The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes

May 25, 2020 7:10 PM - by Collins, Suzanne

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.

After a 10 year wait, the Hunger Games prequel is published, to mixed-to-positive reviews.

posted by jeather (2 comments total)

Just finally got around to reading it. Not as meh as everyone is saying. It’s long, sure, and the ending feels like she just got tired of typing and couldn’t figure out how to wrap it up properly. (She isn’t the first or last to have that problem *cough* Asimov *cough*.) But it was an engaging narrative, with people just trying to figure shit out and accessible discussions on what it all means, and a satisfying origin story. Hope there’s more.
posted by Melismata at 5:34 PM on October 18, 2020

Yeah, I thought this one was better than its reputation. Not as good as the best of the original trilogy, but Snow was a more interesting character than I expected.
posted by kyrademon at 7:38 AM on September 18, 2022