https://people.com/new-hunger-games-book-excerpt-sunshine-on-the-reaping-exclusive-8774209
Soooo, here it is. And weeeeeell, I’m a little disappointed. 😆
Mostly because of Haymitch’s voice. My first impression is like this odd amalgamation of Sejanus and Katniss, what with Haymitch saying “Ma” all the time. The Katniss bit is how he talks about foraging in the woods and how he begins to talk about his feeling toward the Capitol. And with the first person perspective, I’m going to be stuck with the Southern draw for 300+ pages. Not the end of the world, just wasn’t expecting it or so much of it. 🙈
And while I appreciate Collins’ use of descriptive words to evoke emotional responses to the Haymitch’s life (a commonly used approach in propaganda 😉), I am very much aware that the Seam and those living in it are poor and destitute. This seems a little redundant to me, having opened the Hunger Games and Ballad with very similar descriptions. Makes me wonder if Sunrise is written for the fan base in particular or if she’s also trying to draw in a new audience of readers. That, or sadly, maybe the fan base isn’t getting the point of her novels and it requires reminding everyone of how broken we really are so that we can come together and work toward a brighter future. (More on that in March, no doubt. 😏)
Despite being slightly put out by this first excerpt, I am intrigued by how different Haymitch is compared to the one we know 24 years later. And obviously, not very much like Katniss at least in these first couple of paragraphs, as he seems more carefree compared to her. They both have their beefs with the Capitol, but Haymitch appears to have a more out-of-sight, out-of-mind approach to life, while Katniss’ anger toward the Capitol begrudgingly fuels most of the actions she takes in her life. As in, since the Capitol barely lifts a finger to take care of us, I’m going to illegally poach off their land in order to help my little sister survive. 😅
Anyway I still think Sunrise will be a good read, and I’m looking forward to diving into it further and talking about it in March and April. I was just a little more eager to read Ballad after the first excerpt was released. 😩🙃
I’d love to hear your thoughts and first impressions below too.
Until next time!