am, all around town. No one could come get me, because of the storm.
Finally, around 7:30, I called an audible and asked my baby brother if he’d let me borrow his truck. I got all of the stuff out of my car via ladders and drove straight to Austin, only three and a half hours later than I’d planned, arriving at the party only 10 minutes after it started.
Then I drank a lot of Effies, and I don’t really remember much else. Except being the first one to die in, like, three of the Hunger Games.
OH MY GOD. I commend you for your dedication to FYA, Mockingjay, and all things car-related. You deserve like, thirty years of good Car Karma now.
erin, i consider yr epic voyage to austin to be yr own personal hunger games. AND YOU EMERGED AS THE VICTOR. prepare for a lifetime of adoration and riches.
WOW! that sounds awful. your def. tribute material to make to the party aftera ll that.
I can’t express the conflicting amounts of sad and awesome that I experienced reading this post. Sad because I couldn’t be there to join the fun and awesome because this is possibly the greatest book release event EVER! You guys are awesome!
OMG, this looks like the best party in the history of the world.
ia!
I have never been more upset that I live so freaking far from Texas.
It looks like the best time ever! If there is ever again an event of such awesome, I am going to have to make it my bidness to get there!
I am so amazingly jell that you got to do this. And also, that I live in Wisco and can’t make it to TX easily and drink classy/otherwise drinks with you. It looks like it was Live at Budakon (had to make a Wayne’s World ref to follow up yours!)
My book showed up in the mail on Wed. and I haven’t been able to crack it yet! Boooo med school, stop harshing my Hunger Games mellow! *soon my precious….soon*
DOUBLE LIVE GONZO!
I am SO beyond bummed that I don’t live in Austin anymore because I TOTES would have been there! How utterly awesome!
It breaks my heart that I had to miss this – then again, it would have been wierd for me to have been there, since I’m basically a kid. You may have also felt conflicted letting me drink alcohol – which I would have found (nobody keeps Holly from the cocktails). As if us young’uns aren’t doing that already! In any case, I’m still insanely jealous and wish we had nerf weapons over here, as I’m not sure we do.
The books aren’t that popular over here at al – the best I’ve got is one freind whose read the first two and who I don’t see very often (but does love them) and one freind whose only read the first and is clearly insane in the membrane because she did not immediately rush to read Catching Fire. But whatever. I had literally nobody, so I welcomed Mockingjay in by going to another party and secretly drinking in the name of Haymitch, instead of in the name of our exam results. I also had some lamb stew when I was done reading, and wanted to cry, because TEABS had totally taken hold at this point! The saddest bowl of stew I have ever devoured.
This looks like one of the most awesome parties I have ever had the privelidge to hear about! Also, why are the US covers of all of the HG books way cooler than the UK ones? Ours are sort of crappy – they look like generic action books, and it’s a bit cringey. Though I do have Peeta on the cover of my first one!
The inferiority of UK book jackets is also true with The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest, which I couldn’t wait to be published in the US, so I ordered from the UK. Very cheesy cover. Good thing the interior was unharmed!
Ours are better for a couple of series, though. And as for Harry Potter, I can’t actually decide which I like more. The US ones are more stylised, which is cool, but don’t always represent the books that well, and the UK ones range from really good to stupid. And we have those adult covers which make them look much cooler and more dramatic.
I’ve seen our copies of those Dragon Tattoo books – not too impressive. That’s partially why I haven’t read them.
What was amazing about that experience was that I paid $25 total for book and shipping, from the UK to California. That is less than I would have paid if I went to the store and about six months earlier than it was available. And it arrived within a couple of days. Those Amazon UK people are doing something very awesome!
I trust them with my books… which are like my life. I have a wishlist about 30 pages long on there, and it’s still growing.
First – that party looks amazing! I am kicking myself for pre-ordering with lame-ass Amazon who STILL HASN’T DELIVERED MY BOOK!!!!!!!
Second – holy crap I need a t-shirt! I love all of the screens. What a fantastic idea! It’s like puffy paint at sleep-overs, but BETTER.
Way to go FYA. Well done.
I know! I’m so jealous of those shirts, I could die. If you guys made some and sold them, I totally wouldn’t be that person who bought one of each (except the team peeta, natch), not at all.
What? I pre-ordered mine, and was actually headed out on the morning it came out to pick up a copy because I didn’t think the amazon.co.uk one would get there soon enough, and then what does the postman bring? I was so impressed! I guess it had way less distance to go, if we’re comparing the UK to the US…
jealous
after a hard day’s work in the coal mines, nothing could have been better than companionship, a couple of cold drinks, and an epic fight to the death.
oh Lee. you’re a commenter. there’s no going back now.
haha so cool you guys
Argh!!! that looked like so much fun! There was no midnight fun to be had here. But let me tell you I ma so throwing a Hunger Games/Quarter Quell party my next SciFi con. Cheers!
awwwwwwww awesome party pics. mr t is just beautiful- kudos on the healthy, happy-looking baby, meghan! i was thinking of you all as i worked the night shift (not that i’m bitter) and none of my patients died, which is a testament to the power of mockingjay-night. now i just need enough time to read the damn thing- off to bordeaux next week (because i’m a fancypants) so saving it for then- red wine and mockingjay? EPIC win. x
thanks, lorna! way to go on not killing your patients, too. always a good thing.
Amazing party :3 Any way I could get ahold of those stencils ? Email me a jpeg ? I cannot find any ANYWHERE.
yep! you can get the prez snow one here:
http://www.foreveryoungadult.com/wp-content/upload/2010/08/prezsnow.jpg
and the mockingjay here:
http://www.foreveryoungadult.com/2010/08/09/ill-never-win-project-runway-but-at-least-i-dont-have-to-shop-at-hot-topic/
Thank ya SOO much
OMG. I just found this website today and I am seriously crying inside that I didn’t know about it before because MY copy of MJ is ALSO from BookPeople and you all seem like the most hilarious and badass group of YAlovers out there. srsly.
I’m gonna go back and read all the MJ posts as part of my teabs treatment. thank goodness for FYA.
THIS PARTY WAS THE SHIZZ! Totally confirmed my opinion that this is the best blog ever, because all the people who read it are clearly AWESOME.
I’m kind of embarrassed that I was so bashful about winning my round though. OR PERHAPS IT WAS ALL A CUNNING STRATAGEM.
But I think we should have parties for everything, and champ cans all round!