1. Errors Always carefully proofread your work before turning it in. You may catch some grammar or punctuation errors by reading your paper out loud. Sometimes a fresh pair of eyes can help catch mistakes—ask your family or friends if they wouldn’t mind taking a quick glance at your paper. 2. Length Your reaction paper should be no longer than 5 pages. Some papers can be very short—only 500 words! If you are unsure about how long your paper should be, ask your teacher before you start writing. 3. Stating facts The hint is in the name: “reaction” paper. Your audience doesn’t want to read a summary of the text or a biography of its author. Instead, they want to hear your unique point of view. Summarizing the text Analyzing the text Katniss lives in a society where children are forced to fight to the death for the amusement of onlookers. When her sister is chosen to participate in the Hunger Games, Katniss takes her place. She travels to the capital and meets her fellow contestants. The Hunger Games is a work of fiction, but it relates in some ways to our own society. Katniss and her fellow contestants are judged not only for their fighting skills, but for their fashion sense and their romantic interests. This constant media fixation is uncomfortably similar to our obsession with reality TV shows.