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A review by leiftheuncanny
The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
When I first heard of this book, I was hesitant. I had grown tired of stories that turned terrible villains into poor wretched victims, asking the audience to believe they hadn't had a choice, that trauma and circumstances had forced them to become the vile person they were in the original story.
So it took me a few years to warm up to the idea. I must apologize for not trusting Collins to know what she was doing when she gave us Snow's backstory.
This novel is a fascinating study of privilege, trauma, propaganda, and core beliefs. Snow is not without his troubles, despite growing up in the capital and coming from a rich family, his circumstances are dire and he is always one bad day away from complete ruin. The face he presents to the people around him is always carefully curated, and he has developed an ease with lies and manipulation that have kept him and his family afloat. It's clear there are seeds of goodness in him, and a desire for happiness, comfort, friends, etc. However, enough lying to others and it becomes far too easy to lie to oneself, to make up stories and rationalizations that are easier to live with than the truth. And watching his descent, tracking his decisions, his justifications, and his motivations, as he becomes closer and closer to the man we see in the original trilogy, is fascinating, terrifying and tragic.
I could talk forever about Coriolanus and his merits and flaws, the moments he could've tried another way, the pieces of beauty he cut out of himself to be the person he thought he needed to be. I wish he could've lived another life, but the tragedy of prequels is knowing how the story ends.
So it took me a few years to warm up to the idea. I must apologize for not trusting Collins to know what she was doing when she gave us Snow's backstory.
This novel is a fascinating study of privilege, trauma, propaganda, and core beliefs. Snow is not without his troubles, despite growing up in the capital and coming from a rich family, his circumstances are dire and he is always one bad day away from complete ruin. The face he presents to the people around him is always carefully curated, and he has developed an ease with lies and manipulation that have kept him and his family afloat. It's clear there are seeds of goodness in him, and a desire for happiness, comfort, friends, etc. However, enough lying to others and it becomes far too easy to lie to oneself, to make up stories and rationalizations that are easier to live with than the truth. And watching his descent, tracking his decisions, his justifications, and his motivations, as he becomes closer and closer to the man we see in the original trilogy, is fascinating, terrifying and tragic.
I could talk forever about Coriolanus and his merits and flaws, the moments he could've tried another way, the pieces of beauty he cut out of himself to be the person he thought he needed to be. I wish he could've lived another life, but the tragedy of prequels is knowing how the story ends.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Murder, War, and Classism
Moderate: Drug use, Gun violence, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Toxic friendship, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Body horror, Panic attacks/disorders, and Cannibalism