Birdsong has an episodic structure, and is split into seven sections which move between three different periods of time before, during and after the war in the Stephen Wraysford plot, and three different windows of time in the 1970s Benson plot. Goldsbrough, Susannah (2020-05-19). "The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins, review: less Hunger Games, more sixth-form philosophy". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235 . Retrieved 2020-05-20. Ultimately a story about traps; bird traps, human traps, grief traps. On one level the story of a woman who goes missing, and the man and woman who search for her. Descending into the depths of this disappearance, we catch glimpses of the inter-connectedness of all; the life cycle of animals, the threads that connect all living life...or the beliefs that compartmentalize if we allow them to, a compartmentalization that allows mistreatment and dismissal.

Bob – Irene's husband. He offers to translate the code used in Stephen Wraysford's war diaries for Elizabeth.A warm thank you to Diane S. and Angela M. for introducing me to this novel. My experience is vastly different than theirs. You see, we have to eat, and we have to survive, and yet we must protect our dignity and our identity. There are things we do to achieve those things. But we can respect the land and the animals that are on it. Always be kind to the land, the people, and the animals that are on it. Remember that. It’s the most important rule in the world.”

Yiannas, is Nisha's fiance. He loves her fiercely and wants to make a life with her. He is an illegal poacher of Songbirds that migrate to Cyprus from Africa. The songbirds foreshadow the story of migrants. A sad, heartbreaking tale. Oliveira, Pedro Henrique Ribeiro de (2020-06-19). "Leia o que a imprensa internacional achou de A Cantiga dos Pássaros e das Serpentes". Distrito 13 . Retrieved 2022-02-09.The first stage starts in pre-war Amiens, France. Stephen Wraysford visits and lives with René Azaire, his wife Isabelle and their children. Azaire teaches Stephen about the French textile industry. He witnesses a comfortable middle class life in Northern France alongside industrial worker unrest. Azaire and the significantly younger Isabelle express discontent with their marriage. This sparks Stephen's interest in Isabelle, with whom he soon falls in love. During one incident, Azaire, embarrassed that he and Isabelle cannot have another child, beats her in a jealous rage. Around the same time, Isabelle helps give food to the families of striking workers, stirring rumours that she is having an affair with one of the workers. France 1916 [ edit ] A picture of preserved tunnels constructed as part of the Battle of Vimy Ridge. Stephen supports a crew building similar tunnels. The story is told via alternate chapters by Petra and Yiannis, with the occasional short insert of a section whose significance becomes clear later, but which I felt at the time was a bit jarring. The imagery of the songbirds works well, but it felt a bit clunky at times. I found the first half quite slow but the sense of mystery does build and the prose is often lyrical and the writing clear. There are parts that are difficult to read, especially in relation to animals. And you can’t help but be moved by the lengths that the migrant workers like Nisha will go to to support their family.