Review: THE BALLAD OF SONGBIRDS AND SNAKES by Suzanne Collins

THE BALLAD OF SONGBIRDS AND SNAKES

Author: Suzanne Collins

Series: The Hunger Games #0
Source: Audible
Publisher: Scholastic Press
Publication Date: May 19, 2020

Overall Rating:
Diversity Rating:
Representation: minor characters make reference to same sex partners

Summary:

It is the morning of the reaping that will kick off the tenth annual Hunger Games. In the Capital, eighteen-year-old Coriolanus Snow is preparing for his one shot at glory as a mentor in the Games. The once-mighty house of Snow has fallen on hard times, its fate hanging on the slender chance that Coriolanus will be able to outcharm, outwit, and outmaneuver his fellow students to mentor the winning tribute.

The odds are against him. He's been given the humiliating assignment of mentoring the female tribute from District 12, the lowest of the low. Their fates are now completely intertwined -- every choice Coriolanus makes could lead to favor or failure, triumph or ruin. Inside the arena, it will be a fight to the death. Outside the arena, Coriolanus starts to feel for his doomed tribute... and must weigh his need to follow the rules against his desire to survive no matter what it takes.

Purchase:

Amazon | Chapters

Content Warning: Alcohol, Animal abuse, Animal death, Body horror, Cannibalism, Childbirth (with complications), Death (including child and parental), Death by falling, Drug use, Eating disorder, Emesis, Eye removal, Gun violence, Hanging, Heart attack (mentioned), Loss of limbs, Poverty, Prostitution (mentioned), Rabies, Snakes, Starvation (mentioned), Suicide ideation, Torture, Violence.

I was pretty excited for a prequel - I did write my MA thesis on The Hunger Games so I am heavily invested in this series. I wanted something that was a real exploration of what it means to be President Snow and how we got to where we were in the 74th and 75th Hunger Games. We got that, but it was dull and overdrawn.

I really liked seeing where things were, the suggestions that led to the spectacle of the Games, and the initial aspects of Snow's character. I'm glad he wasn't a likeable protagonist or a likeable anti-hero, but just a self-serving asshole. I think there was some aspects of this that made it difficult to care about - we know that Snow becomes President and doesn't have to live with his "fate" of being on the cusp of losing his fortune. But it just didn't have high enough stakes.

I think if you really want to read this before the movie comes out, you should. But otherwise it's a miss.

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