Reviews tagging 'Injury/Injury detail'

The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins

383 reviews

ehmannky's review against another edition

adventurous dark tense fast-paced

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

4.5

I think this is a really fabulous look into how right-wing radicalization happens.  From the get-go, we see how someone is nurtured into believing others are lesser, that certain people "deserve" to live in squalid conditions while others "deserve" excellence, how someone can present a facade of care to get what they want. Snow sucks, he sucks from the get-go, but it's so interesting to see the ways these traits, that if he had people around him trying to nurture him to be empathetic, might not have become so dominant. But he's primed for fascism and he dives into it. I think what's so excellent about this book is that Collins humanizes him, and I think that makes his character later on much more poignant. I also like that it shows that people who do awful things are human, and that not many people are as far removed from Snow as they'd like to think. It also shows the Capitol as a place that had to be created--like they weren't beloved from the get go. It's a lot more morally complex than I think a lot of YA usually is, and I really liked it. It's just a really good philosophical work in a YA package. 

I did think at times some of the writing felt a little heavy-handed, but after seeing some of the Goodreads reviews where people seemed to miss the point of this book I think they needed to be. Truly baffled that people look at a book about how a person and society enter into a descent into tyranny and horror and not get that you're supposed to be horrified and sad by the end of it. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Violence, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Child death, and Death

Minor: Suicidal thoughts and War

lilawsahar's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

First off, I would like to state that I wrote a letter to Susanne Collins in 2009/2010 about writing another book, so I’m going to be delulu and say I inspired this book 13 years later haha. 

Wow, what a crazy backstory for Snow.

I can’t believe that Snows family was directly responsible for the start of the hunger games/the development of what the hunger games became. For him to have the experience of how horrid the games were, by being placed inside of them, and he still threw kids in there time and time again shows how truely horrid he is.  Also him to fall in love with his victor and still have the ruthlessness to kill her even though she had survived that traumatic event just shows how he never cared for anyone but himself.

Do not read this book if you think it’ll be a light read. It is not. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Gore, Gun violence, Toxic friendship, Murder, Physical abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Confinement, Death, Grief, Child abuse, and Torture

clara01's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark sad tense slow-paced

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

3.5

I was really looking forward to reading this book as I loved the Hunger Games but I'm quite disappointed. The book is really slow throughout and I did have to push myself to finish it.

From the Hunger Games I know the character of Snow but he was even more despicable in this book. I don't think I've ever disliked a character more, he was self absorbed and pure evil at times. He always believes he's right and most of the book is just him justifying his actions. 

Also the female singing parts were quite weird and unnerving to listen to when being spoken by a man. There was quite a lot of singing, it would've been nice for it to be sung on the audiobook.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, War, Child death, and Death

Moderate: Pandemic/Epidemic and Police brutality

Minor: Suicide attempt, Classism, Death of parent, and Cannibalism

picnicatthehangingtree's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional reflective 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

4.75

A fascinating look into Snow’s journey to being the tyrant we know from the original trilogy, the red flags were there from the beginning. I am choosing to believe

that Lucy Gray survived and escaped into the woods and doesn’t just live on through her songs.

The pacing was a little off sometimes but overall exciting and gripping. Suzanne Collins is a genius. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cannibalism, Classism, Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Drug abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Child death, Murder, Gore, Gun violence, Police brutality, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, War, Addiction, Blood, Drug use, Death, Death of parent, Torture, and Violence

Moderate: Physical abuse, Suicide attempt, Alcoholism, Domestic abuse, Child abuse, Medical content, Pregnancy, Animal death, Vomit, Sexism, Kidnapping, Bullying, Medical trauma, Body horror, Grief, Misogyny, Pandemic/Epidemic, Confinement, Gaslighting, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Religious bigotry, and Infidelity

loveisabird's review against another edition

adventurous dark sad tense medium-paced

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

3.75

i saw the movie first and while there’s much more in the book that fills the story out much better, there’s definitely some touches/changes from the movie i missed desperately here. coriolanus ripping out his own stitches. tigris’ last line about his father. YOU CAN KISS MY ASS!!!!!

but between the book and the movie together i think i’m even more taken in by this era of THG storyline than the original trilogy. don’t get me wrong i love the story of the final rebellion. but i also just adore worldbuilding and seeing the world of panem getting built, setting up the eventual rebellion, at this earlier point is entrancing to me. the way it recontextualizes things from the original trilogy that are already so provocative… the mockingjay, the hanging tree, the unnamed first district 12 victor, the traditions and spectacle of the hunger games… delicious. 

also like. as much as i hate the bitch coriolanus was a more compelling narrator. then again maybe if katniss’ books weren’t in fucking first person i’d be more into her narration and inner world also. 

finally lucy gray baird is the best character suzanne collins ever created and if you ask me she lived a long life in the woods. maybe not a happy one. but she survived that motherfucker i know it in my heart. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Xenophobia, Child death, Emotional abuse, Classism, Death, Genocide, Violence, Grief, Murder, War, and Child abuse

Moderate: Toxic friendship, Death of parent, Police brutality, Medical trauma, Blood, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Toxic relationship, Bullying, and Torture

Minor: Medical content, Cannibalism, Alcohol, Animal death, and Suicidal thoughts

aysha_blake's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective tense slow-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Gun violence, Drug use, Gore, Medical content, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Vomit, War, Stalking, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Animal death, Blood, Alcohol, Classism, Gaslighting, Grief, Confinement, Death of parent, Violence, and Suicidal thoughts

kattila's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Kidnapping, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Child abuse, Child death, Classism, War, Alcohol, Animal death, Colonisation, Domestic abuse, Violence, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Death, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Murder, Physical abuse, Confinement, Police brutality, Trafficking, Xenophobia, Animal cruelty, Blood, Addiction, Drug abuse, Gaslighting, Toxic relationship, Genocide, Terminal illness, and Torture

Minor: Cannibalism and Medical trauma

paigeinabook's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark reflective relaxing sad tense medium-paced

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

4.75

I never thought Suzanne Collins could get any Suzanne Collins, but she did! 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Vomit, Drug use, Sexual content, Death of parent, Kidnapping, Gun violence, Ableism, Child death, Gaslighting, Stalking, Cannibalism, Classism, Death, Toxic relationship, Genocide, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Misogyny, Murder, Toxic friendship, Child abuse, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Grief, Medical content, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Blood, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, Police brutality, Torture, and War

woods_corinne's review against another edition

fast-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Medical trauma, Grief, Death of parent, Animal cruelty, Violence, Gun violence, Alcohol, Blood, Death, War, Toxic relationship, Injury/Injury detail, Classism, Medical content, Child death, Toxic friendship, Colonisation, and Confinement

readwithsarah's review against another edition

adventurous dark tense medium-paced

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

4.75

I loved being able to get inside Snow's head and understand his thoughts and how he becomes the man we see later on. I loved all the hints to the later books. I still don't think anything can be compared to the original Hunger Games but I really enjoyed this!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: War, Injury/Injury detail, Death, Murder, and Violence

Moderate: Death of parent, Classism, Gun violence, Addiction, Animal cruelty, and Police brutality