LibGuides: MS Imagine the Possibilities: Kate Messner, Christina Soontornvat, Carmen Agra Deedy: Home

Christina Soontornvat's Web Page: Go to the Web Page for more information about each book. Then browse through the titles to see which book you might like to read first!

Get to know Christina Soontornvat in this fun interview about her background, and her interest in both Fantasy and Science, and Stem. She discusses her book The Changelings, as well as All Thirteen.

What Book Hooked You? Podcast with Christina Soontornvat about what books influenced her!

All Thirteen: the Incredible Cave Rescue of the Thai Boys' Soccer Team by Christina Soontornvat
ISBN: 9781536209457
Publication Date: 2020-10-13
A 2021 Newbery Honor Book A 2021 Robert F. Sibert Honor Book A 2021 YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults Finalist A unique account of the amazing Thai cave rescue told in a heart-racing, you-are-there style that blends suspense, science, and cultural insight. On June 23, 2018, twelve young players of the Wild Boars soccer team and their coach enter a cave in northern Thailand seeking an afternoon's adventure. But when they turn to leave, rising floodwaters block their path out. The boys are trapped! Before long, news of the missing team spreads, launching a seventeen-day rescue operation involving thousands of rescuers from around the globe. As the world sits vigil, people begin to wonder: how long can a group of ordinary kids survive in complete darkness, with no food or clean water? Luckily, the Wild Boars are a very extraordinary "ordinary" group. Combining firsthand interviews of rescue workers with in-depth science and details of the region's culture and religion, author Christina Soontornvat--who was visiting family in Northern Thailand when the Wild Boars went missing--masterfully shows how both the complex engineering operation above ground and the mental struggles of the thirteen young people below proved critical in the life-or-death mission. Meticulously researched and generously illustrated with photographs, this page-turner includes an author's note describing her experience meeting the team, detailed source notes, and a bibliography to fully immerse readers in the most ambitious cave rescue in history.

The 2021 Excellence in Nonfiction Finalist Christina Soontornvat's interview about All Thirteen: The Incredible Cave Rescue of the Thai Boys’ Soccer Team. This book takes readers on a harrowing journey underground and into the hearts of the boys, their families, and the international rescue team working to bring them out safely.

Video Interview about All Thirteen

Video about All Thirteen with Christina Soontornvat

NOVA Documentary on the Thai Cave Rescue

A Wish in the Dark by Christina Soontornvat
ISBN: 9781536204940
Publication Date: 2020-03-24
A 2021 Newbery Honor Book A boy on the run. A girl determined to find him. A compelling fantasy looks at issues of privilege, protest, and justice. All light in Chattana is created by one man -- the Governor, who appeared after the Great Fire to bring peace and order to the city. For Pong, who was born in Namwon Prison, the magical lights represent freedom, and he dreams of the day he will be able to walk among them. But when Pong escapes from prison, he realizes that the world outside is no fairer than the one behind bars. The wealthy dine and dance under bright orb light, while the poor toil away in darkness. Worst of all, Pong's prison tattoo marks him as a fugitive who can never be truly free. Nok, the prison warden's perfect daughter, is bent on tracking Pong down and restoring her family's good name. But as Nok hunts Pong through the alleys and canals of Chattana, she uncovers secrets that make her question the truths she has always held dear. Set in a Thai-inspired fantasy world, Christina Soontornvat's twist on Victor Hugo's Les Misérables is a dazzling, fast-paced adventure that explores the difference between law and justice -- and asks whether one child can shine a light in the dark.

Check out this interview about A Wish in the Dark.

A Wish in the Dark Virtual Introduction with Author

The Changelings by Christina Soontornvat
ISBN: 9781492632603
Publication Date: 2016-09-06
From Newberry Honor winning author Christina Soontornvat comes a magical adventure in which Izzy must rescue her sister from a fairy land as dangerous as it is magical. All Izzy wants is for something interesting to happen in her sleepy little town. But her wish becomes all too real when a mysterious song floats through the woods and lures her little sister Hen into the forest...where she vanishes. A frantic search leads to a strange hole in the ground that Izzy enters. But on the other side, she discovers that the hole was not a hole, this place is not Earth, and Hen is not lost. She's been stolen away to the land of Faerie, and it's up to Izzy to bring her home. But inside Faerie, trouble is brewing--and Izzy is in way over her head. A ragtag group of outlaw Changelings offer to help, but she must decide whether a boulder that comes to life, a girl who looks like a ghost, and a boy who is also a stag can help her save Hen before it's too late. Praise for The Changelings: "Fresh and imaginative--new inventions on every page. I loved every ingenious twist and turn right up to the wonderfully satisfying ending."--Katherine Catmull, author of The Radiant Roadand Summer and Bird. "The Changelingsis charming! Perfect for readers who love stories full of magic, adventure, mystery and fairies, topped off with a satisfying and very happy ending. Soontornvat's debut sparkles and delights!"--Nikki Loftin, author of The Sinister Sweetness of Splendid Academy Perfect for anyone looking for books: for a special 10 or 11 year old girl or boy. that can be fun homeschool materials. for readers who love a magical adventure!

Kate Messner Web Page: Go to the Web Page for more information about each book. Then browse through the titles to see which book you might like to read first!

Chirp by Kate Messner
ISBN: 9781547602810
Publication Date: 2020-02-04
"[A] deftly layered mystery about family, friendship, and the struggle to speak up." - Laurie Halse Anderson, bestselling author ofSpeakandShout From acclaimed author Kate Messner comes the powerful story of a young girl with the courage to make her voice heard, set against the backdrop of a summertime mystery. When Mia moves to Vermont the summer after seventh grade, she's recovering from the broken arm she got falling off a balance beam. And packed away in the moving boxes under her clothes and gymnastics trophies is a secret she'd rather forget. Mia's change in scenery brings day camp, new friends, and time with her beloved grandmother. But Gram is convinced someone is trying to destroy her cricket farm. Is it sabotage or is Gram's thinking impaired from the stroke she suffered months ago? Mia and her friends set out to investigate, but can they uncover the truth in time to save Gram's farm? And will that discovery empower Mia to confront the secret she's been hiding--and find the courage she never knew she had? In a compelling story rich with friendship, science, and summer fun, a girl finds her voice while navigating the joys and challenges of growing up.

Breakout by Kate Messner
ISBN: 1681195364
Publication Date: 2018-06-05
Told in letters, poems, text messages, news stories, and comics--a series of documents Nora collects for the Wolf Creek Community Time Capsule Project--Breakout is a thrilling story that will leave readers thinking about who's really welcome in the places we call home. Nora Tucker is looking forward to summer vacation in Wolf Creek--two months of swimming, popsicles, and brushing up on her journalism skills for the school paper. But when two inmates break out of the town's maximum security prison, everything changes. Doors are locked, helicopters fly over the woods, and police patrol the school grounds. Worst of all, everyone is on edge, and fear brings out the worst in some people Nora has known her whole life. Even if the inmates are caught, she worries that home might never feel the same. A Mighty Girl Best Book of the Year

The Seventh Wish by Kate Messner
ISBN: 9781536413304
Publication Date: 2017-06-13
Charlie feels like she's always coming in last. From her Mom's new job to her sister's life away at college, everything else always seems to be more important than Charlie's upcoming dance competition or science project. But things take a turn for the worse when secrets emerge about her sister, secrets that Charlie would never have expected.

Myths! Lies! Secrets! Smash the stories behind famous moments in history and expose the hidden truth. Perfect for fans of I Survived and Nathan Hale's Hazardous Tales.

Visit this cool website for information about all of Carmen Agra Deedy's books, her inspirations and more!

Carmen Agra Deedy is the author of twelve books for children, including The Library Dragon, The Cheshire Cheese Cat, Martina the Beautiful Cockroach, and 14 Cows for America, a New York Times Bestseller. The Rooster Who Would Not Be Quiet! (Scholastic Press) was released in 2017 and Rita and Ralph's Rotten Day was published in March 2020. Her personal stories first appeared on NPR’s All Things Considered. Funny, insightful, and frequently irreverent, Deedy’s narratives are culled from her childhood as a Cuban refugee in Decatur, Georgia. She is host of the four-time Emmy-winning children’s program, Love That Book! An award-winning author and storyteller, Deedy is also an accomplished lecturer, having been a guest speaker for both the TED and TEDx Conferences, the Library of Congress, Columbia University, the National Book Festival, and the Kennedy Center, among other distinguished venues. A life-long supporter of the institution, she opened the 2016 Art of the Book Lecture Series for the Smithsonian Libraries. (From her website)

Article from the Yale Center for Dyslexia and Creativity about Carmen Agra Deedy. Carmen Agra Deedy sings these lyrics often, after masterfully telling the story of falling hard for her first book. She was eight, it was Charlotte’s Web, and it began a lifelong addiction to stories and reading and books. But Deedy doesn’t always tell how troubled her addiction is. She has dyslexia. She is a dyslexic bibliophile. None of her accomplishments have come easily. She taught herself the craft of storytelling. Her reading has always been labored. And her award-winning children’s books battle their way from brain to printed word with great difficulty.