13 Revealing Quotes from The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins (with Page Numbers)

It’s hard to resist an origin story. Especially when the origin centers on the villain of the previous stories.

The villain in this case being Coriolanus Snow, portrayed by Donald Sutherland in The Hunger Games film series. The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes explores not only the early life of Coriolanus Snow, but also the origins of the “hunger games” beginning with the first one.

The ballad of songbirds and snakes

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Fans of the original Hunger Games trilogy will no doubt enjoy delving into this prequel where author Suzanne Collins fills in the gaps of what transpired before Katniss Everdeen entered the arena of Panem, while also exploring the malleability of human nature.

What forces shape a person’s nature? What factors can take love and crush it into hate?

Check out my favorite quotes from The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes below…

13 Quotes from The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins (A Hunger Games Story)

1. “Everyone had learned to despise waste. It was creeping back into fashion, though. A sign of prosperity, like a decent shirt.” Suzanne Collins, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes (pg. 11, Chapter 1)

2. “A tendency toward obsession was hardwired into his brain and would likely be his undoing if he couldn’t learn to outsmart it.” Suzanne Collins, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes (pg. 12, Chapter 1)

3. “People had short memories. They needed to navigate the rubble, peel off the grubby ration coupons, and witness the Hunger Games to keep the war fresh in their minds. Forgetting could lead to complacency, and then they’d all be back at square one.” Suzanne Collins, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes (pg. 16, Chapter 1)

4. “The world still thought Coriolanus rich, but his only real currency was charm…” Suzanne Collins, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes (pg. 18, Chapter 1)

5. “And last but least, District Twelve girl . . . she belongs to Coriolanus Snow.” Suzanne Collins, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes (pg. 21, Chapter 1)

6. “The endless dance with hunger had defined his life. Not the very early years, before the war, but every day since had been a battle, a negotiation, a game. How was it best to stave off hunger? Eat all the food at one meal? Spread it through the day in dribs and drabs? Wolf it down or chew every morsel to liquid? It was all just a mind game to distract himself from the fact that it was never enough. No one would ever let him have enough.” Suzanne Collins, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes (pg. 31, Chapter 2)

7. “Sejanus’s words began to spill out. “It’s just this whole Hunger Games thing is making me crazy! I mean, what are we doing? Putting kids in an arena to kill each other? It feels wrong on so many levels. Animals protect their young, right? And so do we. We try to protect children! It’s built into us as human beings. Who really wants to do this? It’s unnatural!” Suzanne Collins, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes (pg. 70, Chapter 6)

8. “Good. The truth, finally. I’ve no use for liars. What are lies but attempts to conceal some sort of weakness?” Suzanne Collins, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes (pg. 101, Chapter 8)

9. “If the people who were supposed to protect you played so fast and loose with your life . . . then how did you survive? Not by trusting them, that was for sure. And if you couldn’t trust them, who could you trust? All bets were off.” Suzanne Collins, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes (pg. 103, Chapter 8)

10. “You’ve no right to starve people, to punish them for no reason. No right to take away their life and freedom. Those are things everyone is born with, and they’re not yours for the taking. Winning a war doesn’t give you that right. Having more weapons doesn’t give you that right. Being from the Capitol doesn’t give you that right. Nothing does.” Suzanne Collins, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes (pg. 138, Chapter 11)

11. “Well, you know what they say. The show’s not over until the mockingjay sings,” she said. “The mockingjay?” He laughed.” Suzanne Collins, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes (pg. 146, Chapter 11)

The ballad of songbirds and snakes

12. “How quickly civilization disappears. All your fine manners, education, family background, everything you pride yourself on, stripped away in the blink of an eye, revealing everything you actually are.” Suzanne Collins, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes (pg. 210, Chapter 16)

13. “Coriolanus felt sure he’d spotted his first mockingjay, and he disliked the thing on sight.” Suzanne Collins, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes (pg. 303, Chapter 23)

Enjoyed these quotes from The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes? Then be sure to check out: 11 Timely 1984 Quotes from George Orwell’s Prophetic Classic.

Book cover for the hunger games the ballad of songbirds and snakes by suzanne collins

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