“I think there’s a natural goodness built into human beings. You know when you’ve stepped across the line into evil, and it’s your life’s challenge to try and stay on the right side of that line.”
Can I just say that it is
hard reading a
Hunger Games book in the midst of a
global pandemic? I mean,
so many of the plot points that have been popularized by prior
Hunger Games novels are
actually taking place now; so what was once
fictional fodder is now
all. too. real. But I digress…
I was never a
diehard Hunger Games fan. While I read all of the books, I
never warmed up to Peeta, or Gale, or even Katniss.
TBH, Cinna was the only person I
truly cared about – and,
perhaps, the Avoxes. So
why I was so excited for this release is
beyond my comprehension. That said,
what. a. letdown.
The best way to describe
The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes is
lost. Confused. Useless. Ridiculous. An entire book about
President Snow. This
had promise. Collins really had the chance to paint the teenage version of this
tyrannical monster in a way that made you
empathize with him; but she didn’t. She just made you
loathe him more with his arrogance, conceit, and preoccupation with himself.
Seriously, his
level of narcissism is
out of this world. Like how?!
We meet Coriolanus Snow as an 18-year-old overachiever.
Poverty-stricken due to the war {but keeping it on the
dl from his
pampered peers}; Coriolanus is eager to improve his social standing and score a full-ride to University {and, as we all know, President-ship} through hard work {or
conniving behavior masked as hard work}, and
above-average intelligence. His shot? The
10th Annual Hunger Games.
Coriolanus will serve as mentor to
District 12’s very own
Lucy Gray as she competes for victor of the Games – an opportunity that would allow
Snow to land on top. But as he and Lucy Gray each strive for their own victories {which slowly become intertwined}, the two find themselves embroiled in a budding {
gag-worthy} romance that slowly morphs into a vessel for Snow’s personal gain.
I respect Suzanne Collins as a writer; but,
if I’m being honest, this book was
beyond boring. It legit took
forever to finish; and there was nothing enjoyable about the process.
TBH I finally skimmed the last 250 pages; and only found
a bit of intrigue in the last 40 or so.
As a character, Coriolanus is
exhausting as he thinks only of himself, and truly believes that he’s better than everyone else. That said, the character of Lucy Gray was just as bad. Boring, underhanded,
full of herself, and borderline sneaky, I could never figure out if she was pulling the wool over Coriolanus’ eyes, or if that was just her.
Regardless, I never warmed to her. Their relationship was
stilted and strange and felt out of place from the getgo.
I actually liked the character of
Tigris; but since she was really only
trotted onto the pages to bail the
blithering dolt otherwise known as Coriolanus out of trouble, I can’t give her too much credit. Overall, as a whole, I was
disenchanted by it all, and will
strongly hesitate before treading into the world of
The Hunger Games again.
Womp womp.
Star Rating: ***
xx
