 After writing the novel , Collins signed a six @-@ figure deal for three books with Scholastic . First published as a hardcover in the United States on September 14 , 2008 , The Hunger Games had a first printing of 50 @,@ 000 copies , which was bumped up twice to 200 @,@ 000 copies . By February 2010 , the book had sold 800 @,@ 000 copies , and rights to the novel had been sold in 38 territories worldwide . A few months later , in July , the book was released in paperback . The Hunger Games entered the New York Times Best Seller list in November 2008 , where it would feature for over 100 consecutive weeks . By the time the film adaptation of The Hunger Games was released in March 2012 , the book had been on USA Today 's best @-@ sellers list for 135 consecutive weeks and has sold over 17 @.@ 5 million copies . 
