Review: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins

Title: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes
Author: Suzanne Collins
Publisher: Scholastic
Release date: May 19th 2020
Pages: 517
Genre: Young Adult dystopian
Source: Purchased
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It is the morning of the reaping that will kick off the tenth annual Hunger Games. In the Capitol, eighteen-year-old Coriolanus Snow is preparing for his one shot at glory as a mentor in the Games. The once-mighty house of Snow has fallen on hard times, its fate hanging on the slender chance that Coriolanus will be able to outcharm, outwit, and outmaneuver his fellow students to mentor the winning tribute. The odds are against him. He’s been given the humiliating assignment of mentoring the female tribute from District 12, the lowest of the low. Their fates are now completely intertwined—every choice Coriolanus makes could lead to favor or failure, triumph or ruin. Inside the arena, it will be a fight to the death. Outside the arena, Coriolanus starts to feel for his doomed tribute . . . and must weigh his need to follow the rules against his desire to survive no matter what it takes.  

I probably should have read the description for this book in order to save me this disappointment. When I like a series or an author, I will usually read their new book without reading the back cover or any kind of description because I like to go in not knowing anything about what's going to happen. So all I knew that this was a Hunger Games prequel, which I was excited about. If I had realized beforehand that this was a villain origin story for President Snow, I would have been much less interested in the novel, because the whole concept just doesn't seem necessary--I probably would've still read it, but I would've gone in with much lower expectations. This way, I was so disappointed once I realized this novel was about a young President Snow.

I'm not even sure how to review this book because most of my issues with it weren't with the execution or how this story was told, but just the premise of the novel. Out of all of the stories set in this universe Collins could've told, out of all the characters who could've gotten a background story.... why this one? 

I'm honestly confused about what the point of this story was. Are we supposed to be more understanding and sympathetic with President Snow? It didn't seem like it to me, because Coriolanus really isn't a sympathetic character at any point. From the beginning of the novel, he only thinks and cares about himself and is constantly using people to get what he wants. He claims to love Lucy Gray, but he really sees her more as his property than as an equal, and his jealousy and possessiveness of his partner in conjunction with his future or emerging violence as a leader make him somewhat of a poster child for toxic masculinity. In the beginning of the novel, he is questioning the morality of the Hunger Games and the way this world is set up, but clearly he abandons those qualms later in life, so I really didn't get what the point of any of that was. Was that supposed to make us hope for a different outcome than the one we know is coming? Was it supposed to make us realize he wasn't all bad? I'm sorry, but I don't want to empathize with President Snow.

The one thing that I did like about this book was getting to learn more about the history of the Hunger Games. The tenth Hunger Games look VERY different from the Hunger Games we saw in the original novel; they are lacking all of the spectacle and technology that made them what we know them to be. It was interesting to see how they developed and how the elements we saw in the original novels came to be. Seeing the roots of the rebel movement in the original series develop in District 12 was also interesting, and I liked seeing some of the rebel songs and acts of rebellion that will become important in the future take shape here.

However, this background info wasn't enough to carry the story, which is honestly just... boring. Especially the actual Hunger Games are excruciatingly boring, both because they are lacking the spectacle of the future Hunger Games and about half of the characters just die from starvation or exhaustion, and because we read about them from Coriolanus's view as a spectator, rather than actually being on the ground in the Games. The second half that takes place after the Games is more interesting than the first, but still not particularly interesting. You could say that this novel is an interesting exploration of this world and how it came to be, and a discussion about human nature and power in relation to Coriolanus's character development... but it just isn't a fun read in any way. Since not much really happens, this book probably could've been 200 pages shorter than it is.

***This paragraph contains spoilers, although I guess they're not that spoiler-y because we all know what will become of Coriolanus Snow!??***

The ending is super confusing. On the one hand, I'm glad it is clear that, at the end of the novel, Coriolanus is unequivocally evil, because the alternative of still trying to make us empathize with him would have been worse. On the other hand... the ending happens wayyy too quickly; I had no idea what was happening half the time, and what happened between him and Lucy Gray at the end just didn't make any sense. Since their relationship was the focus of most of the novel, I think we needed some more actual exploration of what happened between them and how that relates to Coriolanus's embracing of Capitol values.

All in all, this book was really hard to get through. I felt like I had to finish it, but I put it down so many times because I was bored, and I think it took me almost two weeks to get through it. I really just can't get over the fact that, instead of writing a background story from one of the many beloved characters from these novels, or re-writing part of this series from someone else's perspective, or writing literally anything else, Collins decided to give us over 500 pages about a young President Snow being slightly less evil and becoming progressively more evil. I just feel like this is a story no one really needed.

Review: Coming Up for Air by Miranda Kenneally

Title: Coming Up for Air
Author: Miranda Kenneally
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Release date: July 4th 2017
Pages: 293
Genre: Young Adult contemporary
Source: Purchased
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All of Maggie’s focus and free time is spent swimming. She’s not only striving to earn scholarships—she’s training to qualify for the Olympics. It helps that her best friend, Levi, is also on the team and cheers her on. But Levi’s already earned an Olympic tryout, so Maggie feels even more pressure to succeed. And it’s not until Maggie’s away on a college visit that she realizes how much of the “typical” high school experience she’s missed by being in the pool.

Not one to shy away from a challenge, Maggie decides to squeeze the most out of her senior year. First up? Making out with a guy. And Levi could be the perfect candidate. After all, they already spend a lot of time together. But as Maggie slowly starts to uncover new feelings for Levi, how much is she willing to sacrifice in the water to win at love?

What a fantastic conclusion to this series! I love the characters, the romance, the writing, and the sports talk in each of these books, and Coming Up for Air has all of these Hundred Oaks staples and more.

Maggie was relatable and likable like all of the Hundred Oaks protagonists. I loved how driven and passionate she is without anyone else pushing her into being a successful swimmer, and her friendships and romance are just as fun to read about. The romance is adorable as always; I didn't mind the predictable-ness one bit, and was rooting along for this couple throughout the entire novel. Kenneally's books are always a safe bet if you want some adorable romance that will distract you from the real world and make you happy to go along on these characters' journeys.

In all of the Hundred Oaks books, I've loved reading about each character's passion and competitiveness in whatever each of them is good at, and this one is no exception. I loved reading about Maggie's dedication to swimming, being along for all the ups and downs of her swim meets and training, and getting immersed in all the technicalities and drama of these young athletes' lives. I never get how Kenneally can get me so invested in these technicalities--if you asked me if I wanted to learn about the specific times young swimmers need to meet, how exactly they train to shave second off their times, etc., I would definitely say no--but she manages to integrate these technicalities into the realities of the lives of the characters you grow to love in a way that makes you want to know everything about a topic you've never cared about.

One thing that stood out about this book compared to the previous Hundred Oaks books was the emphasis on sexuality. Even if it was cringe-worthy to read about the way Maggie expresses them sometimes, it was great to see a female character who is so outspoken about her sexual desires. There are a lot of hot and heavy scenes, and even if the explicit message is mainly about it being okay to evolve at your own pace (i.e. to not have had sex yet), the general sex-positivity was great to read about.

Overall, a fantastic conclusion to a companion series of which I loved each one. Even though we always just get one book per character and it's a little different from saying goodbye to a group of characters and stories you loved, I am still a little sad we won't get any more Hundred Oaks books. But I can't wait to see what Miranda Kenneally does next!

Review: That's Not What Happened by Kody Keplinger

Title: That's Not What Happened
Author: Kody Keplinger
Publisher: Scholastic
Release date: August 28th 2018
Pages: 336
Genre: Young Adult contemporary
Source: Purchased
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It's been three years since the Virgil County High School Massacre. Three years since my best friend, Sarah, was killed in a bathroom stall during the mass shooting. Everyone knows Sarah's story--that she died proclaiming her faith.

But it's not true.

I know because I was with her when she died. I didn't say anything then, and people got hurt because of it. Now Sarah's parents are publishing a book about her, so this might be my last chance to set the record straight . . . but I'm not the only survivor with a story to tell about what did--and didn't--happen that day.

Except Sarah's martyrdom is important to a lot of people, people who don't take kindly to what I'm trying to do. And the more I learn, the less certain I am about what's right. I don't know what will be worse: the guilt of staying silent or the consequences of speaking up . . .

I made the mistake of reading this book without taking a look at the description of it beforehand (if I already know I like an author, I will read their book without looking at any info on it because I like to go into a book not knowing anything), so I was expecting another fun, light-hearted read like the previous Kody Keplinger books I've read. And even though I had been in the mood for a fun, fluffy read, and that is absolutely not what I got with That's Not What Happened, it was a great read nonetheless, and I'm excited that Keplinger is trying something a little new!

That's Not What Happened is definitely an emotional read. I've read a few YA takes on school shootings, but none that were primarily about its survivors a few years after the fact. Being set so much later than the actual event does not make it any less heart-breaking; seeing how much the survivors are still suffering from having lost their friends and witnessed this traumatic event was a unique take on this issue and just as emotionally powerful. 

I'm split on what to make of the premise of this novel, which seems to be a fictionalized account of Cassie Bernall and Rachel Scott who were seen as Christian martyrs after Columbine. If the novel didn't have this resemblance to these real-life victims of a school shooting, I would have loved this story and its discussion of religion. The novel isn't explicitly critical of religion, but Christianity is not exactly portrayed in the best light, since many of the very religious characters are complete hypocrites who mistreat two young girls when they speak out against the story they've been holding onto. Parts of this seemed unrealistic to me--would they literally run a girl and her family out of town for speaking up and saying that part of the story they believe in is not true??--, but I don't know too much about small religious towns, so maybe I'm just naive. It definitely encourages an interesting discussion of organized religion.

However, since it does share this resemblance to these real-life people, I wasn't sure how to feel about this. Sarah's family, who seem to be a fictional version of Rachel Scott's family, are not portrayed particularly positively, which could be seen as disrespectful (since, to my knowledge, the real-life girls' declarations of faith have not been disproven?). To me, this didn't really take away from my enjoyment of the novel, but it does feel a little iffy thinking about it afterwards. 

Asides from this potentially problematic premise, I loved everything about this book. Lee is a great character; she's a little oblivious at times, and stubborn about insisting that others' mourning should look like hers and refusing to understand why it might not, but definitely a realistic and lovable character. The cast of Lee's friends/fellow survivors is also well done, and I especially loved the romance. Lee is asexual (which I don't think I've ever seen in YA before), and I really liked the way the discussion of this was integrated into the romance in ways that respected asexuality as a legitimate identity, introduced you to some of the issues asexual people might face while dating, and still made for a swoonworthy romance.

This was a very enjoyable read on many levels, and, even if the premise might be a little problematic, it would make for some very interesting discussion material!

Review: You Know Me Well by Nina LaCour & David Levithan

Title: You Know Me Well
Author: Nina LaCour & David Levithan
Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin
Release date: June 7th 2016
Pages: 248
Genre: Young Adult contemporary
Source: Purchased
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Mark and Kate have sat next to each other for an entire year, but have never spoken. For whatever reason, their paths outside of class have never crossed.

That is, until Kate spots Mark miles away from home, out in the city for a wild, unexpected night. Kate is lost, having just run away from a chance to finally meet the girl she has been in love with from afar. Mark, meanwhile, is in love with his best friend Ryan, who may or may not feel the same way.

When Kate and Mark meet up, little do they know how important they will become to each other—and how, in a very short time, they will know each other better than any of the people who are supposed to know them more.

Told in alternating points of view by Nina LaCour and David Levithan, You Know Me Well is a story about navigating the joys and heartaches of first love, one truth at a time.

I wanted to love this book, since both of these authors are fantastic writers, and I loved the premise. And it was definitely a decent book; but I was kind of bored by parts of it, and it just wasn't anywhere near as great as either of these authors' individual books.

One thing that I did really enjoy was the depiction of Pride and of queer spaces, and the different explorations of queer intimacy. Every single character (except for the main characters' parents) in this book is queer, which was awesome. Most of this novel is set during SF Pride, and we get to see a lot of different elements of Pride, which were super fun to read about. I really appreciated the exploration of queer intimacy; while there is definitely romance and heartbreak, at the heart of the story is queer friendship/platonic queer intimacy, primarily through Kate/Katie's and Mark's friendship, but also through both of their friendships with their respective also gay best friends. Queer friendships, platonic queer intimacy, and queer mentorship and community is something we rarely get to see due to the focus on romance, so this depiction is really important.

But unfortunately, I couldn't really get into the story or connect with the characters. Mark was an endearing character, but I was honestly kind of annoyed by Kate/Katie (I was very confused by the way she insists on being called Kate, yet the book itself refers to her as Katie...) throughout the novel. Her inability to communicate was super frustrating, and her whole identity crisis about not wanting to go study art anymore just seemed really random because we never get any insight into why. It kind of felt contrived, as if we just needed some kind of conflict for her so that Mark wouldn't be the only one in need of help from a new friend.

I also found the instant friendship between Katie/Kate and Mark to be unrealistic and overly emphasized-the concept of this new friendship was cool, but did they need to start doing *everything* together--including going on Kate's dates--as soon as they met!? I understand how it's necessary for the premise, but the whole concept of them immediately becoming best friends after spending one evening together felt a little forced to me.

Both romance storylines were lacking development, in my opinion. Katie's idealization of Violet felt very manic-pixie-dream-girl-esque and overdone, and Violet never felt like a real person to me. While I appreciate the focus on Mark's and Katie's friendship, it meant that the romance was under explored and never felt real. For example, we barely get to see Katie and Violet spend any time together without Mark also coming along, so how are they suddenly in love? Similarly, Mark's evolving relationship with Ryan just didn't seem realistic.

This one definitely had potential, and I appreciate this different approach to exploring queer spaces and queer intimacy, but the story and characters just didn't work for me. But of course I'll still read anything either of these authors will come out with. 

Review: On the Come Up by Angie Thomas

Title: On the Come Up
Author: Angie Thomas
Publisher: Balzer & Bray
Release date: February 5th 2019
Pages: 447
Genre: Young Adult contemporary
Source: Purchased
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Sixteen-year-old Bri wants to be one of the greatest rappers of all time. Or at least win her first battle. As the daughter of an underground hip hop legend who died right before he hit big, Bri’s got massive shoes to fill.

But it’s hard to get your come up when you’re labeled a hoodlum at school, and your fridge at home is empty after your mom loses her job. So Bri pours her anger and frustration into her first song, which goes viral…for all the wrong reasons.

Bri soon finds herself at the center of a controversy, portrayed by the media as more menace than MC. But with an eviction notice staring her family down, Bri doesn’t just want to make it—she has to. Even if it means becoming the very thing the public has made her out to be.  

The Hate U Give was a tough act to follow, but Angie Thomas does not disappoint! I'm tempted to say I loved this one even more than THUG, but... they're different books that do different things and I love them both in their own ways.

One of my favorite elements of this book was reading about Bri's emerging hip hop career. Her manager wants her to market herself as a "ratchet hood rat" because that's what he argues will sell to the prime consumers of hip hop--white kids in the suburbs who want to consume stereotypical Blackness and gang culture. Her mother and friends push back against her embracing of this part--even though her playing this "role" is not always intentional, but a misinterpretation of her speaking out against the racial profiling at her school and the sexism in the hip hop industry. This made for fascinating discussions of respectability politics, hip hop culture, the angry Black woman stereotype, media portrayals of female rappers, etc. Asides from that, the scenes of Bri performing in rap battles were super fun to read!

I also loved reading about Bri's relationship with her family and friends. I loved Bri's character, and even when she is being her most stubborn and continuously getting herself into trouble, her reasoning was completely understandable; I was just as torn as she was between her desire for success (in order to be able to help her struggling family) and her relationships with her friends and family. Her mother, brother, two best friends, and love interest were all fully developed characters, and I wanted to read more about each of their stories. 

The fact that this is set in the same neighborhood as THUG after the events of Thomas's first novel and that we get references to the events and characters in THUG is another bonus! We get to see the aftermath of the riots play out in the Garden, and we get another great discussion of racial profiling, this time through an exploration of the policing of Black and Brown students at Bri's school. This discussion, and the different Black and Brown students' perspectives on how to fight back against these forms of violence, were also really well done. All around, a super important book; I hope we get many more books set in the Garden!

Review: The Distance Between Us by Kasie West

Title: The Distance Between Us
Author: Kasie West
Publisher: HarperTeen
Release date: July 2nd 2013
Pages: 320
Genre: Young Adult contemporary
Source: Purchased
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Seventeen-year-old Caymen Meyers studies the rich like her own personal science experiment, and after years of observation she’s pretty sure they’re only good for one thing—spending money on useless stuff, like the porcelain dolls in her mother’s shop.

So when Xander Spence walks into the store to pick up a doll for his grandmother, it only takes one glance for Caymen to figure out he’s oozing rich. Despite his charming ways and that he’s one of the first people who actually gets her, she’s smart enough to know his interest won’t last. Because if there’s one thing she’s learned from her mother’s warnings, it’s that the rich have a short attention span. But Xander keeps coming around, despite her best efforts to scare him off. And much to her dismay, she's beginning to enjoy his company.

She knows her mom can’t find out—she wouldn’t approve. She’d much rather Caymen hang out with the local rocker who hasn’t been raised by money. But just when Xander’s attention and loyalty are about to convince Caymen that being rich isn’t a character flaw, she finds out that money is a much bigger part of their relationship than she’d ever realized. And that Xander’s not the only one she should’ve been worried about.

I was really excited to finally read a book by Kasie West; I'd heard great things about her, and I was in the needed of a fluffy romance, so this looked ideal. But unfortunately, nothing about this book worked for me. I was annoyed with the writing and storyline about 50 pages in, and it just went downhill from there. I thought about giving up so many times but I hate DNFing books so I pushed on, hoping it would getter, but the story and characters just continued to annoy me.

So many elements of this story stilted and unrealistic to me, especially the romance. Guys just keep walking into the creepy doll store where Caymen works and immediately falling in love with her!? I could not get into the romance at all; it's not quite insta-love, since Caymen is very resistant of dating Xander at first, but it is insta-hanging out all the time and suddenly seeing each other all the time in a very forced and unrealistic way. Xander is somehow just automatically in love with Caymen after seeing her once, and they feel this deep connection because neither of them knows what they want to do after high school, when.... does anyone really know that?? Basically every twist and turn of their relationship was overly dramatic, unnecessary, and unrealistic. The message about how not all rich people are bad was also very frustrating, because... why?? 

***SPOILERS IN THIS PARAGRAPH***
The plot twist towards the end made me even more irritated with this book. After all this discussion of how hard it is for Caymen and Xander to date because they come from such different worlds and because Caymen hates rich people, it turns out that Caymen's family is actually rich too; she just didn't know that because her mother is estranged from her rich grandparents. The way she finds out about this seemed super unrealistic (she just happens to run into her grandparents, whom she has never seen before even though they live in the same small town as her!??, at Xander's family's party??) and the fact that everyone just makes up after was just a giant mess.

The story, the characters, the romance, the writing... pretty much every element of this story annoyed me, and reading this book was a very frustrating experience to me. Will need to find something else to satisfy my need for a fluffy YA romance with endearing characters and some romance I will actually want to root for...