Tam Amber

Spoiler Alert! This page may contain plot details relating to Sunrise on the Reaping or unintentionally spoil elements of the book.

Tam Amber
Biographical Information
Age	Around 16 (Dark Days) Around 26 (The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes) Around 66 (Sunrise on the Reaping)
Occupation	Mandolin player Blacksmith
Home	The Seam in District 12
Relatives	The Covey (adoptive family) Lenore Dove Baird † (adoptive niece) Burdock Everdeen † (distant relative)
Fate	Alive (SOTR)
Physical Information
Gender	Male
Appearances
Book Appearances	The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes
Book Mentioned	Sunrise on the Reaping
Movie Appearances	The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes
Portrayed by	Eike Onyambu

"A tall, rawboned young man in a feathered hat came from behind the curtain, strumming an instrument similar to a guitar but with a body more like a teardrop. He walked straight to Maude Ivory's side, not acknowledging the audience in any way, his fingers moving easily over the strings."

—Description of Tam Amber

Tam Amber was a resident of District 12 and a member of the Covey. Tam Amber was a standout player on his mandolin, performing with lightning-fast fingering while keeping his facial features expressionless and distant.

Quick Answers

What instrument is Tam Amber known for playing?

Tam Amber, from District 12 and part of the Covey, is recognized for his standout mandolin playing, characterized by rapid fingering and a distant facial expression.

Provided by: Fandom

How did Tam Amber become a member of the Covey?

Found as a baby in a cardboard box by the roadside, Tam Amber was adopted by the Covey, a nomadic group. He learned the mandolin and performed with the Covey to earn money. It's speculated that he was part of the Covey's plan to breed goats and sell milk for extra income.

Provided by: Fandom

How did Tam Amber learn to play the mandolin?

Tam Amber, hailing from District 12 and part of the Covey, was renowned for his exceptional mandolin skills. His performances were marked by rapid fingering and an unchanging, distant facial expression. The details of his mandolin learning journey, however, are not specified.

Provided by: Fandom

Biography

Early life

Tam Amber was found in a cardboard box left on the side of the road and taken in by the traveling Covey when he was just a baby. Because of this, they referred to him as a "lost soul". He learned to play the mandolin and performed along with the rest of the Covey for profit.

Covey Genocide

A few years prior to the events of The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, Peacekeepers rounded up the Covey and killed many of them. The few remaining Covey were trapped in District 12, where they made their living doing musical performances.

10th Hunger Games

Another member of the Covey, Lucy Gray Baird, had her name drawn in the reaping for the 10th Hunger Games. While Lucy Gray was gone, the Covey didn't perform at all, and they only saw Coriolanus Snow once during the televised night of tribute interviews; it had been a clear night in District 12, and Tam Amber had used a lot of tin foil to improve the reception. Based on their rejection of Billy Taupe Clade, they listened to Lucy Gray sing "The Ballad of Lucy Gray Baird" that night. She had written the song to inform them that Billy Taupe played a role in her being reaped.

Aftermath

In the Covey's first performance at the Hob since Lucy Gray returned as a victor, Tam Amber was the first to be introduced by Maude Ivory Baird. He walked to her side while playing his mandolin. Later, he proved to be something of a standout on his mandolin during a solo, playing a lightning-fast piece while remaining expressionless.

Tam Amber had fashioned a butter churn for Maude Ivory's birthday, as she was crazy for butter.

The first time the Covey traveled to the lake outside District 12 with Coriolanus Snow and Sejanus Plinth, Tam Amber led them across the Meadow, into the woods and to the lake. After they swam, Tam Amber fashioned his own fishing poles and hooks. He caught, cleaned, gutted and cut up several fish, which were cooked for lunch. As the traveled back home, Tam Amber took a different route where they could pick berries. He then traveled on with Sejanus and Maude Ivory, taking Maude Ivory to the Hob for new shoes.

He believed there were still people living up north from District 12, outside the influence of the Capitol, although Lucy Gray wasn't convinced. When she left home for the last time, Tam Amber had been the only person awake. She told him she was going to find out about a goat, as they had been talking about building a herd and selling milk on the side.

50th Hunger Games

By the time of the 50th Hunger Games, he had an adopted niece, Lenore Dove, who he raised with Clerk Carmine Clade after her mother died giving birth to her. He was also a very skilled and sought after blacksmith, and many in District 12 owned his creations; including Burdock Everdeen who used arrow tips made by him. Lenore Dove traded eggs for metal with Tam Amber to make her boyfriend, Haymitch Abernathy, a present for his birthday which she helped design. He taught Lenore Dove about the stars. One of his creations was the mockingjay pin that was owned by Maysilee Donner and later Katniss Everdeen. During the reaping, Lenore Dove got into trouble during the disarray after Woodbine Chance was killed. Upon its conclusion, Lenore Dove was put in handcuffs by a Peacekeeper until Tam Amber and Clerk Carmine bribed him with money to let her go. They led her down a sideroad when she tried to get to Haymitch, who had been reaped in Woodbine's place.

Lenore Dove was arrested again not long later for playing forbidden songs in front of the Justice Building, causing her uncles great stress, as she was being held in the Peacekeepers' base. When she was given permission to return home on house arrest, Tam Amber was concerned about her, but allowed her to go to the Meadow. However, Haymitch met Lenore Dove there and unintentionally fed her poisoned gumdrops planted by President Snow. She died almost immediately after. Tam Amber watched as Clerk Carmine tried to restart her heart, mumbling, "not again."

Physical description

Tam Amber was a tall, rawboned young man. He wore a feathered hat during his performances.

Family

Since Tam Amber was abandoned on the side of the road as a baby, nothing is known of his biological family, and any adoptive family he had are presumed deceased due to the Covey genocide. After that, the six remaining Covey children were taken in by an old man for a fee. The man didn't raise them, but he didn't "much mess with [them]" either. He died of black lung the year prior to Lucy Gray's reaping, but some of the Covey were old enough to manage things by then. Tam Amber was around 16 at the end of the Dark Days, which would place him in his mid-to-late twenties at this time.

Etymology

Tam is a short Scots version of the name Thomas, meaning "twin". Since Covey names are drawn from ballads, his is taken from Tam Lin. The second part, amber, is a valuable gemstone that sometimes occurs in coal seams, and is a golden yellow.

Trivia

• The Covey had been talking about building a herd of goats and selling the milk as a second source of income, so some theorize that the Goat Man from the trilogy may have been one of the Covey— most probably Tam Amber.
• He is the only member of the Covey whose surname is unknown.
• As revealed in Sunrise on the Reaping, he is the creator of the mockingjay pin that was a symbol of the Second Rebellion.