Historical ContextSuzanne Collins published Catching Fire in 2009. During that year the United States was at war with Iraq. The main cause of the war was the terrorist attack of September 11, 2001. However, there is another reason for the war. George W. Bush wanted retribution for his father, George H. W. Bush. The president of Iraq, Saddam Hussein, attempted to assassinate George HW Bush. Years later, Bush's son was elected president and also held a personal vendetta against Saddam Hussein. The Iraq War was a two-part armed conflict in Iraq. The first was the attack on Iraq on March 20, 2003 by a US-led invasion force. The second part was much longer and ended in 2011, when rebellions broke out against the military and the newly formed Iraqi government. Additionally, President Barack Obama was elected into office in 2009. Barack Obama is the first African American president of the United States. Obama issued executive orders and instructed the US military to develop plans to remove troops from Iraq. He also recanted George W. Bush's policy allowing federal government funds to cover abortions. A Biography of Suzanne Collins Suzanne Collins is one of the most popular modern American authors today. She is best known as the author of the bestselling trilogy The Hunger Games. Suzanne Collins was born on August 10, 1962 in Hartford, Connecticut. She is the daughter of an Air Force officer who served in the Vietnam War. Being the daughter of a military officer, she and her family were constantly moving from place to place. Collins graduated from the Alabama School of Fine Arts in Birmingham in 1980 with a major in Theater Arts. She graduated from Indiana University... halfway through her thesis... thanks, but I stirred up something dangerous. An act of dissent by the people of District 11. This is exactly what I'm supposed to defuse" (Collins 62). Katniss impulsively gives public recognition to Rue in District 11 despite being warned not to fan the flames for a rebellion. Also if he wants to keep her and Gale's family safe by giving in to Snow's stipulations, his sense of personal obligation overrides his promise to Snow.Works CitedCollins, Catching Fire New York: Scholastic Press, 2009. Print.McKeever, Fire. United States: GradeSaver. 20 January 2013. Collins, Catching Fire. 2013. .