Sunrise on the Reaping: Cover Art, Blurb For New Hunger Games Book

Posted in: Books, Movies, Pop Culture | Tagged: Sunrise on the Reaping, the hunger games

Scholastic has released the cover and the back-cover blurb for the new Hunger Games novel Sunrise on the Reaping.

Article Summary

Scholastic unveils cover art for Hunger Games prequel, Sunrise on the Reaping, releasing March 18, 2025.
The new book revisits Panem 24 years before the original trilogy during the intense Second Quarter Quell.
Cover designed by Tim O’Brien symbolizes key series themes, praised by David Levithan of Scholastic.
Story follows a young Haymitch Abernathy in the fiftieth Hunger Games, highlighting his fight to survive.

No one was really that surprised when it was announced that Suzzane Collins was writing another prequel book for The Hunger Games. The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes sold very well and was well received by fans. The movie took off like a rocket and managed to be one of the rare prequel movies, pulling in people who hadn’t seen any previous films. Back in June, the announcement for the new book Sunrise on the Reaping came with the announcement that Lionsgate had already locked down not only the rights to another Hunger Games book but also a release date for the film. The movie isn’t out until 2026, but the book is out next year, and Scholastic has dropped some details. The release date is coming up fast, March 18, 2025, and preorders are open. We got the cover of the book, which follows the same themes as all of the previous books.

Credit: Scholastic

In a press release about Sunrise on the Reaping cover art design, David Levithan, VP, Publisher, and Editorial Director for Scholastic, said, “The spiky sun rises on a symbol that will come to mean a lot to Haymitch Abernathy, as well as countless readers. Artist Tim O’Brien has created yet another iconic Hunger Games cover – this one symbolically exploring one of the central themes of the series: how conflicting forces can be connected by their common nature, the songbird and the snake springing from the same source.” We also got the back-cover blurb for the book as well:

“Sunrise on the Reaping will revisit the world of Panem twenty-four years before the events of The Hunger Games, starting on the morning of the reaping of the Fiftieth Hunger Games, also known as the Second Quarter Quell.

As the day dawns on the fiftieth annual Hunger Games, fear grips the districts of Panem. This year, in honor of the Quarter Quell, twice as many tributes will be taken from their homes. Back in District 12, Haymitch Abernathy is trying not to think too hard about his chances. All he cares about is making it through the day and being with the girl he loves. When Haymitch’s name is called, he can feel all his dreams break. He’s torn from his family and his love, shuttled to the Capitol with the three other District 12 tributes: a young friend who’s nearly a sister to him, a compulsive oddsmaker, and the most stuck-up girl in town. As the Games begin, Haymitch understands he’s been set up to fail. But there’s something in him that wants to fight . . . and have that fight reverberate far beyond the deadly arena.”

While The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes’ success will likely shut up anyone who does the whole “who asked for this” dance, this is your reminder that Rachel Zegler very much asked for Sunrise on the Reaping to exist.

Enjoyed this? Please share on social media!