The Hunger Games Books in Order
All five Hunger Games novels in publication order, plus the chronological order for readers who want Panem's history from the beginning.
The Hunger Games is Suzanne Collins's dystopian series set in Panem, where the Capitol forces its districts to send teenagers into a televised fight to the death. The original trilogy follows Katniss Everdeen from District 12.
Collins later added two prequels set decades before the trilogy: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, about a young Coriolanus Snow, and Sunrise on the Reaping, about a young Haymitch Abernathy. That makes five novels in all.
5 books by Suzanne Collins, in publication order.
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The books in order
- 1
The Hunger Games (2008)
Katniss Everdeen volunteers in her younger sister's place and enters the 74th Hunger Games.
- 2
- 3
- 4
The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes (2020)
Prequel set at the 10th Hunger Games, following eighteen-year-old Coriolanus Snow as a mentor.
- 5
Sunrise on the Reaping (2025)
Prequel set at the 50th Hunger Games, the second Quarter Quell, following a young Haymitch Abernathy.
Best Reading Order
For a first read, go in publication order: the trilogy first, then the prequels. Both prequels lean on what you already know about Snow and Haymitch, and much of their weight comes from knowing where those characters end up.
For a reread in story order, start with The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes (the 10th Games), then Sunrise on the Reaping (the 50th Games), then The Hunger Games, Catching Fire and Mockingjay (the 74th Games onward).
Looking for something similar once you've finished? Browse the read-alike lists or the other series guides.