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Reviews tagging 'Panic attacks/disorders'
The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins
67 reviews
lqne's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: War and Grief
Moderate: Violence, Toxic friendship, Addiction, Classism, Toxic relationship, and Medical content
Minor: Drug use, Vomit, Police brutality, Animal death, Abandonment, Alcohol, Sexism, Panic attacks/disorders, Animal cruelty, Drug abuse, and Death of parent
keelirae113's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Bullying, Classism, Child death, Blood, Animal death, War, Toxic friendship, Injury/Injury detail, Toxic relationship, Body horror, Child abuse, Colonisation, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Death, Death of parent, Grief, Police brutality, Violence, Gun violence, Murder, and Physical abuse
Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Cannibalism, Drug use, Torture, Emotional abuse, Drug abuse, Gaslighting, Death of parent, Panic attacks/disorders, Mental illness, and Suicidal thoughts
mkzach's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Child death, Death, Gun violence, Panic attacks/disorders, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, and War
maxenporter's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Toxic relationship, Child death, Cannibalism, Blood, War, Violence, Toxic friendship, Adult/minor relationship, Gun violence, and Classism
Moderate: Torture, Panic attacks/disorders, Drug use, Drug abuse, and Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Vomit
The Hunger Games series is known to be violent, but I didn’t find it any more violent than Mockingjay wasplumdustsuns's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
This little sociopathic bitch???
Graphic: Physical abuse, Animal cruelty, Addiction, Blood, Death, Gaslighting, Medical trauma, Murder, Sexism, War, Genocide, Body horror, Cannibalism, Colonisation, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Grief, Police brutality, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Violence, Animal death, Child death, and Classism
cluckieduck's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Suzanne is an excellent storyteller, and it was great to revisit the world of Panem 60+ years ahead of the The Hunger Games. I loved the background and expansion of how the Hunger Games themselves were developed, the extra layers of detail showing the Capitol's recovery from the rebel attacks, and the morsels of call-backs (call-forwards??) to the OG trilogy kept me enthralled.
The use of President Show as the protagonist was an interesting choice. It was hard to equate the Coriolanus (or Coryo to those near & dear) of TBoSaS with the eventual antagonistic, sadistic President Snow. I was waiting for such a major cataclysmic event, and perhaps my lacklustre feelings towards the ending are because I expected something major, but I found the ending just...meh.
I wanted and obvious turn of our protagonist from 'good' to 'evil' when, in truth, Coriolanus was always a morally grey sociopath, so there was no chance for me to be shocked into his villainous turn. I wish we could have gotten an alternate POV removed from his own internal monologue to get an outsiders perspective on his behaviours or actions. Lucy Gray would have definitely benefit from some more screen time, IMO. She was an intriguing character and her eventual arc left little to be desired. In truth, I was definitely waiting for
All in all, it just didn't really...go anywhere or provide anything necessary to the overall universe of the Hunger Games. What is has done though, is make me want to re-read the original trilogy because it's certainly been a while!
Graphic: Violence, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, Child death, Gun violence, Blood, Medical content, Classism, Confinement, Death, Grief, and Murder
Minor: Toxic friendship, Panic attacks/disorders, Cannibalism, Dementia, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Drug use, Fire/Fire injury, Mental illness, and Vomit
ginbat's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Toxic friendship, Violence, War, Child death, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: War, Blood, Classism, Dementia, Vomit, Animal cruelty, Medical trauma, and Slavery
Minor: Alcoholism, Panic attacks/disorders, Bullying, Abandonment, Animal death, Drug use, Addiction, Cannibalism, and Drug abuse
katattack345's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
It is far more darker than the original trilogy but I still loved every page.
Graphic: Suicide attempt, Violence, Murder, Grief, Gore, Addiction, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, Drug use, Toxic friendship, Suicidal thoughts, Gun violence, Drug abuse, Alcoholism, Cannibalism, Death, Blood, Child death, Vomit, War, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: War, Toxic relationship, Police brutality, Suicide attempt, Panic attacks/disorders, Pandemic/Epidemic, Medical trauma, Drug abuse, Death of parent, Death, Child death, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Blood, Vomit, Toxic friendship, Cannibalism, Addiction, Suicidal thoughts, Physical abuse, Murder, Gun violence, Grief, Gore, Forced institutionalization, and Drug use
Minor: Dementia, Torture, Colonisation, Body horror, Dysphoria, Classism, Cursing, Infidelity, and Terminal illness
becca_w_'s review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Physical abuse, Addiction, Blood, Death, Child abuse, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Drug use, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Gore, Violence, Animal death, Child death, Classism, Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, Vomit, War, Cannibalism, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Gun violence, Murder, Medical trauma, Panic attacks/disorders, Police brutality, Torture, Trafficking, and Xenophobia
Moderate: Kidnapping, Slavery, Body horror, and Bullying
Minor: Body horror, Stalking, Mental illness, Religious bigotry, Body shaming, Genocide, Suicidal thoughts, and Toxic friendship
rashellyreads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
"Snow lands on top."
Suzanne Collins is the GOAT for gifting us this emotional rollercoaster of a book. Everything about this story, which is in the era of the 10th Hunger Games, is perfect. I loved the little homage to the original characters by the prequel's characters' last names. And I loved the ongoing theme of humanity, violence, and control. "The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes" is presented so perfectly in comparison to what we've seen and read in the original books.
One main idea that really caught my eye was capitalism and the surrounding factors of that. Everything has a price, including people. We see this with Strabo Plinth (Sejanus's dad) and Coriolanus Snow, especially at the mention of Strabo buying everything and the scene where Coriolanus expects money for protecting Sejanus. Furthering this theme, every mentor in the program is a nepotism baby, which is why the main original characters are in such higher standings in the 74th and 75th Hunger Games. As I will mention later in this review, this main idea is presented as a criticism of what we know to be America today. And I personally believe this ongoing theme in The Hunger Games was executed perfectly in Suzanne Collins's latest novel.
Another thing that is so obvious, and I hope they continue this theme in the movie, is the dehumanization of the Districts. It's the most significant thing in the first half of the book. In the originals, the tributes are sent in luxurious trains, they are fed, and given a lot of attention. In the originals, they are seen as more players to be taken care of for the benefit of the games being streamed across Panem than anything else. In the prequel, the tributes are rarely ever congratulated or greeted the same way due to the mentor program. The mentors are the players, highlighted especially by the way Coriolanus refers to Lucy Gray as "my girl." After the tributes arrive in the Capitol, they are literally dumped inside a zoo, symbolic of the Capitol's dehumanizing treatment and perspective towards them. After the war, Coriolanus and other Capitol people refer to or compare District-born people to animals or objects to be owned.
The criticism towards modern America is so genius as well, I can't ignore it. I don't remember in the originals being told that Reaping Day was held on the Fourth of July. When I read that I literally had to stop and stare at the wall in disbelief. To outright write that was so bold of Suzanne Collins. And you know what, it fits so perfectly with everything else: the careers in the originals symbolic of what we call patriotism today, the Peacekeepers and their inability to protect their country symbolic of police brutality and militarism, and the prioritization of the rich over the poor. I love Suzanne Collins for not only granting us a fictional story with important themes about children, violence, and the fine line between patriotism and evil. But to continue to write such criticism about the world we live in today is something I highly respect. I want more.
Lastly, I wanted to point out the small cameos and homages to the originals that are in "The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes." Not only did I enjoy the comebacks of everyone's surnames, but the direct call-out to katniss. This time, not used as a name but as a plant. I found it so funny that katniss was mentioned more than once in the book, especially towards the end. In the last chapter where everything went to shit, it says a lot that Lucy Gray's last words to Coriolanus were about her "finding katniss". Was she really finding swamp potatoes, or could have Suzanne Collins been nudging at the soon-to-be-titled Mockingjay, Katniss Everdeen? That's another thing too about Coriolanus, he hates the Mockingjays but loves the Jabberjays. This shows his undying love for the Capitol, being that Jabberjays were a Capitol creation. I figured Mockingbirds were a metaphor that could be tied to the generation before the war and the Capitol's rise to power. Similar to that, I tied together the Mockingjay as a symbol of those who rebel and work towards a new and brighter Panem. For Coriolanus to outright despise the Mockingjays is not only a reflection of his love for the Capitol, but his hatred towards the Districts and rebels...and towards his future foe, Katniss Everdeen.
Just everything about this book is so fun to read, especially if you've been a fan of "The Hunger Games" since the beginning of the books and/or movies. I can't wait to watch the adaptation and I hope Suzanne Collins doesn't leave us hanging for another ten years.
Graphic: Murder and War
Moderate: Grief
Minor: Death of parent, Panic attacks/disorders, Alcohol, Cannibalism, and Suicidal thoughts