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Actually, there is a "rule" that only one can survive in HP. Per the prophecy, it's either Harry or Voldemort. And compared to Voldemort, Harry is a child with no (as it's repeatedly pointed out) special magical talent or knowledge. That's neither here nor there, of course. I only brought up Harry Potter to illustrate that a 12-year-old character is capable of doing anything an author wants him or her to do, as long as it's done in a way that makes it believable for the readers, even if what the author wants is for the character to beat the odds against a much stronger and older opponent. But if that had been the story Collins wanted to write, I think Katniss, not Primrose, would have been the name of the first 12-year-old to win the game.

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My interest in Hunger Games begins and ends with the character names, so I have no other comment except to say that yes, arrow-shaped, unpretty, piss-reminiscent Katniss is definitely supposed to be the stronger name, at least compared to pretty, little Primrose. I'm certain the author chose their names with care and deliberation.

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I'm with you on Peeta, though. It's hilarious, but, again, I'm sure it was deliberate. He's the nice dependable guy, right? A soft heart in a hard world? I think taking Peter ("rock") and softening off the hard edges was a good choice.