The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes ~ Suzanne Collins

The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins is a prequel to the Hunger Games trilogy. Set sixty-four years before the events of the original trilogy, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes follows eighteen-year-old Coriolanus Snow as he becomes a mentor to a tribute. The Snow name used to mean great things but they have now fallen on hard times. Coriolanus is determined to do well as a mentor and have his tribute win the games to bring his family back to their former glory. But, the odds are against him, he is tasked with mentoring the female tribute from District 12, the lowest of the low.

I haven’t read the Hunger Games trilogy in a very long time. When this book was announced I was curious but since then, I pretty much forgot about it until I saw an article saying that it too was going to be made into a film. 

I have mixed feelings about this book. It’s a tricky book to try and explain. It’s split into three parts. I found parts one and three relatively slow going. Part two was easily my favourite. It’s also the part of the book that Coriolanus felt the most human. Having to face the horror of the games whilst holding a fondness for Lucy Gray (his tribute) made him almost approachable.

I didn’t like Coriolanus and I didn’t want to. Having read the original trilogy, I knew the entire time what type of person he ends up being. Even the moments where he is teetering on being a decent human being took too much to get to. However, Suzanne Collins is a phenomenal writer that made those that opposed Coriolanus and the Capitol’s politics seem like the antagonists and I hated myself for not wanting them to succeed. 

Overall, I prefer the original trilogy but it was nice to see how the Hunger Games developed from its inception to what we know in the original trilogy. I gave The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes three and three-quarter stars. 

C🌙