I’m going to try my best, but to be perfectly honest, I read this book a couple of months ago at this point and I may have forgotten some things. Regardless, I will do my best to give a good, spoiler-free, review of this *fabulous* book.
Overall Review . . .
A Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes is the prequel novel to the original trilogy, The Hunger Games. It follows Coriolanus Snow, 60 something years before the events of the original trilogy’s events. For those who know the story, you know who Coriolanus will become and who he is to the people of Panem during the 74th Hunger Games and beyond, but no one really knew who the man before the monster was — until now. This story explores how the people of the Capitol are recovering and slowly rebuilding after the war between the Capitol and the Districts. Coriolanus must maneuver the highly political landscape of the Academy and the newly-formed Hunger Games, all with the weight of a prestigious family name, his peers that are also from other well-known families, and endless hunger. Coriolanus Snow is taken for quite the ride, and he must use his cunning mind and will to survive to tackle the ups and downs to come out on top.
I think Suzanne Collins’s writing is phenomenal. Simple, active, and many times poignant and raw. I love Suzanne Collins’s writing style, and I love the concept and universe of the Hunger Games trilogy. From the very beginning, I knew this story was going to be a wild ride. The plot took me by surprise multiple times, and the main character is . . . an interesting perspective to view the story through. I both liked and disliked him, and I appreciate that aspect about this
I think this book is appropriate and even educational for the time that we’re currently living in, and I say that about the original trilogy as well. For being a Young Adult novel, much of the plot and story are centered around political issues, and the up-and-coming generation (Coriolanus’s class at the Academy) must face the issues that their predecessors have left to them. Collins does not, and has never, shied away from the hard topics. Death is not something glossed over or forgotten within a page or two; they stick with the characters and affect the overall story. The affects of war are not sugar-coated in the slightest, and there’s something dark that happens in the Capitol during the war that I will discuss more in my full review . . .
A few trigger warnings for this book: mentions or vague descriptions of death, starvation, and cannibalism in various forms.
My Opinions . . .
I loved this book, and give it a 5/5 stars. I would give it a higher rating, but I feel like that would be silly LOL. A Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes is gripping, action-packed, full of high stakes choices, sacrifices, and even betrayals. There were moments of humor, but also moments of real, gritty emotion. I honestly cried at various points of this book, not just because “oh no this happened,” but because the characters are brought to life. They struggle, grow, make mistakes, and redeem themselves. I cried because I came to love the characters and truly mourned their losses and pains.
There isn’t a lot of action in the sense of battles or physical fighting, but what is there is never over-the-top “oh someone is getting shot again.” It’s only at the height of the tense confrontations that weapons or the threat of violence is actually depicted. I’ve always appreciated how Collins can show lots of violence and intense confrontations throughout her stories, but the suspense, intensity, and seriousness of it all is never lost. She’s very intentional in how she shows violence; it always has a purpose.
This book, as well as the Hunger Games books, is not for younger audiences. I believe that there’s a time and place for children to be exposed to the concepts of war and violence, and for these books, I personally think no one younger than 13 or so should read them. It’s not because they are bad books, but there’s a lot of darkness, and for younger folks that can be really overwhelming. It will also be a more meaningful and educational experience if the young readers wait until they are more into their teens, and understand a bit more about the world, so they can really appreciate the nuances, intricacies, and brutal honesty that Collins takes with this dystopian world.
Final Thoughts . . .
Obviously, if you’re a Hunger Games fan, then I think you’ll enjoy this book. If you don’t like it, then at the very least you’ll be able to appreciate the backstory and foundations that are laid out for the original storyline. I will admit it’s a bit of a hard read. The main character has to make some hard, and some questionable, choices, and the other characters around them must
It feels similar to the Maze Runner series. The young people are more or less pawns of the political leaders. Though there is not necessarily a pandemic, or other sort of rapid spread of disease, the feel of the up-and-coming generation being manipulated, controlled, and used by the political leaders in place is nearly identical.
This book is perfect, if not essential, for fans of the Hunger Games and the Maze Runner series’.
Have you read this book? Are you excited for the movie adaptation coming out in November of this year (2023)?? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below!