The novel The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins takes place during the year of the 10th ever Hunger Games. The story is centered around the life of Coriolanus Snow, sixty-four years before the Hunger Games series. Coriolanus is living with his cousin Tigris and his grandmother. The once-wealthy family is now struggling because District 13, where they received most of their income from, was obliterated due to an explosion. Coriolanus is given an opportunity to restore his family’s wealth when he, along with twenty-three other Capitol students are to receive and mentor District children in the 10th annual Hunger Games. The motive is to have their tribute win the games by outlasting the other twenty-three. A cash prize would then be awarded to the corresponding mentor. Coriolanus’s excitement fades rapidly when he receives the tribute least likely to win the games, a girl from the poorest District. The tribute he received was named Lucy Gray Baird, from District 12. The tributes are transported from their Districts to a Capitol Zoo in a musty, old train car. To receive recognition from the media, Coriolanus decides to treat his tribute like a human, unlike the other mentors. He brings her food and starts to connect with her and they would eventually be involved in a romantic relationship. The tributes are given a tour of the arena with their mentors when a bombing takes place. Many of them are injured or killed. The games take place shortly after. Outside weapons are prohibited, but Coriolanus gives Lucy a tin full of rat poison, which she would use multiple times later on. Lucy ends up winning the game and she goes back to her District. Coriolanus however, is called up by Dean because his act of cheating was discovered. He is banished from the Capitol and is forced to work in the District 12 as a peacekeeper. This District happens to be Lucy’s. The Capitol offers him a promotion and a welcoming back if he does well during his time as a peacekeeper. He works his job for many months when a friend of his named Sejanus decides to rebel. Coriolanus disagrees and records the conversation, which would get to the headmaster and would ultimately result in the demise of Sejanus. He informs his fellow peacekeepers about the situation and his involvement with Sejanus when they discover eavesdroppers. To avoid trouble and potential punishment, they murder them, hide the weapons, and agree to keep the situation between the few of them. Coriolanus then sets out to find Lucy. They find each other and exchange a few words about their recent experiences. They agree to get away from the rest of society to avoid the control and troubles of the government. They find isolation and Coriolanus believes he has finally achieved his happy ending getting away with murder and living away from society with the girl he loves, when Lucy says since she was also at the scene of the murders, she is the only loose end. He becomes skeptical and wonders if Lucy would really betray him. He dwells on this and goes insane, chasing her away with the same gun that was used for the murders. He is bitten by a snake that he believes Lucy planted and blacks out. At the beginning of the story, he was a somewhat caring human being that was only trying to support his family. He wakes up in the Capitol as a completely different person. He is now a psychopath with no empathy toward other people whatsoever. I enjoyed this book as it gave more information of President Snow and it gave me a better connection and understanding of the Hunger Games series. His background explained how he came to be the heartless, maniacal president during Katniss’s time as a tribute. The change of character toward the end of the story was very interesting as I could see how Coriolanus was affected mentally. Overall, it was a very long, but captivating sci-fi/dystopian novel that had many exciting moments. The ending was especially interesting and made an impact on the reader. I would especially recommend reading this book if you have read the Hunger Games as you will discover the history of the Games.
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