The Villain's Not So Evil Story?

Suzanne Collins created so many stand out characters in her amazing The Hunger Games trilogy. I would definitely say that President Snow never made it onto my list of favorite characters, but I think he is certainly a well-crafted villain. When I heard that this prequel was about President Snow, presenting him as the protagonist, I was immediately intrigued (and also just plain excited to read more of Collins' enthralling writing). I can say that this prequel does not disappoint. In fact, it exceeded my expectations with its story of love, treachery and power. In essence, it is the 10th Annual Hunger Games, and young Coriolanus Snow has been assigned the strange Lucy Gray Baird, District 12's female tribute, to mentor. Inevitably, this story turns into more than just Lucy's fight for survival in the arena and Coriolanus' efforts to make a name for himself by winning the Hunger Games through his tribute. Love follows the challenges they face together, but Coriolanus' grotesquely magnetic charisma proves that perhaps love does not prevail when pitted against the opportunity to attain power and status. All in all, I was incredibly impressed with the ins and outs of this novel, how they relate to the Snow fans love to loathe as well as build upon his established character by showcasing his grotesquely magnetic nature. Following a protagonist that was never really the protagonist at all was fascinating. Lucy Gray Baird's character is also extremely interesting and disturbingly similar to Katniss in so many subtle ways. I recommend this book to all of the Hunger Games fans out there (definitely read the original series first before reading this if you haven't already). Even though some die hard fans may have a problem with some of the more intricate parts of the plot, I choose to focus on how Collins successfully gave more depth to a character that, in a strange way, is very deserving of such a backstory.

*Some of my favorite elements of this prequel come from the title. I love how the "songbirds" reference not only jabber- and mockingjays, but also Lucy Gray Baird and her affiliation with music. The "snake" part physically references snakes in the Games, but also can be alluded to Coriolanus' actions and intentions throughout not just this book, but also The Hunger Games trilogy. 
I also love how the assorted songs that Katniss sings throughout the books and movies are given explanations/backstories of their own in this prequel. It gives them more meaning and eerieness than they had before.*

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Some of my favorite quotes from The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes:

"Do you hear that, Coriolanus? That's the sound of Snow falling."

"He slept like the dead, which made sense since it was only a matter of hours before he joined them."

"The show's not over until the mockingjay sings."

"I think there's a natural goodness built into human beings. You know when you've stepped across the line into evil, and it's your life's challenge to try and stay on the right side of that line."

"Snow lands on top."

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