*Spoilers*
5 out of 5 stars
It is a well-known fact that Suzanne Collins only returns to write another Hunger Games book when she has important social commentary to make, and “Sunrise on the Reaping” was no exception. Collins explored the idea that anyone can stand up against oppression, propaganda and corrupt political figures.
“Sunrise on the Reaping” is the fifth book Collins has written in the Hunger Games Universe and the second prequel in the series. While exploring the nature versus nurture debate, Collins returned to the story of the tyrannical Coriolanus Snow in “The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes.” When inspired by David Hume’s takes on implicit submission and propaganda, she returned to tell the story of Katniss and Peeta’s mentor, Haymitch Abernathy, in his Hunger Games.
Throughout the book, Abernathy struggles with the concept of implicit submission, feeling like he isn’t smart enough to stand up to the Capitol but trying his best anyway. His acts of rebellion leading up to and during the Games never reach the districts but make waves in the Capitol.
Many of the other tributes find their own ways to fight back against the Capitol in the arena. Maysilee Donner, another tribute from District 12, boldly stands up to Gamemakers and Peacekeepers alike while demanding to be treated with dignity. She spends the book challenging the Capitol perception that people from the districts are akin to animals, going so far as to fashion a knife and fork to eat with during the Games.
The audience is introduced to early resistance to the games on the Capitol side, not just from tributes and previous victors of the Hunger Games. Plutarch Heavensbee, who is instrumental in later books during Katniss Everdeen’s revolution, provides Haymitch with resources to help him attempt to break the arena and tells him: “No more implicit submission for you, Haymitch Abernathy. Blow that water tank sky high. The entire country needs you to.”
The threads for later storylines collide in this book as we discover early on that Abernathy is best friends with Burdock Everdeen, Katniss’ father. It’s sweet seeing Katniss Everdeen’s parents, Burdock and Asteried, fall in love through Haymitch’s eyes before he is selected in the reaping.
Haymitch is in love with Lenore Dove, a Baird like Lucy Gray, one of the protagonists of “The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes.” We also meet a young Effie Trinket, who later becomes Katniss’s escort in her Hunger Games. She is also the only person to treat Haymitch with kindness after his Games and find out the origin of the infamous Mockingjay pin.
I wish the book would have spent more time focusing on the aftermath of Haymitch’s Games, extending until the first set of tributes he mentored. Regardless, it captures his story well within its 400 pages.
One thing I’ve loved discovering across these prequels is how the games evolved over time from barbaric to spectacular. In “The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes,” the tributes are all thrown together in a train car with no furniture or food.
In “Sunrise on the Reaping,” there are rudimentary plastic chairs, and they are served large sandwiches and birthday cake. By the time we get to the “Hunger Games,” the train is lush, and the food is heaping and expensive. Collins does an excellent job weaving in these small details of how the games evolved over Panem’s history.
The lessons of Collins’ novel inspire action in the real world. With the current political climate, it’s clear that propaganda is ever-present and significantly influencing elections. Collins makes it clear that we must resist however we can, and even small acts of rebellion can have a rippling impact in disrupting propaganda.
If you are prepared for Collins to rip your heart out, stomp on it and shove it back into your body only to repeat that process another 17 times, read “Sunrise on the Reaping.” I cried five separate times in the last 100 pages.
This isn’t only a book for lovers of the Dystopian genre, it’s perfect for anyone who enjoys philosophy, the star-crossed lovers trope or historical fiction surrounding revolutions, specifically those who might not mind giving fiction a spin.
Photo courtesy of ABC News.