Reviews tagging 'Deportation'

The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins

17 reviews

znvisser's review against another edition

adventurous dark medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

As a teenager I once rushed through all the Hunger Games books in one summer on the beach, but since this one came out years later I hadn't gotten to it yet (not sure I even knew it existed). The upcoming movie made me realise that whether or not I intended to watch it, this may be my last chance to read this story without being spoilered on social media in advance (I should’ve at least started a week earlier perhaps, but I sort of made it). 

For me it’s been long enough so that I don’t remember the precise details of the later President Snow’s evil. At some point though, Snow was just a (cocky) kid a bit too gullible buying into the propaganda poured over him after growing up in a war. Simultaneously however, the basis for his later evil is already apparent as well: his character is classist, distrusting, and extremely calculating; as a teenager, Snow is therefore cold and unable to form any genuine relationships. From the start Snow is constantly - and quick at - rebuilding his outward image to control how he comes across in public, whether it is to hide his insecurities, arrogance or cruelty. It’s also shown early on how he is actually able to drop this guard to some extent around Lucy Gray, which makes his actions harder to predict sometimes, and as a result for a more interesting plot. It’s quite a feat how the author entangles you into this story about someone not even that likeable; somehow you still root for Snow to magically take his life in a different direction, even though this is a prequel and we already know not even love (or whatever the feelings were that he called love) could save the guy. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Body horror, Violence, War, Classism, Murder, Toxic friendship, Death, and Genocide

Moderate: Deportation, Medical trauma, Alcohol, Fire/Fire injury, Addiction, Drug abuse, Death of parent, Cannibalism, Medical content, and Vomit

Minor: Suicidal thoughts

kiwichill's review

adventurous challenging dark tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Prequel to The Hunger Games trilogy 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Forced institutionalization, Gore, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Slavery, Torture, Violence, and War

Moderate: Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Classism, Death of parent, Deportation, and Gun violence

c_dmckinney's review

adventurous dark emotional reflective sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Colonisation, Classism, Xenophobia, Violence, and Death

Moderate: Racism, Addiction, Alcoholism, Colonisation, Drug abuse, Death of parent, Drug use, Kidnapping, Alcohol, Confinement, Gaslighting, and Grief

Minor: War, Toxic relationship, Abandonment, Animal death, Animal cruelty, Suicidal thoughts, Genocide, Cannibalism, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Pandemic/Epidemic, Police brutality, Toxic friendship, Dementia, Deportation, and Trafficking

issyd23's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny informative mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Collins lands on top! So glad this prequel has kept its fire 5💥 

APKAB All Peace Keepers Are Bastards

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Addiction, Alcohol, Blood, Body horror, Bullying, Child death, Classism, Drug use, Drug abuse, Kidnapping, Mass/school shootings, Medical content, Death, Gaslighting, Cannibalism, Confinement, Death of parent, Deportation, Grief, Police brutality, Toxic friendship, Emotional abuse, Gore, Animal death, Violence, War, Fire/Fire injury, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Slavery, Stalking, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Child abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Medical trauma, Murder, Torture, and Toxic relationship

greenmind's review

adventurous challenging dark mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

I enjoyed this book enough as an audiobook to have on while doing other things, but it needed a throughly good editing - it’s overlong and completely loses it’s impact for this. 

Coriolanus isn’t a hero or even particularly likeable here, which makes this book a little harder to find the groove into - and sadly we see him as a young villain, more this way by nature than by design. Weak and snobbish, confused by his emotional responses and only ever “in love” in a shallow, possessive sense, rather than being fully present in his own life. Lucy Gray is more interesting than him, and yet we never really get to know her because Snow isn’t actually capable of deep human connection. It means the book doesn’t live up to its true potential and feels confusing to read, with shallow character and a lack of tension if you haven’t already enjoyed the Hunger Games trilogy before this. Snow really is just a boring psychopath after all - and it’s all the more disappointing to have that revealed when you’re looking for something with more conflict and bite. A manipulative and manipulating loner with only the drive to feed his own narcissism and personal survival driving his actions. Disappointing generally, even if I did enjoy dipping into this world again. I imagine the upcoming film of this could also be equally disappointing… or it might be significantly better, considering the much needing edit this bloated book needed will be delivered in film script form. We’ll see. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Suicide, and Child abuse

Moderate: Classism, Colonisation, Death of parent, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Death, Deportation, Injury/Injury detail, Confinement, Violence, War, Murder, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Child death, Genocide, Medical content, Suicide, and Toxic relationship

Minor: Stalking and Alcohol

elenaluisa's review

challenging dark slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

0.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cannibalism, Injury/Injury detail, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Animal death, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Murder, Blood, Gun violence, Violence, Animal cruelty, Child death, and Death

Moderate: Classism, Gaslighting, Gore, Gun violence, Misogyny, Slavery, Cultural appropriation, Racism, Colonisation, Deportation, Emotional abuse, and Sexism

studydniowka's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Bardzo dobra młodzieżowa (i nie tylko) dystopia.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Bullying, Child death, Classism, Confinement, Death, Death of parent, Deportation, Grief, Medical trauma, Torture, Toxic relationship, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Police brutality, Racial slurs, Sexism, Slavery, Cannibalism, Child abuse, Colonisation, Body horror, Forced institutionalization, Murder, War, Xenophobia, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Mental illness, Misogyny, Racism, and Violence