Chapter 11 sees Haymitch learn of Beetee’s plan for him and his son to carry out during The Hunger Games. In training, Haymitch sets out to win over District 9 to the ‘Newcomers’ alliance and later has his private session with the Game Makers.

This review is part of a series where I review one chapter of Sunrise on the Reaping each day as I read along.

What happens in Chapter 11 of Sunrise on the Reaping?

The chapter picks up with Beetee explaining his plan for Haymitch and his son, Ampert, to carry out during the games. This includes entering though a ‘mutt portal’ and locating a water tank, then exploding it in order to drown the arena. Haymitch goes back to sleep after this encounter and suspects Maysilee may have been awake during Beetee’s visit.

At training, Haymitch seeks to win over District 9 to the ‘Newcomers’ alliance based on advice from Beetee (passed on to Haymitch by Ampert). District 9 are not a talkative bunch so at the shelter-building booth Haymitch seeks an opening to convince them to join the alliance. An opening comes after Panache, a career tribute, comes over and asks the District 9 tributes if they want to join the career pack to which one simply replies ‘No.’ This angers Panache and results in him tearing off the sunflower necklace ‘token’ around the neck of the young girl tribute of District 9, leaving it in pieces on the ground.

Haymitch is unsure what to do in this moment, but luckily Maysilee appears and begins mending the upset little girl’s token. 🥹 Haymitch takes this opening to start a conversation about joining their alliance, starting by trying to build a rapport through talking about sunflowers (and even singing one of Lenore Dove’s songs about them). Haymitch and Maysilee leave the booth with high hopes of their joining.

Training continues with Maysilee proving to be very skilled at the knot tying booth and Lou Lou perplexing the person running the edible-food booth by continuing to put poisonous mushrooms in her mouth. Eventually the time comes for the private sessions with the game makers where each tribute presents a skill/speech and is scored so that the public can get a better sense for their chances of success.

Haymitch makes a plan to show his commitment to winning by trying to play the ‘only out for himself’ card. Haymitch is last up to present and delivers a short speech to the Game Makers before leaving. The chapter finishes with the District 12 tributes watching the TV to find out their scores, on a scale from 1 to 12. Haymitch receives a 1.

Review – Is Chapter 11 of Sunrise on the Reaping Good?

Chapter 11 is such an interesting chapter where you really see Haymitch start to properly plan for the games. Hearing Beetee’s plan for the games helps build a sense of direction as well as suspense. Maysilee continues to be a very intriguing character in this chapter as she seems to be a lot more clever than many give her credit for with the character never missing a beat. I suspect she overheard Beetee’s visit and is also coming from a very calculated, although also caring, place when helping the little girl from District 9 mend her token.

This chapter is definitely one I look forward to seeing play out on the screen as the dynamics of Haymitch and Maysilee working together to win over District 9 with Haymitch even going to the length of singing Lenore Dove’s song makes for a particularly fun scene.

The private sessions with the Game Makers continue to be a memorable and dramatic moment in The Hunger Games franchise and Haymitch’s dramatically low score makes for a very intriguing twist.

Discussion – What Do You Think of Beetee’s Plan?

We have good reason to believe Beetee knows what he is talking about when it comes to his plan given the success of his plan in Catching Fire, although it is possible that his plan for the second quarter-quell could have served as a learning experience for the third quarter-quell. Perhaps he will see what mistakes not to make in the future or even better what works and should be repeated during Catching Fire?

I think Ampert will have a large impact on the plan. He could hinder it by, for example, being too weak for climbing at the mutt portal or he could in fact play a vital role in which he heroically sacrifices himself in order to help.

Maysilee may also play a part in helping as it is likely she overheard Beetee’s visit. I think the plan will ultimately be successful but may have unforeseen effects which make for a dramatic end to The Hunger Games that even Haymitch struggles to survive.

What are your thoughts?

That’s all for my thoughts on Chapter 11! Let me know yours in the comments below!