Sunrise on the Reaping

Starred review from March 21, 2025
Grades 8-12 *Starred Review* Suzanne Collins, what a lore-driven menace you are. Readers are pulled back into the highly acclaimed world of The Hunger Games, as this prequel focuses primarily on the backstory of the gruff, alcoholic mentor, Haymitch Abernathy, and his participation in the Second Quarter Quell, the fiftieth anniversary of the Games. Haymitch is unfairly reaped into the Games (which feature double the tributes) after he tries to protect his girlfriend, Lenore Dove, from the mayhem that ensued during the District 12 reaping ceremony. From there, chaotic game prep ensues--from chariot accidents and dead tributes to intoxicated, useless stylists to a plot to destroy the arena from the inside. The propulsive story features several nods to characters in the original trilogy and connections that shine a new light on how Haymitch's games influenced his choices as an adult mentor. Collins is unafraid to pose a scathing commentary on the active efforts of a propaganda machine, showing in real time how narratives are reworked to serve the Capitol's agenda, help President Snow maintain his sickly grip on the Districts, and keep the Hunger Games alive. Haymitch is presented as a well-rounded, thoughtful character who struggles similarly in circumstance to Katniss; he's thrust into a rebellion but struggling with the seemingly fruitless nature of it under tyrannical authoritarianism. Raw, shocking, and deeply bittersweet, Haymitch's backstory pulls the pieces of the Hunger Games universe together with ease.HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: Collins has mentioned in past interviews that she would not return to this series unless she had something to say--and she has a lot to say. Order multiple copies.

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Starred review from April 4, 2025

Gr 7 Up-The second Quarter Quell reaped twice as many tributes for the Hunger Games, but Haymitch Abernathy's name was not one of them. Not until one of the boys who was reaped is shot dead, at which point Haymitch is on the wrong side of the Peacekeepers and forced to take his place. Having no winners in the last 40 years, Plutarch Heavensbee is the tributes' escort while Mags and Wiress are the mentors for District 12. Despite their conditions in Catching Fire, both Mags and Wiress have their full faculties for Haymitch's games, invoking a creeping foreboding as familiar characters plan a rebellion we know is destined to fail. Readers of the original trilogy know how Haymitch won his games, they know what happened to his loved ones after, and despite knowing how his story ends, Collins manages to subvert expectations into white-knuckle moments. Haymitch's relationships are the backbone of the novel as readers compare who he knows with where they will end up: his romance with a Covey girl, his friendship with Katniss's father, and his disposition toward alcohol all break one's heart from the first mention. Collins adds considerably to the lore of Panem, while driving home themes of fascism, security, and propaganda. Katniss's unreliable narration in The Hunger Games led readers to believe many facts that are simply actually Snow's fictions, the propaganda now exposed under Haymitch's narrative. VERDICT Required reading for fans of the original trilogy. A must-have in all collections.-Emmy Neal

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