Listen to an extended excerpt from the official audiobook of The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, Suzanne Collins' upcoming Hunger Games prequel! The story follows an 18-year-old Coriolanus Snow as he prepares for his one shot at glory as a mentor in the 10th Hunger Games. He's up against a lot: His family has fallen on hard times, and he's forced to guide the female tribute from District 12, considered the lowest of the low. Suddenly, their fates are intertwined.
Santino Fontana, Tony-winning Broadway star of Tootsie and Crazy Ex-Girlfriend alum, reads the audiobook. “You think you know someone but there are a lot of surprises,” he told Entertainment Weekly. “You're going to understand a lot more of why he is the way he is.”
Listen to 11+ minutes of The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes' first chapter at the link below. The book is available in hardcover and audiobook on May 19 and is available for pre-order HERE.
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.
In this exclusive clip posted on Bustle, The Hunger Games author Suzanne Collins reads the opening scene from The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes. She introduces the book's protagonist, a young President Snow, and his very familiar cousin. Listen in!
The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes will be released on May 19th, 2020. You can pre-order your copy now.
Exciting news, tributes! Our favorite team is BACK to bring us another Hunger Games film! The Hunger Games franchise filmmaker Francis Lawrence will return to direct the Lionsgate prequel, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes based on Suzanne Collins’ upcoming Scholastic novel available for sale on May 19th. Lawrence directed the last three Hunger Games movies: Catching Fire, Mockingjay Part 1, and Mockingjay Part 2. No casting has been announced, but that doesn’t mean we can't start fan-casting once that book drops. The project will start prep once production can safely resume post COVID-19 pandemic.
We’re thrilled to report that franchise producers Nina Jacobson and Brad Simpson are also returning. We know how carefully Nina treated every aspect of the franchise and are so happy she’s back for the prequel(s?). Suzanne Collins will write the film’s treatment (HOORAY!) and Michael Arndt, the Oscar-winning screenwriter of Little Miss Sunshine will adapt the screenplay, after previously serving as one of the writers of Catching Fire. It's going to be GOOD! Suzanne Collins also will serve as an Executive Producer.
The deal was overseen by Lionsgate Motion Picture Group chairman Joe Drake, who bought the original book during his previous tenure at the studio as head of the motion picture group. With the release of the new book, Drake made The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes a priority for Lionsgate.
The prequel movie will focus on Coriolanus Snow at age 18, years before he would become the tyrannical President of Panem. Young Coriolanus is handsome and charming, and though the Snow family has fallen on hard times, he sees a chance for a change in his fortunes when he is chosen to be a mentor for the Tenth Hunger Games… only to have his elation dashed when he is assigned to mentor the girl tribute from impoverished District 12.
Commenting on the announcement, Drake said, “Suzanne’s new book has been worth the wait. It offers everything fans could hope for and expect from The Hunger Games while also breaking new ground and introducing an entirely new canvas of characters. The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes is creatively thrilling and takes this world to complex new dimensions that open up amazing cinematic possibilities. We’re thrilled to reunite this filmmaking team with this very unique franchise, and we can’t wait to begin production.”
“Lionsgate has always been the cinematic home of The Hunger Games, and I’m delighted to be returning to them with this new book,” said Collins. “From the beginning, they have treated the source material with great respect, honoring the thematic and narrative elements of the story, and assembling an incredible team both in front of and behind the camera. It’s such a pleasure to be reuniting with Nina, Francis, and Michael to adapt the novel to the screen, and having them share their remarkable talents, once again, with the world of Panem. I look forward to collaborating with them and all at Lionsgate as we bring The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes to theaters worldwide.”
Jim Miller, the Lionsgate executive who has served as the studio’s project executive on all of the franchise’s films, will oversee the production.
Lionsgate hinted at the possibility of more than one Hunger Games prequel movie in the works on twitter yesterday. “We’re just getting started.”
Order your copy of The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes HERE.
Lionsgate opened up their secret vault of Hunger Games goodies yesterday and unearthed some awesome, never before seen set photos from The Hunger Games firstfilm.
As we all eagerly await the May 19 release of Suzanne Collins' upcoming Hunger Games prequel novel, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, Entertainment Weekly is giving us a little taste of what to expect in an exclusive excerpt. In the short snippet we learn that the protagonist of the book is none other than a teenage President Snow, embarking on his first time mentoring in The Hunger Games, assigned to a girl of a certain District....
Read the full excerpt at Entertainment Weekly. And stay tuned for the latest here!
Rejoice, tributes! Author Suzanne Collins’ new Hunger Gamesprequel novel officially has a name and cover art! Announced Friday on Good Morning America, the upcoming book will be titled The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, and will hit shelves on May 19, 2020.
The book’s cover features a golden mockingjay and snake encircled with a thorned branch over a green and black bullseye background. Ellie Berger, President, Scholastic Trade said in a press release, “It has been thrilling to see the growing excitement from readers around the globe for this new Hunger Games novel. Suzanne Collins is an expert storyteller and world-builder, and in revisiting the world of Panem, she again raises important questions about authority, the use of violence, and the truth of human nature.”
“This cover does an extraordinary job of capturing the conflict—both inner and outer—that lies at the heart of The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes,” said David Levithan, VP, Publisher, and Editorial Director for Scholastic. “The mockingjay has returned, but at a new angle . . . which is very much in line with the story that Suzanne Collins is telling.”
Cover art for The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes projected on to Senate House in central London. Photograph: Dave Benett/Getty Images for Scholastic
ABOUT THE BALLAD OF SONGBIRDS AND SNAKES:
The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes will revisit the world of Panem sixty-four years before the events of The Hunger Games, starting on the morning of the reaping of the Tenth Hunger Games.
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.
On returning to the world of The Hunger Games, Suzanne Collins said, “With this book, I wanted to explore the state of nature, who we are, and what we perceive is required for our survival. The reconstruction period ten years after the war, commonly referred to as the Dark Days—as the country of Panem struggles back to its feet—provides fertile ground for characters to grapple with these questions and thereby define their views of humanity.”
You can pre-order your copy of The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes right now HERE!
Rejoice, tributes! Scholastic announced today that will be publishing Suzanne Collins’ new Hunger Games prequel novel next spring! The currently untitled book about the Dark Days of Panem will hit shelves on May 19, 2020.
The novel will be set in the world of Panem on the morning of the reaping of the 10th Hunger Games - 64 years before the events of the original Hunger Games trilogy and well before the lifetime of Katniss Everdeen.
On returning to Panem and The Hunger Games Collins said, “With this book, I wanted to explore the state of nature, who we are, and what we perceive is required for our survival. The reconstruction period ten years after the war, commonly referred to as the Dark Days - as the country of Panem struggles back to its feet - provides fertile ground for characters to grapple with these questions and thereby define their views of humanity.
“Suzanne Collins is a master at combining brilliant storytelling, superb world building, breathtaking suspense, and social commentary,” said Ellie Berger, President of Scholastic Trade. “We are absolutely thrilled - as both readers and publishers - to introduce the devoted fans of the series and a new audience to an entirely new perspective on this modern classic.”
Lionsgate is in talks with Collins about adapting the prequel novel into a film, according to a statement from a Lionsgate executive: “As the proud home of the Hunger Games movies, we can hardly wait for Suzanne’s next book to be published. We’ve been communicating with her during the writing process and we look forward to continuing to work closely with her on the movie,” said Joe Drake, Chairman of the Lionsgate Motion Picture Group about the potential plans for a movie.
Can you believe it’s been five years since The Hunger Games opened in movie theaters in North America?! To mark this special occasion, we've got a couple of great guest posts from some of our fellow fan site favorites. First up, Courtney from WelcomeToDistrict12.com takes us through the excitement of being one of the first fansites as The Hunger Games became a phenomenon.
The World WAS Watching...
On March 4th, 2012 my alarm woke me up very early to get ready for the first Hunger Games fan event. I was bouncing off the walls with excitement! This was the first time I would be with fellow fans partying up at the Hunger Games Mall Tour kick-off at Century City in L.A. According to the rules, wristbands were to be given for meet and greet at 8 am, and no one would be allowed to line up before that. I mean, Hunger Games was semi-popular on Tumblr, so how crowded could it really be?
Never for a second did I think The Hunger Games would be classified as a "phenomenon." THG was an intelligent story about war for young adult readers. The last phenomenon, in my opinion, that deserved its popularity was Harry Potter and THG being in the same category was a pie in the sky dream. In fact, I was just hoping it was popular enough to get us to the Mockingjay film. OH, HOW WRONG I WAS.
It was pure fan girl/boy insanity. There were hundreds of fans, cosplay, signs, and just all around craziness. I ended up scoring a meet and greet on the fly and experienced the Q and A from the pit. It was clear from this that The Hunger Games fandom was very much alive and a force to be reckoned with.
Only about 30% of the entire crowd pictured here
To get an idea of the mania, here is a video I took of the fans in the pit while they played the trailer. The fans went ballistic...
1 year and five months earlier....
I had to talk about these books with someone. ANYONE. It was quickly becoming my favorite books of all time, and my friends had not read them yet. So I turned to Tumblr and made a page: F*** Yeah District 12!
I became a member of The Hunger Games fandom on October 11th, 2010. I discussed many book events and reported on developments on the upcoming film to be released more than a year later. In this time, things drastically changed. A Tumblr movement called Panem October (the precursor to TheCapitol.pn) had people creating tumblrs just for the district they got put in, and I had an influx of people flocking to F***YeahDistrict12 on the assumption of that it was the tumblr for District 12. Sometime after this, I appeared on HG Fireside Chat and became more involved in the podcast. Back then, tons of fans gathered on Twitter and listened every Monday night. In just a few months, HG Fireside Chatbecame a staple in the THG Fandom. Shout out to the hosts Adam and Savannafor being the pioneers of Hunger Games fan awareness! (be sure to listen in to the reunion show Monday, March 27th at 9pm ET/6pm PT!)
The announcement of Katniss' casting in March 2011 and the first look at Katniss in Entertainment Weekly in May led fans old and new all aboard the hype train. Choo choo! In the coming months, THG fans would break the VMA ratings record (first THG teaser aired), and I finally made the decision to graduate the tumblr to a website. I brought in my closest friends Tiffany and Denise, and Welcome To District 12 became our new identity (and a name I didn't have to be embarrassed about when talking to my relatives). From that point on our goal was to bring about fan hype and experiencing as many Hunger Games events as possible.
Come November, fans were clamoring hard core for the first trailer of The Hunger Games. As a member of the fan site community, Lionsgate invited some site runners to see it early. Not only were Lionsgate employees eager to see our reaction, but they were so thrilled to show us what they had. It was evident how enthusiastic they were about the project and they genuinely wanted our input.
March 2012 remains to this day the busiest month of my life. In between human existence, posting news, and attending THG events I could barely keep up. The month kicked off with the Hunger Games Mall Tour, which was a serious reality check on just how huge the fandom was. If you won't take my word for it, check out what Josh Hutcherson said in an issue of Entertainment Weekly:
The most incredible thing during all this was the way THG was connecting me with people from all over the world. Fans started forming friendships, all linked by a story. As for me, I will never forget the day my fan site friends flew into L.A. for the THG premiere. We were all together for the first time, and there was a feeling in the air that we were part of something special. While these dedicated fans were in town, we experienced the first Hunger Games Fan Camp and the premiere.
The Hunger Games Fan Camp has been put on twice: for The Hunger Games and Catching Fire. It's an event in which fans camp out at LA Live for a few days. Lionsgate brought cast members to sign posters for fans, radio station giveaways, swag from sponsors, and in the case of Catching Fire, put on a screening of The Hunger Games. When premiere day comes, fans get a spot on the side of the red carpet as well as getting to see the film. It's without a doubt, the best thing a studio can do for its film if the fan base is large enough. Camping out with fellow fans builds camaraderie and morale which flows right into social media promotion. Here's a look at how the first fan camp went:
Jennifer came to sign photos at the fan camp, a rare appearance before her super-duper stardom status
The premiere was electrifying. You could feel Hunger Games insanity in the air. The fan area, the screaming fans across the street, the media circus, it truly felt like the world WAS watching. I'm still super jel about my friend Denise being in the fan area for the first film. While we visited the fan camp, she camped out (it looked so fun it inspired me to attend the one for Catching Fire) and took lots of pictures for us. Media outlets like to use press photos from that event for their articles even to this day, and sometimes I chuckle to myself because I can see Denise in it!
There was something incredibly special about the fandom surrounding the first film, and while the fan base has grown, nothing can match the energy and anticipation for the first film. This was personal for me, and it didn't just have to do with the film or even the books. The fan site runners, at least the ones I was close with, we formed friendships with one another a good year before we physically met. When we finally did meet for premiere madness, I felt a sense of universal humanity for these people and the story that linked us all together. Now, things have changed. Time and life events cause us to move on to other things, such as new opportunities, relationships, and interests. For the most part, we're all still involved in the fandom but its definitely not the way it used to be. I like to think it was just one of those things that was meant to be a new exciting experience but doesn't last forever. That is not to say the fandom now is less important, quite the contrary. Life changes and people change. Things will never be how they once were, and we as humans are perpetually moving forward. The fandom has grown astronomically since the first film giving the franchise more support and the ability to be successful. The number of fan sites (Hello Panem Propaganda!) has grown since that time, and we have more fans than ever creating art, cosplay, recipes, and more all in the name of love for The Hunger Games. I have seen my favorite book series blossom and skyrocket into chart-topping popularity, and sometimes, even now at the end, I still can't believe it's real.......or not real? See what I did there?
Huge thanks to Courtney from WelcometoDistrict12.com for this awesome walk down memory lane. For more THG memories, tune in to the HG Fireside Chat reunion showMonday, March 27th at 9pm ET/6pm PT!
Copyright 2023, PanemPropaganda.com. All rights reserved. Panem Propaganda is a fan created and maintained website with no official connection to Suzanne Collins, or Lionsgate Entertainment. It is operated by fans and supported by you, our fellow Hunger Games fans.
Molly ;)
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