I Read: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes

The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins

(Prequel to The Hunger Games trilogy)

This is the "long-awaited" follow-up to The Hunger Games trilogy.  I put that in quotes, because I wasn't particularly waiting for it. Sure, I pre-ordered it, but I didn't really feel like I needed it before I knew it existed. There wasn't anything missing in the original story for me. I didn't need any backstory in particular to feel the story was complete. I only needed it in the sense that I'm a completist, so I had to have it to complete the set.

But I understand the concept of following up on that kind of success with something that might bring that back. And Collins is a good writer. It's a well-written book. I enjoyed it. It took me longer than it should to read but that was more a function of what was going on in the world and finding time to read it, than not wanting to read it. 

So, as I said above, I'm not sure we really needed this book. I mean, I'm fairly certain that I didn't need it. I was happy with how the trilogy went, and where it started and stopped. We had enough details. Having read this now, I'm still in that camp. It was interesting, and there were some really good tie-ins of information in the story, but I didn't need it. 

Especially given the main character. I assumed the idea would be to explain his nature to us. Give us a reason why certain actions were taken, why certain people were the way they were. But alas, that hope was not to be. It just re-affirmed that a particular character was self-made. It really was all part of that character's nature. Sure, there were twists and turning points where things could have gone differently. But they didn't. And that is more telling than anything else. There was potential to feel for that character, and I did, on several occasions, before I was left feeling like an idiot at the end, wondering why I thought anything could really have been any different than it was. I knew the end result going in. 

I guess I had hoped for there to have been some major turning point. But the character was really pretty consistent. A little bit whiny. A little bit self-effacing. But mainly just consistent in the opinion that the world was against him, so he needed to do whatever he could to win. Despite winning not being winning after all. 

I did try really hard throughout this not to confirm any character, but I think I did. I didn't want to make it clear who the book was based around in case someone who might read this didn't already know. I think I failed, but I did try. 

It's a well-written book, but it didn't really illuminate anything in particular. I guess it's nice to have a bit of backstory, but it wasn't anything earth-shattering. Four stars for the writing. 

#40-2020