New Release Review: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins

Title: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes (The Hunger Games #0)
Author: Suzanne Collins

1st Date of Publication: May 19, 2020

ISBN: 9781338635171
# of Pages: 517

Genre: Young Adult Dystopian Society

Age Rating: 15

Buy on Amazon

Book Description:
It is the morning of the reaping that will kick off the 10th annual Hunger Games. In the Capitol, 18-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 out charm, 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.

Setting: Panem (United States in the future)
Point of View: 3rd person- Coriolanus Snow

Goodreads Rating: 3.98

My Rating: 4.00

Part of the Book that Caught My Attention: Both

View on the Cover: Birds are very symbolic in The Hunger Games trilogy. Snakes are also very symbolic in literature as being deceptive while birds represent freedom so I was excited to see what that would represent.
View on Title: It's honestly a mouthful and can be difficult to remember when you first see it. It actually took me several times of looking at the title on different occasions when I was telling friends after it was first announced. That doesn't mean I don't love the title. I think it's pretty clever once you read the book.

Pros:

• I didn't know exactly what to expect when it comes to this book, but overall I really enjoyed it. It wasn't as good as The Hunger Games trilogy but it was definitely worth the 10-year wait. It is and should be read as its own book rather than as part of The Hunger Games series.
• I loved the angle that Collins took for The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes. You only see President Snow as this heartless and cold leader in The Hunger Games trilogy, but Collins did an excellent job in really humanizing President Snow as an 18-year old student who goes by Coriolanus. You can see his personal struggles outside of the Hunger Games, which makes you want to continue reading and get the answer as to why he became such a heartless and cold antagonist that you see him be in the trilogy.
• When I first read the synopsis, I was really interested to see how Snow was a mentor to tributes when he was born as a Capitol citizen. It makes sense that since it's only the 10th Hunger Games that it still is in the experimental phase. It's interesting to see how the Hunger Games morphed into what they are in the trilogy and how Coriolanus Snow had a hand in a lot of it pretty early on. You can clearly see the struggle of young minds (not just Coriolanus) wrestling with and trying to figure out what is deserved versus being cruel.
• The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes also doesn't disappoint in all the symbolism and irony through the use of Greek mythology, especially when it comes to the characters.
• If you read The Hunger Games series, so many of the questions you have revolving around President Snow, Katniss, and their connection make so much more sense in this novel.
• Whether you read The Hunger Games series or not you will not be missing out because you don't know you're missing it. If you do read both the prequel and the trilogy you, you really gain more of an appreciation for Suzanne Collins's writing.
• You really see how the Hunger Games become what it is from the experimental phase, why it is called the Hunger Games, and why the Capitol sees it as necessary.

Cons:

• If you're looking for more fun read, then you should be cautious toward this book. It is much darker than The Hunger Games and Catching Fire. It seems to be more on the dark level of Mockingjay.
• This one is more of neutral point...This novel also opens the door to more questions that can be answered in another novel, such as Tigris and Snow's fall out. If I was Collins, I would definitely write a prequel with Haymitch and incorporate the fall out there for reasons I can't explain without spoiling the pieces of The Hunger Games trilogy.

Critics' Reviews:

"It’s been a decade since Mockingjay, the final book in the Hunger Games trilogy, was published and fans are going to be thrilled with Suzanne Collins’ unexpected prequel, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes. This novel has been under serious lockdown, so all that can be said until May 19 is that it begins on the day of the reaping for the tenth annual Hunger Games, and an eighteen-year-old Coriolanus Snow is mentoring the underdog tribute from District 12. Prepare to read this in book one sitting because you won’t be able to put it down." —Amazon Book Reviewer

Suzanne Collins's Website:

http://www.suzannecollinsbooks.com/

 

Other Recommendations:
Divergent by Veronica Roth
The Maze Runner by James Asher
Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi