a deep dive into why the ballad of songbirds & snakes book is better than the movie 🐍 *spoilers*

[@AClockworkReader]

Thanks to Book of the Month for sponsoring today's video! Go to www.bookofthemonth.com/?Partner&Social&December to get your first book for $5 with code SWEATER

[@drgulkhankhan9599]

Are you giving a giveaway? On telegram?? Is that you the exact Dp ... please reply so that I'll know thats really you

[@potatoesvevo9465]

I hate how in the movie, after sejanus dies, it shows snow crying while looking at a photo of them, but in the book he cries for himself about how HE IS NEXT and doesn’t actually feel remorse for sejanus. It makes the audience think he lost someone he cared about when all through the book, snow constantly describes how much he hates sejanus. And the fact that the photo was actually one of sejanus and Marcus in district 2 that solidified Coriolanus’s choices in his mind

[@AClockworkReader]

this was one of the points in my notes that i wanted to talk about but i didn’t have time, because YES. EXACTLY. his reaction after sejenus dies is so telling of how little he cares about him. there’s literally a line where he says something like “he was giving sejenus an opportunity to change his behavior but he never did so maybe it’s better this way” as if he did him a favor by turning him in. and then going through his things, eating his mom’s cookies??? and yes!! the fact that it’s a picture of him and marcus!!!! it changes the whole meaning of that scene and so much about their relationship, it’s INFURIATING!!

[@Yibambe.]

Yes, I didn't like how the film made Snow more sympathetic than he really was. He never cared about Sejanus. He never cared about Lucy Gray, but constantly internally referred to her as a possession. She was "his," not a human being with autonomy. I don't think he killed Sejanus, though. Sejanus was a dead man walking, constantly putting himself in the crosshairs.

[@liaq9615]

I also wish they showed Snow mooching off of Senjanus’s mother’s hospitality and food, prior to them paying for his schooling. I think it added to Snow using others and still making the decision to report Sejanus while being fed by Sejanus’s family. To know how giving his mother was and still taking advantage of her kindness and generosity after getting her son killed says a lot about how Snow justifies his actions and puts his needs first

[@user-ib1is7ny7r]

@@Yibambe.yes, people left the theaters saying he killed his best friend 😂 coryo HATED sejanus’ guts from day 1!! in fact in the book he refers to Festus as his best friend

[@user-ib1is7ny7r]

@@liaq9615oof yes him pretending to be nice to her while thinking awful things about her while he ate her food was so…. he’s such a dick! 😭

[@RandiBurdette]

I loved the moment where Maude Ivory brings up the katniss roots and Lucy Gray says “it’s not time yet”. Like tiny foreshadowing is so good

[@honestlytho426]

And when she uses the excuse to get away from him, he says they aren't ready, and she says a lot can change in 2 weeks. Ugh, my heart! I felt so bad for her, being betrayed by him

[@foxial5358]

It was a nice direct reference to the protagonist of the HG triology, but I feel like if they just called those plants as swamp potatoes, it´d have been more subtle and not too on the nose though like it often tends to be in YA novels...

[@bridgetrexhausen8189]

One thing that also bummed me out more than anything was the way the ending was done. The relationship Snow has with the Plinths after Sejanus is absolutely sickening to read. He literally calls Mrs. Plinth "Ma" and functions as a replacement for Sejanus. I think it was mentioned in the movie that the Plinths paid for his schooling, but not how deep that connection went. I really think that would have highlighted his character and it was totally doable in the movie. That was my biggest disappointment

[@liaq9615]

Agree!! And how he ate her treats when he was in District 12 and STILL felt okay turning in her son and taking advantage of her kindness afterwards

[@ooolll8902]

I think that part really shows that Snow is a sociopath.

[@NeyamRye]

Bro was a menace

[@user-vf2yp3lw5p]

please, i found that part so repulsive and extremely important to highlight how irredeemable snow is

[@atvicentex]

The fact that lucy gray explicitly said that she was the last loose end and still people dont understand the ending shows me why they made her say it hahahah

[@AClockworkReader]

that’s fair loll

[@CassTeaElle]

Right? I'm so tired of dumb people ruining great subtlety in writing 😑

[@LudmilaT.]

The movie kinda makes it seem as if she's the one who turned on him and hurt him with the snake before he had any intention of hurting her. If of course you don't think about the fact that she realized he's about to kill her.

[@emmakaren7459]

I found Sejanus a bit more complicated. He’s very sympathetic, but his privilege makes him a bit difficult to fully root for. That he calls out for his mother when he dies speaks to the way, unlike Katniss or Lucy Gray, who was forced to grow up fast, he stays a child despite everything because his parents has been able to keep him safe. He doesn’t feel the threat of standing up for the districts because he hasn’t had to truly risk anything while he was in the capitol. His death is tradgic, but I think it’s intentional that his naiveté largely becomes his downfall Edit: a lot of the responses to this comment lowkey annoy me, like, by all means disagree with me, but disagree with what I actually said, not what you imagined I said

[@rebekkastrand9991]

Agreed! When he was eventually hanged in the book, i didnt get that emotional about it at all, because I was waiting for it, not understanding how he could possible survive for that long, saying and doing all the shit he did. I didnt want him to die obviously, and I guess the capitol people were only waiting for an opportunity like Snow handed them to kill him off.

[@abbirichardson7716]

Definitely agree. It made it a lot harder for me to like him. Of course, Snow’s perspective being the one you see everyone through does make it much harder since he hates everyone but that in particular just makes it easy to dislike him.

[@sweetviolents29]

Agreed. I don’t think Suzanne was being subtle about how she wanted us to think of both Coriolanus and Sejanus as buttholes.

[@alexamurray1800]

I don't know; I feel like given the nature of what's happening in the book, the things he does are still important even if they might not be the most extreme form of resistance imaginable. (I also feel that in this series it is more important whether or not characters do the right thing or resistant than whether or not they're independent)

[@sweetviolents29]

@@alexamurray1800 That's a valid perspective. I wouldn't call him unimportant, but he's a lamb who isn't savvy enough to notice he's fallen in among wolves. Of course we readers all want a gentle world suited for lambs as sweet as him, but his resistance doesn't end up contributing to the creation of that world. In fact, his execution ends up being critical to Snow's rise to power. It's sad, ironic and yes, important, but he causes a lot of trouble on his way out for people who know better because of his naivete (which imo is part from privilege, and part from a thickheaded unwillingness to see power for what it is)

[@oscammed7712]

did anyone notice that it was mentioned that coryo’s father died in the district 12 forest and at the end of the plot the district 12 forest is where coryo decided to regain his fathers values as if continuing his legacy from where he died

[@foxial5358]

It was only in the movie though. In the book, it´s never told where Snow´s father died, District 12 was never mentioned.

[@mintyddeonu]

finally someone who doesn't believe katniss and lucy grey are related somehow. I was so annoyed at the theories that they may be related somehow. I love the idea that katniss is just some random girl who reminded snow of lucy grey. it's much better than them being related

[@Yibambe.]

It's a larger world out there when not every single character knows each other. Although I think Maude Ivory is Katniss' grandmother because of how she is described in the book.

[@cyagami90]

Ya theyre for sure from the same people especially being doomed to the seam but i thought it was stupid how people immediately jump to direct relation

[@kora824]

I think it’s more funny to imagine that Snow also had this theory and tried to look into Katniss’ family tree like is Lucy Gray just chilling in District 12 like nothing happened wtf only to find out Katniss is just another random district 12 girl put on this Earth to make him paranoid again like every time he encounters a district 12 woman it signals a negative change coming in his life

[@Yibambe.]

@@kora824 Love this idea!

[@KiraFriede]

They're only relation is that they were both a tribute of district 12. And even that bothered me a little bit.

[@gracevining220]

im so proud of lucy gray she literally haunted snow for the rest of his life AS SHE SHOULD

[@Yibambe.]

Yes, but I think that a lot of people fail to see that Snow really won. He spent 65 years after the events of the novel, oppressing Panem and he was close to death anyway when he was captured and killed.

[@Alexandra-wp2qo]

​@@Yibambe. I was thinking the same thing, he did his thing for a lifetime and was already sick. Plus, at the end of the prequel book he says he's glad she disappeared and that she will be forgotten soon.. So I don't think he feels haunted at all

[@foxial5358]

To be fair, in the book, it doesn´t look like Snow cared that much. He literally says in the last chapter that he doesn´t care whether she died or not, as long as she stays out of his way. The opposite of love is indifference. And Lucy Gray is forgotten, she literally was erased from the history books. And she´s still dead, that´s why she sang the "Hanging tree" song after Snow shot at her, because the revelation of the song is that the speaker is actually a dead person. Snow is the true winner of the 10th Hunger Games, unlike any of the tributes, that´s why the prequel was his story.

[@mk-vg6vg]

the last thing you talked about criticising the dystopian governments etc. , i thought about a similar thing where they changed the whole beginning of the games scene, in the book there was no bloodbath, everyone just ran in different directions and nothing happened for a while, but in the movie they changed it completely, how there was lots of action, everyone fighting and attacking lucy gray where i thought it was quite important to keep it like it was in the book, and it really was ironic how they literally changed it for entertainment purposes so to say

[@AClockworkReader]

YES!! exactly this!!

[@KiraFriede]

Especially because one of the main issues of the early games was that they were boring. So we were supposed to see a boring game.

[@NeyamRye]

​@@KiraFriede exactly

[@hodae4943]

everything from 18:42 to 20:43 needs to (a) be heard by the entire bookish community and (b) put as a disclaimer on dystopian novels. thank you so much hannah for restoring my faith in this community

[@franciskashamshiev3550]

Restoring our faith! Yes. And Thank you. Sometimes I wonder why people even bother reading books if they cannot bother applying some thinking…

[@ksenijakodrun1785]

Exactly

[@AnaCarolinaVanzetta]

About that Arachne(Aracne? I truly don't remember how her name is written) scene, what they could've done to make it SO EASY for us to understand Snow was getting a shot "from" the cameras in which he locks eyes with us (the real camera) after Lucy says "help her" and we see the actor's eyes go from disinterest/panic to realisation just for a split second. That would've brought us (the audience) into the movie as hunger games viewers, like "oh, they're watching me, better make it good". And every time he does something for the audience, we return to a similar shot, like we are the capital viewers. That would've been easy, would've gotten the a closer meaning to the book and added a more dinamic layer.

[@AClockworkReader]

that would have been PERFECT!!

[@aliciabergman1252]

What I found frustrationg in that scene was also that it wasn't given the focus it deserved. We should have seen how desperate the starving tribute was, how the audience laughed when Arachne was taunting her with the food. They could really have made that scene suspenseful and uncomfortable. Actually I think they should make the whole movie more uncomfortable to watch not just grandiose action.

[@brookiie]

I also hated how they missed out on the big moments he actually does do something not for himself like when he goes to send the water to scare jessup away and instead lystrata says wait let me instead in the movies he turns to her and asks her and is like “he’s gonna die anyways” it’s one of the only moments he doesn’t truly appear to be thinking of himself he literally is like I have to help lucy gray it was minor moments like that that made me think wow he could’ve decided to be good if he really wanted to

[@NeyamRye]

Yessss

[@MLBedits4U-bc1sp]

(i know this was 8 months ago but) i feel like for this scene they could've made it much more obvious he was doing it for the camera's, like when arachne dies he could look over and be shocked, but not like a "oh no Arachne is dying!!!" more like a "OH MY GOD SOMEONE DIED!!!" and then the scene could heavily show him looking at the camera, realizing theres a camera there and THEN run over to her, that would've been an easy way to show he was just doing it for the cameras

[@fatalynn7]

How in the world can ANYONE have read that book and accuse Collins of trying to make Snow sympathetic? It’s mind blowing.

[@ppking8534]

Its so wild to me bc u get red flags like right off the bat. First chapter even. I knew it was going to be bad and it still caught me off guard lmao.

[@CassTeaElle]

Honestly, idk what people who have read the book are saying, but for me that was more of a concern I had before I read the book, and partially due to the response of all of the girls who I saw talking about Coryo online and romanticizing him. It put me off reading the book for so long, because I thought that was gross. But I should have just trusted Suzanne Collins. She's a fantastic author. I just read the book last month and absolutely loved it.

[@rueluxprince6982]

It's the American Psycho/Yellowface of unsympathetic narration. Every other sentence I was annotating "yikes man!" right next to it.

[@melinaornella8024]

I LOVE how you emphasize the hunger as a driving force in this book and in the original trilogy, and I think it's really interesting how both Snow and Katniss relate to their hunger: Katniss fights to survive, she takes the responsability of feeding herself and her family literally into her own hands and that's why she hunts, but Snow thinks he is entitled to his share of food, and maybe that's why he manupilates and uses everyone and everything around him without a second thought, the world owns him his food, and he will make them (the districts) pay for his hunger.

[@effpng]

great analysis!!

[@NeyamRye]

Exactly

[@foxial5358]

Katniss and Snow make a great hero-villain parallel when it comes not only to starvation they endured and how it affected them, but also their thoughts, family backgrounds and reactions parallel each other throughout the prequel.

[@aliciabergman1252]

I agree with everything you said but I'm also surprised how NOBODY mentions how they twisted the other tributes, especially Coral, to be brutal murderers and not just kids trying to survive. By doing this they played into the idea of the bloodthirsty district members and Gaul's idea of "humanity undressed" . Hollywood clearly wants a villian in the games and it can't just be the capitol. I would love to see an adaptation that tries to be more grounded like the first triology was, that makes it more of a psychological drama than a romance/action movie.

[@pdrtplanet]

I so agree!!! The other tributes are NOT villains and they shouldn’t be portrayed as sucj

[@naiapulotu7760]

THIS!! a HUGE part to me is how they do not want to participate and the movie made it seem like they did!

[@audreythoman9289]

Yes! I also feel as if, in trilogy, the whole point of career packs was that they were specially trained and wanted the glory that came with being a victor. In the prequel, the Games didn't have that level of prestige, so I personally find it less plausible that children would behave in the way as shown in the movies? In the books, they kind of seemed confused and lost, and just sort of killed to survive. I believe that snow would have done something to cultivate career packs acting this way, as it makes the games more marketable and fun when people are betting on victors. Also, on the flip side, there's the underdogs. The books did a really good job of subtly showing how much the games changed because of snow/what he exactly did to make them a spectacle. It feels like they just wanted a villain in the arena, when the books deliberately didn't give us one - even reaper, who is a favourite to win and even the runner up, and therefore Lucy Gray's biggest competition, sort of comes across as sympathetic. But the movies didn't show him apologising in advance for killing everyone (which he did and promised to make it quick and painless I think?) Also, wasn't it the district 1 and 2 kids who escaped during the bombing? Snow mentions something about how Lucy Gray's biggest competition was gone I think there's an aspect of them favouring d1 and d2, but still - they all seemed more like unprepared and innocent children then in katniss' time - which again, snow's doing

[@xdaisy3408]

yeah, like at the end of the hunger games arena fights, when Coral was dying in the movie by snakes, she said something a long the lines of "don't make it be a waste that i've killed all those people for me to just die by snakes" which means that she probably regretted it and killed people only by means of survival.

[@Glamuel]

YES YES I hated how movie Coral seemed so vicious, she did not give that impression to me in the book at all.

[@Mohammadzabuasi]

I live in Palestine and I decided to read The hunger games for the first time when everything started in October and then I read the prequel In November and so many quotes and parallels to what’s happening right now really broke my heart, I’m living these things and I’m seeing my people live these things and seeing how so many people enjoy and love the series and not realize or want to acknowledge this parallel of it and the real world is honestly sad. I swear I would be reading a scene and then like discuss it with my sister and tell her omg this is exactly what’s happening right now or omg this describes my feelings right now, so yeah reading is political, and especially a dystopian that’s literally about these subjects. These 4 books honestly opened my mind like no other book could and also just delivered the hard truth Suzanne Collins wanted to deliver and get people to open their eyes to. Edit: I already watched The hunger games movies before but it was my first time reading and watching the movies as a full grown adult.

[@luvneojen]

great insight, wishing you and your family safety and health

[@Mohammadzabuasi]

@@luvneojen Thank you so much

[@user-ij9og8cy8u]

it’s insane how people read the series and still turn a blind eye towards the genocide! hoping you and your loved ones are safe and always praying for a free palestine 🤲

[@anakhanair_]

Take care , Praying for Palestine. Love from India❤️🍉

[@sitharas5206]

Hope you and your people get justice. From river to the sea, Palestine will be free❤

[@dobibear]

the epigraphs in the begining immediately made me see the book for what it is and i found susan collins exploration of these politcial theories GENIUS. i see how not everyone would want to read 500 pages about the roles of human nature. i think that's the main reason a large part of the hunger games fanbase hated mocking jay. i get why 2020 booktube thought we didn't need a book about snow. but understanding the logic behind implimenting terrible policy decisions that have huge ramifications is important. seeing the psyche of someone like this, when there are so many people in politics today EXACTLY LIKE THIS. this book basicially questions why we all loved the hunger games back then and even to this day. it adds SO MUCH the original trilogy. you have to examine the intention of the story and question if we are any better than the capital.

[@AClockworkReader]

fully agree!!!

[@user-ib1is7ny7r]

suzanna truly had something to say !! 👏🏼

[@franciskashamshiev3550]

I agree so much. I wish this was the first book in release order too, not only chronologically. Maybe people could have seen better what was the trilogy actually about.

[@matcha.cinnamon]

" you cant care about fiction characters who are resisting violent oppression & not care about real people who are resisting violent oppression" 👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽 so well said!! ive been thinking this for a while now while watching a few big booktubers read the series and post about loving the book & movie but have also been super silent about palestine right now for the last two months. ill never understand how people can read HG and Ballad and not connect it to the world and whats going on currently.

[@lesbiangoddess290]

Right?! Whats not clicking?

[@myas.6485]

Its because The Ballad is viewed from a white lens. Its viewed as fictional oppression focused on the liberation of WHITE PEOPLE. People would care a lot less if Suzanne Collins had written Katniss and Lucy as Indigenous (Which makes a LOT more sense). There's a reason the same people who LOVE the Hunger Games and imagine themselves as part of District 12 don't give a shit about the Palestinian genocide or hundreds of years of oppression in the Americas.

[@kpopnimation]

Because no one should feel obligated to speak on subjects they don’t want to? If I had a KZbin channel, I’d keep any politics/news out of my videos because that really isn’t the purpose of my channel.

[@honeybun8823]

You can still care about a topic while not talking about it online, especially when it’s something that’s so controversial and is getting people fired for talking about it.

[@myas.6485]

@@honeybun8823 Be SOOOOO fr. Especially when the topic people are talking about is FICTIONAL ONE about the FAKE OPPRESSION OF MAGICAL WHITE PEOPLE.

[@dobibear]

also! i adore the use of music in the hunger games and i am so glad susan came back to expand on that in ballad! rebellions are built on hope and music can fuel that hope. the hanging tree in mocking jay is so powerful and seeing it's origins, how lucy's music lives on, how it becomes a part of taking snow down. it gives me goosebumps truly.

[@AClockworkReader]

yesss!!! it’s such a fantastic part of the story!

[@zohalarbabzada9654]

A big part of the story as well is that he was manipulated by Dr. Gaul all the way through to the point that he doesn't even realise it. Like she really twisted everything in his path to lead him toward her side. Examples: 1. Making Snow go and get Sejanus -> the reasoning for it is honestly pretty weak when you think about it. I am convinced she wanted him to go in there so he could see the Games in real life and with the likely implication he might end up hurting or even killing someone in order to escape. 2. Getting Snow to write proposals to her for the Games -> she didn't have to do that, but she saw he had potential and creative talent. And by him having to think about the Games from the point of view of how to make it more marketable, he's likely to be pushed toward the side of fully supporting the games and making them more barbaric. 3. Recommending for Snow to be a Peacekeeper so he could see the "reality" of the districts 4. Taking him under her wing at the Capitol for University study -> sealing the deal that he'll be her successor in a way. And that's part of nurture -> people around you influence who you become and he was somewhat influenced by the good people in his life like Sejanus and Lucy Gray and Tigress, but in the end, Dr Gaul was the one that had the power and influence to shape him more. And he's already conditioned to an extent just by living in the Capitol.

[@Tiny_Forest]

And adding to that: the manipulation by grown ups puts emphasis on how he's a child, a boy who's under the constant pressure of needing food and (in his eyes) to keep up appearances. He is absolutely manipulated, which is a very big amount of nurture, like you mention. With him having never known much else aside from manipulation, it's not strange that his egocentric and manipulative tendencies get so prominent. This is not to excuse his choices - they are very much choices, even though made by a child who doesn't know much else - but it is to say that the book humanizes him already in a very sophisticated, subtle way and it's sad to think that the people who made the movie thought that they had to make the story more digestible to be able to sell it. Like Hannah said at the end: it takes away from the very message of the story, which is about nature/nurture, the essence of the human being and pretty much just growing up and making choices _for which you are responsible_.

[@franciskashamshiev3550]

Also, how his grandma’s manipulate him to become ambitious by constant saying how the Shows have been and are special, belong on the top. Moreover Coriolanus recall annoyed that his grandma literally says every time “when Coriolanus become a president”.

[@melodyosorio2527]

Nobody I know reads, so I finally get to "discuss my opinions with someone" lol

[@spencer7151]

One thing that I also deeply loved about the book that I haven't heard in this video (it is also a very small detail so I dont blame you for not talking about that because if you had, the video would have been 6hours long) is the relationship between Coriolanus and his parents. Especially in the end, where he throws away the box from his mother and keeps the compass of his father and how he slowly but surely drifts away from his kind-hearted mother to his rather cold father is just brilliant! I loved this book so so much!! 😍

[@LizAsInElizabeth]

I thought this was a great detail too!

[@AClockworkReader]

yes!!! i loved that detail so much!

[@spencer7151]

@@AClockworkReader I have just finished your video and I have to say, I could not agree more! Especially the comparison of the movie and the book was amazing! I really couldn't pinpoint what felt wrong to me in the movie but after listening to your opinion and the small details why Snow seems so more sympathetic in the movie, I just couldn't agree more! Thank you very much for this video!!

[@AClockworkReader]

⁠@@spencer7151 thank YOU so much!!

[@potatoesvevo9465]

YES!! THIS IS HUGE IMO!! The fact that all throughout the book he turns to his mothers blush for comfort and then suddenly just throws it away without a second thought at the end really showed how much he changed and that any kindness he had left in him is gone. I think that should have been way more emphasized in the film!

[@LizAsInElizabeth]

I really think we need the 4.5 hour version of the movie! I really hope it fleshes out how manipulative snow is

[@user-ib1is7ny7r]

we need his internal monologue

[@Oogily]

@@user-ib1is7ny7rit’s literally insanee😭

[@xdaisy3408]

yeah it is really important for snow's character to hear his internal monologue@@user-ib1is7ny7r

[@exovelvet]

& with your final point this reminds me of the reception to Mockingjay Part 1. I think a large reason why ppl largely dislike or feel bored with Mockingjay as a film (aside from the more functional problems with it as an adaptation and as a film) is bc it really strips away the spectacle of the games and really makes you understand the true horror of the world that theyre living it, and truly reveals the psychology of those living there. In a sense, this film doesn't play into the spectacle of the games from the costuming and the action etc etc like in first movie and in Catching Fire (which is why I think audiences loved the CF film so much in particular) and so ppl watching are not entertained enough to engage with the messaging. I agree its really hard to word this feeling!

[@llawliet2310]

I felt the same way when watching squid games. The show grossed over $900M and yet none of that money actually was used to distribute fair wages to the people involved in creating it or to address the growing wealth inequality in South Korea. There was absolutely no public outcry about how this is a real life issue and that it’s causing people to resort to drastic measures. Instead, we got squid game Halloween costume ideas, squid games merchandise, squid games reality TV and that stupid ass Mr beast challenge video, etc. etc. It also blew my mind that such a show was stuck behind a paywall. Talk about missing the point.

[@user-ib1is7ny7r]

it’s actually scary

[@meowmeowfuzzyface3698]

The fact they actually made Squid Games into a game show is truly appalling.

[@bludbought]

Wealth inequality cannot be achieved without limitations on some people. Someone will always be richer. We need to ensure fair pay, but equal pay is not fair.

[@phancgtg7158]

Literally all I knew about this show was stuff on social media with shipping and the “fun” stuff, and when I watched the first episode and got to the red light green light and I realized that they just killed hundreds of poor people who had no idea they were gonna die and they stayed because they literally cannot afford to live. I could not watch anymore the way it was being marketed by social media and Netflix made me so disgusted man

[@morganveller2114]

I have been wanting to deep dive with somebody to this extent about this book and movie SO bad, so this was absolutely wonderful to watch. I agree with you wholeheartedly and I also think this book is incredibly underrated. I was disappointed with the movie for the same reasons, they cut out and/or unnecessarily changed so many small details that led up to really portray who Snow truly always was as a human being. I tell people I actually think this book could be dissected in a high school English class, there are so many motifs and themes about the internal battle for good vs. evil. Even the songs that Lucy Gray sings could be dissected and pulled apart. Suzanne Collins is a mastermind and this book has truly blown me away, even more so than the original series to me.

[@AClockworkReader]

i absolutely agree! i could make a whole video on just the songs hahah

[@frukmel194]

Another detail that I love is that throughout the entire book ‘Coriolanus’ was used, but in the epilogue ‘Snow’ was used. Imo it showcases how far Snow has descended and how he has now (finally) turned into the person we see in the Hunger Games trilogy. If anyone has any other interpretations of this, I’d love to read them!

[@MLBedits4U-bc1sp]

i mean yeah but who wants to write "coriolanus" everytime he comes up in a conversation 💀

[@naiapulotu7760]

The fact that the first kill of the games in the book is out of mercy? like none of those kids wanted to kill, they all ran and the first kill was Lamina putting Marcus out of his misery. That detail was so important to me, but the movie turned it into a bloodbath, which I understand for pacific reasons, but it totally strips the characters of their fear and unwillingness to play the capitols game.

[@Sarah-lv6ms]

This is so spot on. I knew something was messed up there

[@ajcudnik7944]

As a person who is first handly experiencing this infatuation and glorification of Snow, I agree with everything you've said Hannah. It's so frustrating to see my peers and those at an age where a hot man can make them question the obvious lines between right wrong become obsessed with him. The biggest disservice to the movie was the fact that Snow lost his monologue, and I think that is a huge reason where this is all coming from. It's why, in my opinion, Lucy Gray seems more fleshed out because we see her from a birds-eye view, and not from Snow's. She is seen as a revolutionary figure in the film compared to the book because of the different points of view we see her from. Compared to the book, she is an entirely different person. The book displays her as an object to Snow, something to use to his advantage, whereas movie Lucy Gray is revolutionary, like an allusion to another District 12 girl who eventually takes down the man who forced another District 12 girl to flee everything she knows and loves.

[@alexamurray1800]

Well, the book itself doesn't see her as an object to Snow, but the book definitely allows us to see that Snow sees her as an object.

[@foxial5358]

To be fair, in the book, there are many hints that Snow´s idea of Lucy Gray is not 100% correct, but she wasn’t a rebel, she just wanted to survive and was also calculative and manipulative which aren't inherently bad things (same goes for Peeta), she even admits it in one of her songs. The film makers too described her as the Anti-Katniss, but I think they still tried to make her a mini-Katniss, someone who is fierce, defiant and honest. I think by doing this, the film erased the core aspect/identity of Lucy Gray and that was that she is a performer and we never know her true motivations while she´s determined to survive. It made her similar to Snow, but the end of the book showed who both Coriolanus and Lucy Gray truly are during the "mini-hunger games" between them. But in the movie, she didn't look like someone who had a particular talent for survival (she didn´t kill Reaper or Treech unlike in the book, likely they just didn´t trust the audience to root for her if she killed someone, so she only accidentally poisoned Wovey) or social skills. She was not good at hiding her emotions at all and everything was written on her face. Maybe this was to dumb it down for the audience, but she didn’t seem like someone who is an intellectual match for Snow, just someone who could take directions from him and survived just because she was insanely lucky.

[@liswane]

I remember seeing the games begin in the movie and the tributes immediately launching into battle and just feeling numb. The way the games play out in the book are so much more blatant (and thereby more poignant) about why the games weren't doing the numbers. At the start, all the kids run and hide under the ruble to deny the capitol the show they want, to remind us readers that all they want is to survive, not blindly kill one another or be a spectacle. Yet in the movie, there are now cameras even inside the ruble, eliminating any last ounce of privacy and dignity these kids had in their last moments. Imo they should've stuck to Coryo's perspective only, and not shown the games from inside the arena. The whole point of the story is that Snow is so self involved he only sees Lucy as a tool for him to get his Plinth prize and gain notoriety, and he only starts helping Lucy when he realizes she could survive. And even then, he still calculates what he could do to spin it into a positive for himself if Lucy does die. The fact the movie tried to make the games “entertaining” by filling them with unnecessary action rather than the slow tragedy we get in the books really proves we are indeed living in capitol times. Also I wish they would've done the valley song, but you're right, they probably couldn't fit it into the runtime.

[@oksanamotora8413]

I am from Ukraine and I am also rereading the hunger games now. It is really concerning how right Susanne was - sometimes I feel like we are just providing “entertainment” for the western audiences, trying to “earn” their approval, and prove that we can fight just long enough to receive the next round of “sponsor gifts”, but never enough to significantly tip the scales. And I hate to see that while people generally understand the oppressed/oppressor and the empire/colony dynamics, they don’t apply them to the Ukrainian history and war with Russia. I am not sure whether this is Russian propaganda or just general education problem, but it is truly sad.

[@Yibambe.]

As an American teacher, I can confidently state that it's a general education problem. Most people in the U.S. know nothing about European history (but generally don't trust anything that comes out of Moscow). May you and your loved ones be safe and at ease.

[@LinTree25]

Same with Polish history, nobody ever mentiones my people and what they did for Jews, its all about Holocaust, not Poles being murdered for help and also for being incredibly heroic, it's all about the show.

[@Yibambe.]

@@LinTree25 I've actually seen a lot on Polish heroes of WWII, including those who saved Jewish people from the Nazis.

[@greta7191]

I remember a line in Mockingjay, I remember it from the movies. They're hiding out in a house in the capital and eating some snacks left out after watching the video showing their "deaths", Gale says something like..."l never really understood how the capital thinks until now... if you eat like this, you believe anything. " People in countries like the US, Australia...the majority of us are so comfortable, we don't have to worry about where our next meal is coming from or war lapping on our door step. People don't have to use their brains to think about a situation where they're the ones that through the history of colonisation have a privilege over the rest of the world and the rest of the world is going hungry, so to speak. These countries exploit others for their own selfish comfort, beyond what is essential and have a twisted "mindset" of ownership or control of resources, giving things out when it benefits how they want to be viewed by the world or their voters. And I think Snows character is the embodiment of this. I'm sorry the world is so twisted and wrong ❤

[@nune-lt4sp]

The parallels between the books and what's happening in Palestine are so evident. It's beyond mind boggling to see people read these books and root for the characters but then turn a blind eye or even side with the oppressors. Just despicable.

[@nune-lt4sp]

@Patricia-xw3ns 'from the river to the sea Palestine will be free' is not antisemitic. It quite literally means that from the Jordanian river to the Mediterranean sea Palestine will no longer be under occupation because that land is entirely Palestinian. You mention antisemitism has been stirred up- isn't the fact that israel is committing these atrocities under the pretence of making a safe haven for Jews antisemitic in it's very sense? Plenty of Jews are against what israel is doing and protest 'not in our name'. Also israel have done far worse than h*mas shouldn't they then also be considered a terror group/state? And finally how exactly do you expect the Palestinians to 'come through' and get their freedom? You make it sound so simple as if they aren't living under some of the worst conditions.

[@r.h.9376]

⁠@Patricia-xw3nscritism of Israel is not antisemitism. Calling for freedom from a disgusting occupation is not antisemitism. The “conflict” is not rooted in antisemitism; it’s about fighting colonialism. This is just a front that Israel has used to manipulate you and it’s sad that you’re falling for it. In fact, let’s get into how automatically assuming Jews to be zionists and pro-Israel is antisemitism. You sound insanely tone deaf, and the point of the comment has completely flown over your head.

[@beth-beef]

@Patricia-xw3ns"from the river to the sea" does not call for the eradication of jewish israelis and to equate liberation for palestineans with anti semitism is the dangerous rhetoric that is allowing the genocide to continue. there certainly are people who are using the situation to be anti semitic but anti semitism is not inherent to palestine's freedom.

[@Carolina-rd3gh]

Everyone talks about Palestine but no one talks about the Jews reduced to zero in almost every surrounding country from 1990 to 2020. No one. People just care about “my people” and no wonder this is the main opinion when there are a billion Muslims and 15 million Jews worldwide.

[@OceanExplorer25]

I’m not justifying in any way what’s happening currently in the Israel/Palestine conflict, but we also can’t be shortsighted in what’s happened throughout history. When Israel was founded, it was immediately put under threat by the surrounding countries, with threats of genocide and the extermination of the Jewish population. Which is why Israel was given nuclear weapons in the first place. It’s clear that the Israeli government is not treating the Palestinians properly either, but like others who have compared Israel to the capitol is to ignore the history of Israel being under threat itself

[@vixxhexx]

no exaggeration when i say the scene of reaper tearing down the flag almost made me start crying in the cinema. such a uniquely beautiful scene

[@greentangereen]

another thing that bothered me about the movie was snow crying after sejanus was killed. in the movie, it makes it seem like he feels guilty for what he did and misses his friend, but in the book he is only crying because he thinks he is next.

[@averagejoereads7271]

Idk maybe I’m being dramatic, but I feel like this video deserves some sort of award 😂

[@amandadelaney4789]

Me too!!

[@potatoesvevo9465]

I agree

[@AClockworkReader]

thank you 😭💓🥲

[@amruta-fh6tj]

Where's the petition? Where do i need to sign?

[@frongsi536]

Absolutely!

[@tiffanymoton704]

im at 19:52 with tears in my eyes because you are going OFF right now and you are spitting nothing but raw TRUTH. and so articulately too. you're a marvel and such an important member of the book community

[@radabiyukova4165]

Completely agree with everything you said! I read the book and then saw the film and the thought I had leaving the cinema was that it felt like it was Snow himself who directed the film - we aren't privy to his paranoid, power-hungry and narcissistic inner monologue; we just see the charm and the way he wants to be portrayed as smart, empathetic and confident. And it worked (!!) because that's how some people (more often than not those who hadn't read the book prior to watching the film) ended up perceiving him

[@xdaisy3408]

yeah, I feel like I missed out so much without reading the book, now I feel more understanding towards why he did what he did, it was still bad but it was easier to know what he was like as a person and his motivations.

[@moustik31]

Snow writing his own biopic to paint himself in a sympathetic light would be so on brand!

[@fromevertonow5683]

There is a moment in the book during an interview with Highbottom where Lucretius makes a comment about the districts being bestial. Highbottom responds that the only difference between district and capitol citizens is the latter’s accessibility to materialities (food, clothes, etc). They are able to present themselves in a ‘respectable’ manner that the districts can’t because they don’t have access to such things. Appearances are so important in this story (from the shirt in the opening chapter, to the clothes he nitpicks over in the epilogue) because if you look even remotely disheveled, you resemble the uncivilized districts. As if the rating of your humanity depends solely on that strand of hair you forgot to put into place or your shirt that wasn’t properly tucked in your pants. It’s almost as if the Capitol citizens are making up for their lack of humanity with a perfectly pressed suit. Power dressed up in fancy clothes. But “undressed” (to take inspiration from Gaul) they show what they really are: their worst nightmare, uncivilized.

[@vichakshananaruto1423]

Hannah what you need to know is we are here to listen to you even if it's for 10hrs straight...

[@honestlytho426]

The reason i think they do the "let her out chant" be it shows him realizing how much the people love a peraon whos a symbol like katniss will be. That those school kid chanting had power over dr gaul. And so when he kills crane and says he couldnve let katniss and peeta eat the berries, he means it. And it gives more weight and "reason"as to why he wants the mockingjay destroyed. Bc he saw the power of the people inspired. Also, i hate that clemensias character was just forgot abiut in the movie

[@alithunanime4]

One of the worst things they left out was how close snow was to sejanus and sejanus ma, it makes the betrayal and sejanus death that much more heartbreaking I think the movie should’ve been split in 2!! First movie being that games and the second movie his time in 12. I think this would’ve given them the opportunity to include more from the books. I also don’t understand why they changed how and when people died in the games…

[@liswane]

Ugh I know!!! I read the director was adamant to keep it as one movie because of all the hate he got from splitting mockingjay, but I personally always liked the split because it really let them linger on the important scenes. This movie felt like it was super rushed, even though they cut out like 50% of what happened in the book.

[@xdaisy3408]

yeah I honestly thought that the book deaths were wayy better, it was cool that not everyone instantly died from the snakes but still

[@finnkuhn5373]

the scene in the book where Reaper used the flag as a cape is one of the most heartbreaking parts of the entire story and i wish we got more of him from the movie

[@alicetremblay2427]

!!! Yes!!! Thank you!!! I also didn’t like how they sped up the games in the movies and made them more violent so viewers would "enjoy" them more, it’s literally what the book is critiquing lmao. Your playlist is fire, thank you for your hard work 🫡

[@w4r3arth]

I love the idea of snow experiencing PTSD and trauma from hearing the hanging tree song. Poetic justice is always the sweetest kind!

[@AmeliaStrit]

As much as the small changes really impact the movie, the cinematography is incredible. It really paints a perfect picture of what Panem would’ve looked like when Snow was a teenager. The soundtrack is simply incredible. Hunter Schafer was also the perfect Tigris. As for the book, I’ve read it three times and I think I might even enjoy it in some aspects more than the original trilogy.

[@AClockworkReader]

i agree, i also think that it’s visually really stunning! and yes to hunter schafer as tigris! she’s was probably my favorite casting tbh, she looked and acted PERFECTLY!!

[@claudiacaturegli254]

Yes, I'm cooking dinner while listening to your video --> self care. Also, I wanted to thank you because most of my five stars reads of this year are thanks to your recommendations. I'm re-reading The Hunger Games as well, because it stuck with me what you said about re-discovering the series with an adult mind set, and I'm loving it even more. Thank you Hannah, I really hope and wish you have the happiest of Holidays!

[@audreymcneal]

I thought I wouldn’t like this book and it ended up being my favorite of the entire series because of the message! The movie really fell short of all the things that I think make the book so impactful.

[@sakurathornsickle5681]

There were multiple times when I was reading and had to double take and go back a few pages to see the sharp contrast of how Coriolanus acts or initially views someone and then peeling back and seeing what he really thinks - sometimes it’s so jarring it is actually quite shocking to read. Favourite quote from the film: ‘Mysteries have a way of driving us mad.’ I love how much foresight Highbottom has about Snow, that he can see already his ultimate weakness and therefore his downfall. He unfortunately was the only person who was right about Coriolanus and knew on some level that he would never find peace leading him to fixate on watching Katniss and failing to see Coin. Also Snow is set up to not be the most dangerous antagonist in the series - that seat belongs to Coin, and the point of Snow is also to show that he is flawed and also human, on some level not a person who is was always morally black. What makes Katniss truly the heroine of the series is the fact that she was able to discern that he was just a man and had been fooled but also flawed from the beginning.

[@ryleighgoforth5101]

The idea of katniss being related to Lucy and how you feel about it is exactly how I felt when we found out the Ray in the Star Wars sequel trilogy was a palpatine. It completely disregarded the idea that she was a no body and it would do the exact same thing in this series

[@CassTeaElle]

Before I even saw this movie or read the book, I was getting so pissed off at its existence because of all the theories about Katniss being somehow related to Lucy Gray or something. Even the scene in the trailer when Lucy Gray did the little bow made me angry. It felt like they were taking everything that was special about Katniss and just retroactively making it about Lucy Gray. And making Katniss some special chosen one when that is the total opposite of the point. I'm so glad that was all just fans being weird and not anything that was actually in the book.

[@ellie-vg5hr]

I was struggling to clearly explain the movie differences that bothered me most to my friends that hadn’t read the book & you articulated those thoughts SO well (as always). Sharing this video with them now 😂😊

[@xRaiofSunshine]

These books hit different after October 😢 I think I remember hearing that Collins was inspired by past events that BIPOC went through for THG and jfc, the playbook hasn’t changed for real life. It’s honestly scary. I’m also pleasantly surprised that the Songbirds and Snakes book is better than I thought :0 Like you said, I thought this would be a “uwu Snow had such a twagic backstory so sad” kind of humanizing story and I’m glad it’s not.

[@Aerie925]

I loved this backstory to Coriolanus Snow. It’s not necessarily to make him a sympathetic character, it’s about making him a multidimensional character instead of a one more villain. Snow went through these hardships, but it the story shows that he was an active participant in his turn into villainy.

[@inkfleurstudio]

Snow is such a guy 😂and Tom Blyth will pay for his crimes in making Snow hot & yes! It being in third person pulls you away from Snow! You get to also understand his perspective as well as other characters while making sure you remember this is not a redemption of Snow. Also, I will never get over the fact that they watch the hunger games for entertainment which is the main issue of the novels while we as readers are also….reading and watching as entertainment. Just literally proving her entire point😂😭 Editing as I watch: Yes! I feel like in some ways the movie made him almost romantic? Like he genuinely was all about Lucy Lucy Lucy but in fact it was just like, oh, cool, this is beautiful timing. Not saying it was intentional but that’s just the vibe it gave to me. I mean people simp over Tom Riddle (pre-voldy) and I’m floored by that so the simping on Snow isn’t shocking.

[@inkfleurstudio]

@@bubu_maczko Def gave, "Dear stan I wrote but you still aint callin", But the fact pf the matter is to the general population he is attractive which is why there are so many people online thirsting for him and making up excuses for him being awful

[@inkfleurstudio]

@@bubu_maczko 😭Jesus at least these men are fictional ….obsessing over real serial killers is insane

[@PerpetualPrograstinator]

Away from all these fictional characters, the fact that Ted Bundy had a huge fanbase just tells.

[@gabriellalyra3094]

My toxic trait is thinking I can fix Snow, you've brought me down to reality and I needed that bestie 🙃

[@AClockworkReader]

doing my duty 🫶🏼

[@lindakirste4540]

I totally agree! I think the movie makes you question, if Snow is able to be a good person, while the book makes it clear that he is not. I also think, that I am not sure that people, who didnt read the book actually understood some of the background. Like the Plinth family and their story is mentioned here and there but I dont think its done that well. And I also was mad about the fact, that we never got that scene with Clemencia after the snake incident!

[@KMXC17]

This is my Christmas gift. Thank you Hannah.

[@anxiousreader]

I loved the prequel especially because from my pov it shows how different similar situations can shape who u are and what u believe. Snow became the villain, Tigris survived and stayed in the capitol but still managed to get good decisions for the better good, while sejanus died for his cause. And Lucy Gray, dead or alive, slowly became the spark of the revolution and that amazes me

[@lampdevil]

Great video! I am late to the "Snow is a terrible person" party but one thing that struck me as I read the book was that Snow is just terrible at reading meaning from Lucy's many, many meaningful songs. He's self-centered, he's jealous, he sees her as a means to an end (be it his scholarship or his own smitten gratification) and therefore he misses the heart of what she's singing about. He's got no poetry in his soul, no real taste for music, and cannot pick up (what I feel is, anyway) the subtexual "you're a snake, too, you know" that's hiding in her performances. I LOVE it. Gawd.

[@RamRam.720]

1:03:43 "Capital has the ability to subsume all critiques into itself. Even those who would *critique* capital end up *reinforcing* it instead." Disco Elysium

[@monimon4418]

i also liked the original scene where snow put his hankerchef in the snake pit because it leaves it up to interpretation as to wether or not dr gaul planned the senario. because i think that she really wanted to test coriolanus to see if he would be a good heir. i think she was really out there testing and grooming kids into her ideology, snow most of all because of his father

[@priyanshipandey833]

This is kind of a rant but I always find it so ironic that in the books the capitol deliberately pushes the love story down people's throat to draw attention away from the fact that people are rebeling in the districts and then the hunger games marketing team does the same thing in advertising the love triangle to shift the focus away from the actual messages of the books. I also think this has exactly the same results as it does in the story because during the victory tour people of the districts wanted the victors to atleast acknowledge that there was something going on but all they were shown was this epic love story which in turn made a lot of people who felt the injustices of capitol see this two victor situation as nonsense and the shenanigans of stupid Capitol people rather than an act of rebellion and funnily enough I think the marketing did the same thing because people who would be interested in themes like this didn't read the books because they only heard about the love triangle and this associated it with that. I vividly remember asking one of my cousins if he had read the hunger games when I was a teenager and he laughed and said he isn't interested in reading some stupid twilight love triangle bs again.

[@henriikkakamula9467]

Oh my god!!! You're so, so right! I never thought of it this way, but now I can't stop thinking about it. Thank you for bringing this up

[@blawndierex]

I think this book is so masterfully written. Suzanne makes you almost feel empathy for Snow, then has snow do or think something that rips it all away. It shows how he almost grasps true friendship and true real love but his selfishness, greed, and ambition always got in the way. Snow is the reason he never reciprocated true friendship with Sajanus and never really felt true love for Lucy Grey. He is his own downfall. It shows so perfectly how people under such similar circumstances can turn out so vastly different. The movie's downfall is the absence of the the inner thoughts of Snow that show how truly manipulative and nasty he is. There is so much i want to say but this will be way too long if i do. I wish i could talk about this with you in person because no one i know has read the book and that saddens me so much. its all im going to think about for days. i watched the movie almost immediately after reading the book. EDIT: if you make an hour long video talking about capitalism around the dystopian genre i will watch the hell out of it.

[@leannb2513]

only a few minutes into the video but just saying i would totally watch a 6 hour long deep dive into this topic, or better yet the hunger games franchise as a whole 😄i love your super long in depth videos 🥰

[@LizAsInElizabeth]

Can’t catch me now is SO good. It was literally my top song in my wrapped even though it came out like 2 weeks before 😭😭 87 plays

[@AClockworkReader]

no SAME 😭

[@agentarmoire3540]

I would love to hear the 6 hour long version of this. Your literary analysis of this book is exceptional. You bring up points that I had in the back of my mind but couldn't quite put into words especially in regards to Sejanus.

[@mariaparra7568]

I love this so much. Definitely gave so much more than what I got when I read it. As someone who doesn´t have anyone to talk to about books, this is amazing, please don´t stop. 💗

[@CeciliaDjanOfficial]

One thing that I keep realizing about the movie and the book is how we as an audience perceived Snow in the movie. Because in the book it’s from Snow’s perspective and we see how everything he does even if it’s good, is so he can manipulate the situation. But from watching the movie, you’re watching it from the perspective of everyone else so if you haven’t read the books, you’re being easily convinced by Snow, that he is good. So when reading the books and reading from his mind, you see that he’s not true and honest. But the movie makes you think he is because we’re seeing from outside his perspective and he’s convincing the people, and us, that he’s good until the end, when he turns mad. Hope that makes sense. I just think it’s cool how you perceive the story based on the medium.

[@JanessaStuckey]

Fan Theory: In the movie, when Lucy asked Snow what was the third person when they escaped, I think Lucy thought the third person was her. When Lucy was making the Hanging Tree, she was startled when Snow came. I think the Hunger Games made her more suspicious of her surroundings.

[@navreetkaur7]

No ,the third person was sejanus , it was snow who forwarded the recording and when it played at the time of sejanus' hanging lucy was present there and she knew it was snow who was responsible for sejanus's death

[@larazeni7593]

this video is so good!! i definitely want a 6h long video of you talking about these books/movies, they bring up so many important discussions!!!

[@wt4113]

The explanation of the difference in POVs between THG and TBOSAS is genius. I love this video

[@kylaraymone4019]

Girl if you ever write a novel I KNOW it will be meaningful and powerful (no pressure tho ;) ) Amazing review!!

[@ashleymontague81]

I'm glad you mentioned the inner monologue not being part of the movie kinda changes the perspective. It was personally my favorite part of the book, knowing what he's thinking and seeing it change in real time was interesting so that was disappointing to have that aspect missing from the movie. I know it would be hard but like you said with them making him seem nice through other acts it really took away from his overall character I completely agree they are practically different people b/m.

[@chromedend]

Re-reading the trilogy as an adult was so eye-opening.

[@amruta-fh6tj]

Hannah, something about the way you articulate things is so on point and it really hits the mark on what I'm struggling to put into words. The last part of this video , the phenomenon, was brilliant and I'd love to see an hour long video on that as well. I always reference your vids if i have to defend my opinion on any book cause you're just soo good at analysing and then expressing things!🙌 Also, I've got to thank you for your stories on Palestine because where i live this topic is avoided like the plague as it doesn't "concern" us..so you were the one i got to know it from and so I wanted to let you know you're doing a great job in spreading awareness. Thank you!!

[@AClockworkReader]

thank you so much!! so glad you enjoyed it 💓

[@amolove24]

I think you explained perfectly all the thoughts that are running around in my head after reading the book and watching the movie. ESPECIALLY the fear of how the movie would portray snow. I knew that without the context of his internal thoughts a lot of his actions would be seen as good when in reality he’s doing it for his own gain (though I think that Tom Blyth’s facial expressions kinda show that what he’s thinking is different than what he’s doing). I even read to my brother the scene where he helps Arachne since he isn’t read the book and he was surprised at how horrible he really is. Like we both agree that he gaslights himself into thinking he’s the best when really he just uses everyone around him.

[@sharkbait398]

This is my first time ever watching one of your videos. But I need to tell you that you are so smart. Your analysis of these books and movies is very well thought out and worded. If you ever go to college, I could definitely see you being an English Literature Major. Seriously the amount of skill you have in this craft is astounding.

[@CaitlinHopes]

The change from book to movie that really gets me is the rabies subplot. I think it was so much more impactful to have Jessup get bitten by a rabid raccoon in the capital than to get bit by a bat in the train car. It wasn’t super important to the plot as a whole but it did show how the capital was willing to use any opportunity in order to push propaganda. The citizens of the capital were so scared about rabies after the dark days when it had been so prevalent that the capital was quick to tell the citizens that Jessup brought rabies to the capital and not the other way around. It was also a change that didn’t need to be done because it was so subtle in the book. Corio mentions seeing raccoons in the daylight at the zoo (raccoons are naturally nocturnal so seeing them in the daylight is an early indicator of rabies) then Lucy Gray says something bit Jessup and they assumed it was rats (hence why the rat poison was spread in the zoo in the books which lead to LG having the rat poison in the games) then Jessup started to show mild symptoms until it finished similarly to the movie. Having the change to where it’s explicit that he got bit by a district bat just furthers the capital propaganda in the book and is a weird change imo

[@mollyfeltham]

this was absolutely brilliant I’m SO glad the algorithm showed me your video

[@Cirrown]

I love watching your videos and I'll be rewatching this one many many many times. You make so many excellent points that I didn't know how to put into words! I would love to see an entire series of you discussing every hunger games book, it would be so amazing to watch. P.S. I've also reentered my hunger games obsession and I am living and breathing these books. Currently on my second re-read in the last three weeks.

[@skthereader5981]

This is now my favourite KZbin video. The Book Leo's deep dive into Coriolanus Snow is also so interesting and I'd really recommend. Loved this book since it originally came out so really happy to see it's getting more credit for the masterpiece it is years later.

[@elizabeth.487]

im so glad that you have my tears ricochet on your playlist because i haven't read the book yet ive only seen the movie, but ive consumed enough of the hunger games to have read between the lines of what the movie showed and abstained from and i had a visceral reaction when i listened to my tears ricochet for the first time after that movie. i broke the song down line by line 😭😭 LIKE AND WHEN YOU CANT SLEEP AT NIGHT YOU HEAR MY STOLEN LULLABIES?!?!?!?!? OH ENOUGH I CANT. and im still searching for the words to describe how cant catch me now makes me feel

[@AClockworkReader]

i feel this so strongly!! i thought about each song on that playlist meticulously, analyzing them line by line to make sure they fit the story hahaha. and my tears ricochet is just too perfect!!

[@hannahbanana2859]

I absolutely loved this video!! You articulated the things I was already thinking SO well. Specifically the stuff about Snow's misrepresentation; those small changes were made a glaring difference between his character in the book and movie. If you ever made a part 2 video with the rest of your thoughts, god knows I would EAT that up. I would love to hear what else you have to say.

[@ha_limabeanz]

I've been waiting for this ever since u brought up u were working on it I'm satttttt!!!

[@spencer7151]

The last part of your video "the phenomenon" is just incredible. You have put everything I wanted to say but couldn't because I couldn't find the words for it, into context. Thank you! Also I am not saying that I am not guilty of that. I have also watched thirst edits of snow because in my eyes Tom Blyth is incredibly good-looking. But because I have read the book twice now and because I think rather critically about these books, I still despise Snow and understand the messaging of Suzanne Collins. Especially the criticism of capitalism is sooo incredibly ironic if you think about what our society does with book like this. Exactly what the Capitol would have done! Also sry if my English isn't the best, its not my first language!

[@amandadelaney4789]

I think you did great! Your English is just fine. :)

[@lesbiangoddess290]

I so agree

[@BroccoliAndCheese01]

The girlies need help. I think the quote that I found the most disturbing was when he thought to himself that “at least in the capital, I knew where she was”, as if her freedom was an inconvenience. As for the connection between Lucy Gray and Katniss, I think there is some pretty strong evidence that Maude Ivory is Katniss’s grandmother, or is closely connected to her in some way. The swamp potatoes/Katniss comment is the connection for me. She said that most people call it swamp potatoes, but she prefers Katniss… it’s the sort of quirky thing someone close to her may pass down as a story while harvesting or cooking the plant. Maude Ivory looks up to Lucy Gray, and I’m sure that her loss, especially having gotten her back after the Hunger Games, would be devastating. I imagine Lucy Gray would have come up often throughout Maude Ivory’s life. So I think Katniss is, at the very least, named as an ode to Lucy Gray. It’s easy to imagine that Lucy Gray would become a folk legend in her own right. I’m sure her songs and story would be well-known in district 12. So I agree that knowing the song doesn’t necessarily connect them. But with the swamp potatoes, all it would take is Maude Ivory passing down the story of how Lucy Gray called it Katniss. It also continues the theme of food and hunger connecting everyone. Swamp potatoes are an unlikely food to choose unless you’re hungry. So I believe that Maude Ivory told the story, and planted the seed where her child (or whoever else), would go on to name their daughter Katniss as an ode to Lucy Gray. That said, Katniss doesn’t have a colour in her name, so that could be evidence that the connection may not be a genetic one. It wouldn’t make Katniss the chosen one, but it does add to the poetic justice of it all.

[@shartastic]

Pleeaaaaseeee do a part 2. I have been rewatching this so many times and would love to hear more of your thoughts on this book. 💕

[@potatoesvevo9465]

I wanted to make my own video about all the things that were changed that ultimately changed the meaning and perception of snow but I just had too many thought and didn’t know where to start and how to word everything. You did this PERFECTLY 👏

[@AClockworkReader]

it took me a while to sort through all my thoughts too because there’s just SO MUCH in this story, it’s impossible to cover it all. i still feel like i have 100 more things to say lolll

[@potatoesvevo9465]

@@AClockworkReader I’m definitely down for a part 2 😁

[@tiffanymoton704]

i feel the EXACT same way about can't catch me now!!!! its PERFECT. could not have better captured the idea of lucy haunting snow for the rest of his life. chills every time

[@CelReadsStuff]

27:05 I would LOVE to know if Suzanne Collins had the events in Ballad mapped out (at least as a skeleton) to inform Snow in THG books. I suspect on a reread I’d find he never had any shred of an intention of letting Katniss be once he saw that pin.

[@princesadelaos]

i think using snow's phrase "it's the things we love the most that destroy us" at the end of the movie was SO UNECESSARY. like am i supposed to believe snow "loving" lucy gray and her "betraying him" (which apparently a lot of people think) is what turned him into a fascist tyrant? i need everyone to be serious

[@rociocollazo9109]

I mean, if you think about it, the thing he loves the most is himself lol (that and power and control) and that caught up with him 64/65 years later.

[@lydialim-bg7sk]

best BSOS review of the year. you speak so eloquently, your thoughts flow, relay, and hit. i binged this video. amazing job

[@emmaoest4362]

I don't normally comment on videos, but I owe you the biggest thank you. I'm a college student, it's finals week, and I have to write a paper for a media technology class. I've been spinning my wheels pretty much all day trying to come up with something that I haven't already written about this semester. I saw you posted a new video, so I decided to take a dinner break and watch to decompress a little. The last part of the video, "the phenomenon" inspired me so deeply that I think I'm gonna run with it for this paper and see what happens when I tie it with the course content. Again, thank you so much, sincerely, a frazzled college kid lmao.

[@AClockworkReader]

lollll i’m glad to be of help!!

[@Fatoumata335]

I love the fact that you put into words something I've been feeling peaking out these last few years. I genuinely think people simply look at movies as forms of entertainment without genuinely wondering about what is it they are trying to say or the emotions that they are trying to invoke. We've reached a point of mental anguish when it comes to movies and their deeper meanings. I think the fact that so many shows and movies are being produced and fed to us (because of CAPITALISM) , people forget that their purpose is to makes us ponder and criticize the happenings of our daily lives.

[@BooksAllTheWayDown]

Okay but when you said that Snow HATES district 12 and anything to do with Lucy Gray…it brought me back to the first hunger games book where Katniss expresses her disappointment and anger in how the District 12 tributes are treated. What I mean by this specifically is how all the other tributes are dressed so beautifully and 12 is just cosplaying coal and overall underwhelming. I wonder if Snow had anything to do with that since I imagine the designers work for Snow

[@rafaela00002]

1:05:45 reminds me of the Disco Elysium quote "Capital has the ability to subsume all critiques into itself."

[@pi.elviram]

I swear you just capture every single thought i have, make it better and post it on the internet. I could hear you talk for hours on end, it’s wild how brilliant someone can be ✨

[@samanthasteighner1999]

I used to watch you all the time in late highschool/ early college and I haven’t seen you pop up on my explore page until today. I missed you ❤

[@magiiicath]

hannah THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU for putting all of this up, you put so many of my thoughts into words and got me thinking much more of this story! like you, I waited to read the book and I think it was a very smart choice because I did not have the emotional intelligence I needed to grasp all of the meanings this book has. I read it earlier this year and it expanded so much of my understanding of the hunger games and panem, like no other spin-off ever did. suzanne collins is really a genius. you said you were trying to not cry when paralleling the events of the book and palestine, but at this point I was already crying, because truly, how can we go on living life normally when things like that are happening. I don't know if I have a conclusion to this comment, I'm just glad you made something like this. it makes us remind that this is more than just reading for a good time, there's a message, there's meaning, there's more!

[@AClockworkReader]

thank you so so so much 🫶🏼🥹💕

[@CelReadsStuff]

I will be watching this in multiple takes but I am so excited to! I made a video on my thoughts on the book which was recorded maybe a week or two into atrocities happening in Gaza, and as I edited and uploaded it, and started seeing other booktubers like yourself and Jenanie make videos like this, the similarities and parallels have just grown and grown. Even reading Mockingjay one week prior to Ballad and recording my video, it's truly impossible to miss the similarities to current world events if you're aware of them while reading. And like you said, it's been impossible to think of anything else but these two topics and their intertwining.

[@jl94387]

absolutely loved this video. I had such a hard time articulating my issues with the film adaptation and the disservice they did to many characters and snow's portrayal but you voiced them perfectly. I have definitely subscribed because of this video and I can't wait to explore your channel!