Author: Suzanne Collins
Publisher: Scholastic
Publication date: May 19, 2020
Pages: 517
Source/format: Hardcover//Purchased
Rating: ☆☆☆☆
Synopsis (from goodreads.com):
Ambition will fuel him.
Competition will drive him.
But power has its price.
It is the morning of the reaping that will kick off the tenth annual Hunger Games. In the Capitol, 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.
M Y T H O U G H T S
About one decade later, Suzanne Collins releases the prequel to The Hunger Games trilogy. And this prequel, The Ballard of Songbirds and Snakes, is about President Coriolanus Snow when he was a teenager living in the Capitol. Yes, it may be hard to pity or sympathize with the cruel and cold tyrant but it's important to understand how he becomes the Snow he is in Katniss's world. The novel gives us much insight into how society and the environment shaped him to become President Snow.
It is interesting to read how much Snow suffered despite him living in the Capitol. However, unlike many of the Capitol citizens, his family is poor after losing their wealth during the war. With his parents gone, he becomes an orphan. He lives with his grandmother and with his cousin, Tigris. While trying to maintain the family status, becoming a mentor in The Hunger Games is his only opportunity to go to university. The winning tribute's mentor will receive the grand cash prize!
Snow is cunning, manipulative and can be cold at some times but The Ballard of Songbirds and Snakes shows that Snow once had love in his heart. The only thing he had left to win people over was his charm. Over the years, his heart shriveled and blackened as he put himself over others. He is quite the Slytherin and will do anything to succeed. Perhaps what he endured during his time mentoring the games has changed him. The Capitol not only pits against the people of the districts but it also pits against the people of the Capitol. Dr. Gaul, who is the Gamemaker for the 10th Hunger Games, plays with the hearts and minds of tributes as well as with the mentors. She conducts tests regarding nature vs. nurture and it's quite disturbing.
There are a lot of parallels that I find captivating within the prequel and also The Hunger Games trilogy which contribute to the history of the Capitol and the origin of the games. This novel might not be for everyone but I highly suggest it if you would like to read more about the context of The Hunger Games and the life of Snow. If you enjoy reading or learning more about the villains of books and movies, pick up The Ballard of Songbird and Snakes when you have a chance. Find out where Snow's loyalties lie.
Warning, spoilers will be mentioned for the rest of the review. Please do not read further if you have not read the book.
As part of a project before graduating from the Academy, Snow becomes a mentor to one of the tributes in the 10th Hunger Games. And you guessed it that Snow became the mentor to no other than the girl tribute of District 12, who goes by Lucy Gray Baird. Snow actually gives Lucy Gray a white rose when he first meets her. We find out how meaningful the white rose is. Snow always had the white rose with him in The Hunger Games trilogy. This is symbolic and not the only way to disguise the smell reeking from his mouth after he poisons people. In fact, his family grew lots of roses when he was younger. Also, he poisons others to make sure no one gets ahead of him. Sounds much like how he gave his mother's compact to Lucy Gray and Lucy Gray hid rat poison in it to kill some tributes quite quickly. This is very similar to how Katniss and Peeta planned to commit double suicide with poisonous nightlock berries. Poison is a reoccurring theme within the series.
The Hunger Games' rules were not the same as the ones we know of today. Yes, there are 24 tributes for the 12 districts but the rules with the drones, sponsors, scoreboard, etc were not created prior to Snow's presence in the games. Snow and his classmates were the ones who came up with these great ideas. These ideas are what kept the games running and having people staying engaged to watch the games.
So Lucy Gray Baird and Katniss Everdeen are both from the Seam but they are very different. Lucy Gray is part of the Covey, which is a group of musicians who travels around place to place. They just happened to be stuck in District 12 at the time around war and post-war. In fact Lucy Gray sings The Hanging Tree song after an incident with a District 12 Man accidentally kills three. Do you remember that song that Katniss sings? Yes, we finally find out the origins of this song! While Katniss can be unlikable, Lucy Gray is the opposite. Everyone loves Lucy Gray! With Lucy Gray's singing and personality, she shines! However, Lucy Gray is witty and resourceful like Katniss. They take advantage of what they have in order to survive. Their knowledge and resources help them in the games. Their main priority is to stay alive while hiding. They waited for the other tributes to kill each other off before they had to kill.
Although The Ballard of Songbird and Snakes isn't The Hunger Games, the novel is a good origin story about The Hunger Games and it sheds more light on Snow's past which helps with his character development bridging from the 10th Hunger Games to the 74th/75th Hunger Games.
