The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes question

I definitely enjoyed the book and agree with Melody that it was fun to see Snow’s origin. However, because we were reading, not only President Snow’s origin story but the Panem that we are familiar with as well, it brought up more questions than it answered. I also personally missed seeing all of the intricacies of the games (the technology, players, their strategies, etc.). Like I said I enjoyed the book overall but I hope she writes some more so I can revisit the HG world I’m familiar with.

Not really. Whist it created a needed look into Panems past it lacked in quality

I really enjoyed it! I think it's reasonable that this book takes a different tone; it has to because we're seeing Panem through the eyes of someone with a completely different lived experience than Katniss. What I find to be so fascinating is that in almost every moment where there is common ground between Capitol and District, where there's an opportunity for Coriolanus to learn and grow and become more empathetic, he chooses to reinforce his established beliefs, laying the groundwork for his ascent to power. He's too desperate for security, too afraid of losing control, too pained by his past, his pride too marred to ever empathize with the Districts. Not even Lucy Gray could open his eyes, which makes me believe he never really loved her, just the idea of her and how he made her feel. Lucy Gray values trust over love, and Coriolanus values control; they were doomed from the start. And even though we all know how his story ends, I liked going on the journey of how he got there. It was a humanizing story, but even still, we understand humanity has a dark side, and we saw that darkness break through the cracks along the way.

For me, the book met expectations and more. I loved the fact that the story was from Snow's perspective (who would have thought that the author would pick a villain to narrate???). Taking us back to an earlier Hunger Games, Snow's schooling and trying to find his footing in a snooty world, as well as his mentoring of Lucy was very refreshing.