The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes (July 2024) Buddy Read Discussion - Brianna & Anushka

[mina, Group/Buddy Reads Procrastinator]

Welcome to the The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes Buddy Read Discussion thread! This thread officially opens on July 7th and anyone can join at any time. Please keep in mind that spoilers are allowed in this thread but only up to the group's current reading place. Do not spoil the book if you've read further than the group. Any extra days can be used to catch up!

Each day we will be reading by chapters or page numbers. Page numbers are an approximation based on the hardcover or paperback that is the default on Goodreads. The suggested Buddy Read discussion schedule is as follows:

Week of 07/07
July 7: chapters 1 - 3 (45 pages)

Week of 07/08
July 8: chapters 4 - 6 (52 pages)
July 9: chapters 7 - 9 (39 pages)
July 10: chapters 10 - 12 (53 pages)
July 11: chapters 13 - 15 (45 pages)
July 12: chapters 16 - 18 (47 pages)
July 13: chapters 19 - 21 (55 pages)
July 14: chapters 22 - 24 (52 pages)

Week of 07/15
July 15: chapters 25 - 27 (57 pages)
July 16: chapters 28 - epilogue (70 pages)

PARTICIPANTS
~ Brianna
~ Anushka

[Brianna]

I have put off reading this book ever since it came out - I never really wanted to learn more about President Snow.
up through end of chapter 3: (view spoiler)[It feels like they are making his circumstances pretty pitiful as a way to get sympathy. I am super intrigued by Lucy Gray. It's also fascinating to see how different tributes were treated at the beginning (year 10) versus when we are first introduced to this world (year 74). (hide spoiler)]

[Dia]

I never got around to reading the books. I saw that this was book 0, would you recommend reading this first or going by published dates?

[Brianna]

Dia wrote: "I never got around to reading the books. I saw that this was book 0, would you recommend reading this first or going by published dates?"

I am not sure to be honest - since I have not read this prequel or seen the movie, I am not sure if it will spoil anything in the original trilogy.

[Anushka]

I had similar feelings about this book. I've read the first 5-6 pages a few times and put down the book again. I didn't want to stop to think of President Snow as a kid. But I've put it off for way too long now and the cover of this book is too pretty to just sit on my shelf unread. Haha.

I like Lucy Gray. She's brave like Katniss but way more fun. She's an orphan and now on death's row (that's how the games seem anyway) and she can still sing her heart out like that. I'm impressed.

The ending of chapter 3? Wow. I mean Coriolanus waiting with that rose was fine. Waiting for hours? Surprising. Getting in that van? Shocking! Ending up where he did? Unthinkable. I can't stop reading at this point. I need to know what happened after this I mean COME ON, this boy went on to become THE PRESIDENT. Holy! I can't believe his youth had been like this. The man has stories aplenty I suppose.

[Brianna]

I've read a little bit ahead - up through end of chapter 9
(view spoiler)[I still don't like President Snow - I still think they are trying to hard for us to sympathize with him. That doesn't mean he hasn't seen some crazy ish and that he doesn't deserve *any* sympathy though. So far the thing I am enjoying the most is the stark difference between the Hunger Games we are familiar with and the Hunger Games we are experiencing in this one. It's interesting to see the grown - like the betting/gift system. I'm curious about the change in venues since it seems like the first 10 were always at the same place (and potentially more). (hide spoiler)]

[Anushka]

I'm beginning to enjoy reading it this time around compared to my previous attempts and I'm glad about that. I don't think the writer wants us to stop holding Coriolanus accountable for his actions but it's good to see how he reached the point he did. How he grew up to be the person he did. I can clearly see that even as a teenager, he had selfish motives for all his friendships and that he cultivated a false image in front of the world. His only real bonds were those with people who shared his last name. "Snow lands on top!" But it's still a book that I'm hooked on and I'm enjoying it. I look forward to seeing the movie when I'm done with this.

[Brianna]

I agree that it's starting to feel less like pity this kid but more so - here is where he started and the things that shaped him. I am also planning on watching the movie after this!
through end of chapter 12: (view spoiler)[It is *crazy* that so many of the tributes have already passed. I am curious to see what happened with Marcus. I am also kind of nervous about this potential love story vibe of Snow and Lucy? (hide spoiler)]

[Anushka]

I'm reading ahead, sorry peeps. It's just that every chapter seems to end around a point where I have to know what's coming next and I can't stop. I think I'll finish it tomorrow or day after. I won't be giving any spoilers obviously. But let me just put it out there..... BIG THINGS ARE COMING!!!! IT'S GOING TO BLOW YOUR MIND!!!!

[Brianna]

I will probably start reading ahead as well because it's like the craziest cliffhangers happen at the end of the 3rd chapter! I am currently through the end of chapter 15 and I'm sorry - what the heck?! lol
This is not at all what I pictured the Hunger Games being like when starting this so pretty shocked! I feel like the Snow we are most familiar with is starting to show a bit more with his pure plotting strategy to try to land on top of whatever situation he is in.

[Brianna]

through the end of chapter 24: (view spoiler)[Okay - things are definitely not going the way I thought they would AT ALL! It's interesting getting this new perspective of District 12 and it's truly not that different from the one Katniss lives in. I know there are going to be bad things to happen - it is doubtful that Snow and Lucy end up together at the end. (hide spoiler)]

[Anushka]

I finished this and. What. An. Ending! Seriously. I was shook. I don't know why I didn't see it coming. The end really smashes ones' rose-colored glasses of the world. Ah. I hate this.

[Brianna]

Ooh I am intrigued about what happens! I just got through the end of chapter 27 so definitely in the final stretch - and will still read a bit more tonight. It's interesting seeing Snow changing with what has happened - he is suspicious of more people (like Sejanus) but even starting to dislike Lucy. I like Dr. Kay better than Dr. Gaul - she seems more like a person lol

[Anushka]

Brianna wrote: "Ooh I am intrigued about what happens! I just got through the end of chapter 27 so definitely in the final stretch - and will still read a bit more tonight. It's interesting seeing Snow changing wi..."

Snow's paranoia is so weird. It made me wonder if it was a new development of the things he went through or if it had always been there. A childhood spent in wartime would do that. I just don't know.

[Brianna]

I was able to finish this the other day and it was good. There were definitely elements that I was not a fan of but overall I am not unhappy that I read it. It was pretty cool getting some background to the characters we know from the original trilogy as well as some new characters. I am intrigued to know why Tigris changed so much from this to when we meet her I think in Mockingjay.

[Anushka]

Brianna wrote: "I was able to finish this the other day and it was good. There were definitely elements that I was not a fan of but overall I am not unhappy that I read it. It was pretty cool getting some backgrou..."

Yes. I spent a lot of time thinking about Tigris too. But then it's apparent that her moral code is starkly different from Coriolanus and that could be one major reason for the eventual falling out.

[Brianna]

Anushka wrote: "Brianna wrote: "I was able to finish this the other day and it was good. There were definitely elements that I was not a fan of but overall I am not unhappy that I read it. It was pretty cool getti..."

With another prequel about the 50th hunger games I think coming out, I wonder if we will get any more history on Snow or Tigris.