Tag Archives: prequel

Book Review: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins

Posted on by
2

I’m sure a lot of people out there have read Suzanne Collins’ bestselling dystopian trilogy, which includes the novels The Hunger Games, Catching Fire, and Mockingjay. But what many don’t realize is that the story told in this trilogy is preceded by its spinoff, a prequel to the series.

The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes is set 64 years prior to The Hunger Games in a nation known as Panem and tells the story of the 10th hunger games and the events that surrounded it. Something that makes this novel especially intriguing is that it is not told by an ancestor of a protagonist in The Hunger Games, as one might expect. On the contrary, the story is narrated by young Coriolanus Snow, known as the cruel and calculating dictator President Snow in The Hunger Games.

Throughout the story, the history of Panem and the Hunger Games is unfolded, and connections can be drawn between this sequel and the narrative that follows it. I found The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes very interesting, because the reader is able to see into society in the Capitol, where life is perceived as perfect and easy. Light is shed on the history of the Hunger Games and earlier versions of the event, which explains a lot about how developed the event had become by the 74th Games (during which The Hunger Games took place).

Further, this novel shows how a dictator so brutal and merciless as President Snow came to be. Throughout the events of the novel, readers watch as young Snow, innocent and kind, grew into a power-hungry monster hated by all of Panem.

All in all, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes is an amazing dystopian novel and a very well-written prequel/spin-off that gives much interesting background on the story of The Hunger Games, particularly a character perceived as a villain. If you are a fan of The Hunger Games, I would absolutely recommend this book!

-Lam T.

The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins is available to check out from the Mission Viejo Library. It is also available to download for free from Libby.

Peter and the Starcatchers by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson

Posted on by
Reply

Everyone knows the story of Peter Pan, the boy who could fly and never grew up. But do you know how Peter Pan came to be?

Peter and the Starcatchers is the prequel and background of Peter Pan.  It begins one morning in England where two ships are being loaded on the same dock with very different cargo to journey to the remote island of Rundoon. The first ship, a top-of-the-line frigate called the Wasp, is to be loaded with the most precious and powerful treasure on Earth, by orders of Lord Leonard Aster on the authority of the Queen. Then there’s the other ship, the Neverland, a slow, busted-up old ship that will hold an identical trunk full of sand, Molly Aster (Leonard Aster’s thirteen-year old-daughter), and a bunch of orphans that are going to be sold to King Zarboff.  But, at the last second, Captain Slank, captain of the Neverland, switches the trunks so his ship has the treasure.

That treasure is starstuff, and the Asters are Starcatchers, people who try to keep starstuff away from evil people who would use it to do wrong. Peter is one of the orphans on that ship, and when he finds out about the starstuff that shouldn’t be on the Neverland but is, he and Molly become friends and work together to protect the starstuff.  But after a violent storm that shipwrecks everyone on an island occupied by the Mollusk people, will they be able to keep away the starstuff from sailors, pirates, and the Mollusks, and get back home to England in the end?

I decided to read this book because it’s the play I’m a part of at my high school and I thought it would be fun to read again.  This book gives so much depth and background to Peter Pan’s story and it’s a great fantasy adventure book. I’d recommend this to those who love the story of Peter Pan and want to know more!

-Kaitlyn S.

The Peter and the Starcatchers series by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson is available for checkout from the Mission Viejo Library. 

Film Review: Rogue One

Posted on by
1

rogueone_onesheetaSpoiler Alert!

I recently saw the film Rogue One, the latest film in the Star Wars franchise. I have to say, it was pretty amazing. The basic plot for the story takes place right before Episode IV A New Hope and follows the actions of the main character Jyn. Her dad, Galen was a well known engineer who was taken by the Empire to complete the Death Star. Galen hid Jyn away to save her from the Empire. Many years later the Rebel Alliance finds out who Jyn is and rescues her, as she was being held by the Empire for some small crimes. Their plan is to use her to gain the trust of her long time friend Saw Gerrera, who leads his own rebellion but it is much more chaotic and has been causing problems.

She gets there with the aid of a Rebel Intelligence agent named Cassian Andor, however the Empire decides to test out their newly constructed Death Star while the Rebels meet with Saw. Jyn and Cassian barely manage to get away, and receive a transmission from Jyn’s father (the main engineer on the Death Star) saying he hid a undetectable flaw in the space station as a chance for the Rebellion to destroy the evil weapon. They organize an attack on the archives that have the Death Star plans, which combined with the information Jyn’s father told them would be enough for the Rebellion to attempt the Death Star.

This obviously leads into the plot of A New Hope, and it is done very well. I felt like you really got to bond with the characters, but unfortunately they had to kill them all off because none of them show up in A New Hope. It really explained how the Rebels did get the plans for the Death Star, and the sacrifices that it took to get there. This was a outstanding spin-off movie which definitely should set a standard for any other spin-off movies.

-Max G.