The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes: A Hunger Games Novel

Written by Suzanne Collins

Narrated by Santino Fontana

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 out charm, 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.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Scholastic
• Release date: May 19, 2020
• ISBN: 9781338635201

Reviews for The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes

[Terri Pahucki · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Not a great narration. With such a musical book, why choose a male narrator who does not sing? The original trilogy narration is superb. This one is lackluster and I preferred reading.

[Mary Katherine O'Donnell · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I read a lot of hunger games fans didn’t like this book... but I loved it. It’s not a retelling of something we already know, it’s a deep dive into a character who is so loathsome in the first series and uncovering what makes him tick. A lot of people I have read reviews from feel like a villain doesn’t deserve to be the protagonist in a book or to be “the romantic lead” but Suzanne Collins is doing what I love best; making real, multidimensional characters who aren’t as simple as “good or bad”.
You never forget for a second what the shortcomings of this character are, but you see the little seeds of good there too.

All in all, a great story, I would recommend.

[M A · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I couldn't listen anymore. The songs were awful. It was torture.

[Carlie Sparks · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Beginning is a bit slow and I struggled to get through it until the last 10 chapters. But the ending made it worth it. It's interesting to see how Snow became who he is in the hunger games series..

[Mary Sincavage · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I really enjoyed listening to the story of a villain. Suzanne Collins did a great job not making him too sympathetic but not making me hate him either. I did not love all of the references to Katniss’s Hunger Games. I thought it was too shoved.

[Dustin Allred · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Really slow for the first half. Then exciting, but it’s like a quick summary at the end. I think the book could have been better if they had taken more time to explain his reign to presidency. I felt like the book could have been a lot better. Felt like a last chance effort to make a buck on a once popular trilogy.

[Novee Nova Tulloch · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Book itself was good but for me the narration killed it specifically the songs, ook me out of the story every single time. I would of really really bad singing then the talking. Besides that it was alright not one I’ll be reading again but enjoyable for the most part

[celeste · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Yoire in Corialanus’s head, and you’re rooting for him. Nothing is as simple as black and white, and Coryio has to make some impossible choices. You also get to meet the charming Lucy Graybaird who is a unique and refreshing breath of air. Enjoyable must read-at least as good as the Hunger Games

[Nichole Abney · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I should have read this instead of listening to it. I felt like he made all the women sound brainless and the reading of song lyrics was bad. The story itself was good, I loved the back and forth inner battle of Snow.

[Fiona Math · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Really interesting prequel to the hunger games series that develops the lore of Panem and the origin of the Hunger Games. I enjoyed the characters immensely. I almost wish the social commentary was pushed just a touch further in terms of Snow's descent into full on dictator, but perhaps it's up to the reader to fill that in for themselves. I agree with the other reviewers about the singing. Perhaps a revision where the lyrics are sung to match the characters voices a bit better. Overall a good book!

[hannah · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I loved this new perspective from such a loathable character. The author did an awesome job weaving in elements from the OG series while still making this story feel authentic. I often found myself rooting for Snow even though I know how horrible he ends up being. And then the author would give us these glimpses into his thoughts and it helped me understand how he got to such a horrible place.

Also, I loved the narrator! I thought he did a wonderful job and really immersed me into the story. I’m super picky about audiobook narrators so that says a lot ?

[Savannah Sanchez · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Making Snow the protagonist leaves you with a pit in your stomach. You almost can feel for his circumstances and I even came close to pitying him. Then his character is developed and you are reminded of what a self absorbed person his is. Gives insight to the hunger games trilogy and the hanging tree is that much more impactful!

[BRENDA COVEY · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I thought it dragged. I thought the plot was weak. It was hard to finish this.

[David N Katy Bertucci · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The book is good, just wish the narrator was better. They should have picked someone who could sing since there are sooo many songs in this book.

[RyShores · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Hunger Games books has always had a relationship with music, obviously bc it’s a form of expression and freedom of speech. This book has even more meaning and usage than the trilogy. So it’s beyond bewildering when they get a male narrator that talk sings a female voice many times throughout. Besides that the narrator was fine I guess. You’ll be eager to skip forward during those parts tho, which is a shame bc much of its intended impact is lost.

[Billie · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Prequel to The Hunger Games

I will admit I usually avoid prequels because they are written after the series has ended, some don't have much to do with the main series, they are short stories, or poorly written only done for the few extra bucks that anything with the series's title will earn. This one wasn't that bad, some of the writing was blah and that made it obvious that it was put together for the money, but at least it made sense and gave more insight into the creation of the hunger games. 

Because of my mixed feelings about the story, I had to take a few days before I could sit down and write this review.

I'm trying not to give out any spoilers, but a few clues might get accidentally dropped, so use caution if you don't want any clues as to what happens.

I liked it, but I also didn't like it. Yes, I was hoping for a different reason, but the actual reason made the hunger games even that more wrong. There were other revelations of why 'this' and 'this' was an issue in the main series, and happily, they made sense. The ending, the 'main' reason, was too quick, it left me feeling as if there should've been more. But the reason given was on the disturbing side.

I do not plan on re-reading the series, but if you are, or thinking about a re-read make sure you read this one first. As to first-time readers, I think this series is okay for readers 14 and over because of the major child violence, it's up to you if you read this one first, but reading it last will make you go, 'oh that's why!'

3 stars

[Nad · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A painful read... To make Snow the protagonist was certainly a tricky choice and it didn’t quite work for me. Even during times when he teeters on being a good person, he remains a self absorbed, opportunistic brat to me, because, well, I already know who he will become in the end. His love interest, on the other hand, was an interesting character and I was bummed that she wasn’t fleshed out more. Collins’ writing is solid and she creates a detailed main character (that I liked less and less with every chapter). As for world building, the ballad of songbirds and snakes gives more depth to the post-apocalyptic world of the hunger games, but occasionally things get more confusing rather than detailed. To sum it up, if you are a hunger games fan and ‘mockingjay’ wasn’t dark and depressing enough for you, or you like books that reflect on the dark side of human nature - go for it.

[Michelle · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I didn’t want to listen to this but finally did. It was really well done and I love the insight it gives the reader of president Snow. You go back and forth with liking , hating and feeling sorry for him. In the end you get to see him as he really is- a complete narcissist. I don’t think I would read another one because one book about Snow is all I can handle. If you are on the fence like I was, read or listen to it. It’s worth it!

[Eliana Rose · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

What was the point of having a book filled with songs (it's literally in the title) be read by a narrator who doesn't sing? Every time I heard the narrator begin reading a song like a spoken word poem I found myself rolling my eyes and struggling not to fast forward.
I really enjoyed the story but found the book so hard to listen to with the narrator absolutely butchering anything slightly musical.

[Adam Hegg · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I love this book so much it is great you must read the book

[shelly Thrasher · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I loved the characters and the process the author took to build the story and connect dots at the end. Great story! Left me with an audible , Wow!

[Florence Otaigbe-Nkwocha · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I learned about this book when I saw the trailer for the movie and was very excited. I loved the hunger games series way back when, so I loved every bit of this book! Highly recommend if you want a good story to learn more about President Snow!

[B. Vaughn · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I don't think I've ever hated a POV character more while loving the book this much. If there were anything that I would take off a star for, it's this:
(Spoiler)

When I read a book, I'm looking for something different from real life. I'm looking for characters to get their "just desserts," so to speak. No one in this book seems to get theirs. I'm at least very, very glad that this dude doesn't end up with his love interest in the end. The whole time I was reading I was screaming, "girl RUN!" but also understanding why she thought the way she did.

Importantly, I like to trick myself about what is going to happen in a story so that I can be surprised, so I ignored the possibility that this was the same Snow and assumed it to be a relative so that the story could still surprise me. It had me hooked from minute 1.

[Olga Bernd · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I would call it a very special book. The journey of Snow through the different stages is very interesting as you can see him developing his personality and beliefs. It is a pretty dark book, full of scheming and betrayal, which I liked a lot. I love the portrayal of the characters as they are quite deeply explained throughout the book. The end was a bit too fast and you sure didn't see it coming but it was very good nonetheless!
It is very different to the other hungergames books I would say, I feel like it's more complex and complicated and not a young adult book anymore.

[Zack zack · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The book feels just like the old ones. It takes you back to the hunger games. The character development is very nice.

[Christopher Naylon · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I loved the story but it was too long and the ending was depression but I had great time I hope Suzanne makes a follow up explaining what happened to Lucy grey. By putting her as the main character.

[Alisha · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Wonderful addition to an already epic story. I loved the glance into Snows past.

[Fena Reti · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This was bloody brilliant! Truly shocked how everyone hated it! It was incredibly interesting to read and a great exploration of Snows slow defend into evil!

[Megan Ryan Hughes · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The insight into Snow’s mind and how he became what he did was maddening and happened so seamlessly

[Abby Brown · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I like prequels because they tend to explain things left to the imagination in the original. This book did this I felt like too many connections or answers were given, like it was trying too hard at times.