forum The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes (possible spoilers; tread lightly)

Started May 23, 2020 by @Gentleman

tune

Has anyone finished this yet? I'd like to discuss the ending with someone else who has read it. I thoroughly enjoyed it, but there are many things I need to say about it, particularly the third section.

Oh hey, I have! I finished it a few days ago and really enjoyed it.

This post contains spoilers.

Ah, I'm so happy that someone else has read it as well! Apologies in advance for this over-excited fan ramble.
I loved the book. I was especially fond of the way Collins managed to make me like Coriolanus, despite hating him in the original trilogy for what he had done. I believe my favorite scene was the one in the monkey enclosure, when Coryo was on the verge of panic, and Lucy Gray told him to "Own it."
But I do have a complaint, and I want to know if I missed something or am nitpicking. The third section, I feel like too much time was spent speaking of his job as a Peacekeeper, and I so so wish that Collins would've done more with the Hanging Tree (my hopes got up so high when I realized the connection; I literally clutched my book and grinned like a madman for a very long time). I would love to know the details of that ordeal in-depth, because I think that event could've been huge. But my biggest problem was, at the very end, did Coryo's behavior change a little too suddenly, or did I miss something? It seemed OOC, the way he turned against Lucy Gray so quickly, considering how much he had loved her merely moments before. I understand that the discovery of the gun and realizing that his future had a chance prompted him to stay, and that he didn't enjoy the woods, but still. He had cheated on the games and done everything for her.
Not to be negative, though. It is one of the best books I have read in a very long time. I adored it. I may or may not have laughed out loud at the scenes with Lucky and Jubilee, particularly when "Jubilee" made the terrible Coriolanus Snow joke and Coryo merely gave a thumbs up to the camera when prompted for his response.
He could not believe this was his life.
I was highly entertained.

I think that his betrayal of Lucy Gray was a spiral of panic, jumping from "maybe someone will find the weapons" to "Lucy Gray is going to rat on me and I'll be hung"
My favorite thing was how the Games and their leadup was shown, they were so different from the Games of the original trilogy and yet also so horrifying at the same time.

I agree. I really liked the way that entire setup was described, and how the Games did contrast that of the trilogy quite a bit. It gives us a good idea of how much the Games grew in the sixty-four year gap between S&S and the original HG trilogy. My favorite character may have been Sejanus, though I was surprisingly fond of Coryo himself as well. Sejanus's hanging at the end was inevitable; I assumed from his first appearance that he would die in some way before the close of the book. Even so, his death saddened me quite a bit. He was a good boy.

I really enjoyed Tigris, but my favorite was Coriolanus. His descent was fascinating to read.

I wish we could've seen more of Tigris. It's sad how the relationship between her and Coryo diminished over the years, to the point that in the trilogy, she is more than willing to hide the girl who is going to assassinate him. Yes, his descent was indeed fascinating. I became very fond of him, and despite being manipulative and somewhat sociopathic, he still had a bit of softness to him that made him— well, kind of lovable, in his own weird way. His charisma made him endearing as well, no doubt, and he actually made a really good protagonist.

I loved the impact of songs in the story, especially Lucy Gray's "nothing I had was ever worth keeping" song!

I did too! I also liked how Coriolanus got jealous when she sang songs about her ex-lover, and when she sang the song about Coryo being as pure as the driven snow. More than the song itself, I liked Coryo's internal reactions to it and how happy it made him. Though, my favorite song remains to be the Hanging Tree, perhaps because I love eerie things, and it most certainly has that eerie feeling to it. As said before, I really wanted more to come of the Hanging Tree scene, of the connections with Arlo Chance and Lil. The scene we got, with the jabberjays repeating Arlo's death-cry and such, was powerful in my opinion, and I enjoyed it tremendously. The effect of jabberjays repeating both Arlo's and Sejanus's death cries was nice, in a dark way.

I love the Hanging Tree song, I love creepy and eerie songs in real life (hello, dies irae!). And the snakes! I'm a big snake person and I loved their impact on the story.

My mother probably thinks I'm psychotic, because I caught myself singing the Hanging Tree song to myself in the shower other day. I don't know if she overheard me or not, but if she did— Well, she's likely concerned. No matter. It's a catchy song that has bore its way into my brain and refuses to leave. I like it, regardless.
The snakes were definitely a nice touch. I liked their representations and their inclusion as well. And, I'd like to just appreciate how epic the title The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes actually is in itself.

If you're a fan of eerie songs, I recommend listening to Hadestown, especially the live London recording! And the title manages to tie into three different aspects of the book, honestly iconic.