The last mapmaker

Review by Booklist Review

Though 12-year-old Sai is playing the role of an upper-class girl fulfilling her year of service as an apprentice to Paiyoon, master mapmaker for the Mangkon Royal Navy, she has actually led a hardscrabble life. Wanting nothing more to do with her con man father's schemes, she leaps at the chance to join Paiyoon on a voyage that might discover the legendary Sunderlands. Once she's aboard, Sai avoids a crew member who might recognize her, while ingratiating herself with dashing Miss Rian. Meanwhile, she discovers a stowaway, a boy named Bo, and secretly helps him survive. When disaster strikes, their only option is to escape the ship and seek shelter on a small, desolate island. The novel touches on many themes, from class structure to the effects of colonialism to the bond between children and their parents. Action drives the narrative forward, creating a real page-turner with intriguing characters whose individual goals lead to inevitable, sometimes violent clashes. Blending Age of Sail historical fiction, adventure, and fantasy within a Thai-inspired setting, this original novel will leave readers hoping for sequels.

From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.

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Review by Publisher's Weekly Review

Soontornvat's (A Wish in the Dark) imaginative Thai-inspired fantasy centers 12-year-old Sodsai, who goes by Sai and assists the royal navy's Master Mapmaker in the fictional Kingdom of Mangkon. While other kids gained Assistantships through familial connections, Sai landed hers by chance, purposefully obscuring her modest background. When the queen announces "a venture to extend the boundaries and glory" of Mangkon, with a hefty prize for those who succeed, Paiyoon invites Sai, who agrees immediately. She's desperate to leave her "lowlife" father and delay the traditional 13th birthday ceremony during which kids are given a lineal, a bracelet whose gold links represent each generation of ancestors--"ones you were proud to claim." Through Paiyoon's growing guilt about his role in the empire's expansion, Soontornvat deftly discusses themes of colonization and "discovery," complicating Sai's desire to visit the fabled Great Southern Continent, rumored home to dragons. Employing a presumed Asian cast of well-developed crew members with various skin tones and plenty of emotional depth, this high seas adventure deftly explores complex power dynamics and class hierarchies while maintaining a fast-paced clip. Ages 8--12. Agent: Stephanie Fretwell-Hill, Red Fox Literary. (Apr.)

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Review by School Library Journal Review

Gr 3--7--Thai American and double Newbery Honoree Soontornvat gets culturally and linguistically matched with Thai-fluent, (self-described) "blended" Asian American (of Thai, Chinese, Vietnamese, Japanese heritage) Sura Siu for engrossing high-seas exploits in search of mythical lands. For 12-year-old Sai, being Master Mapmaker Paiyoon's assistant means daily joy in her work and relentless fear of her lowly background being discovered. Joining Paiyoon on a royal voyage to chart southern waters is a dream come true--and not only because she'll be able to delay her mandated 13th-birthday reveal of her damning lineage. Of course, mutiny wasn't part of the route. Siu agilely adapts to a myriad of characters, from tenacious Sai, patient Paiyoon, manipulative father Mud, charismatic Miss Rian; she's especially entertaining as "curse-slinging" stowaway Bo. VERDICT Soontornvat's fans will surely appreciate access via multiple mediums; Siu assures listeners chills and thrills.

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Review by Horn Book Review

Following Newbery honoree A Wish in the Dark (rev. 5/20), this is another middle-grade fantasy from acclaimed author Soontornvat. Sai comes from the humblest of humble beginnings but manages to fake it as assistant to Paiyoon Wongyai, Master Mapmaker of the Kingdom of Mangkon. Her exquisite skills with pen and ink are second only to Paiyoon's, perhaps even surpassing his as he ages. When Paiyoon is commissioned to chart the course of a royal ship en route through dangerous, mythical seas, he takes Sai with him. Deception, treachery, and temptation await her -- quite apart from violent storms, sea dragons, and a beleaguered stowaway for whom she feels responsible. Shipwreck and revelation come together, as Sai and the stowaway fend for themselves on the shores of a fabled continent. Class structure, imperial greed, and environmental ravages underpin the narrative arc of this fantastical adventure story, resonating with our own contemporary issues. At the same time, Soontornvat's Thai-inspired culture and geography provide a vivid backdrop. With emphasis on an intricate plot and quick, accessible prose, Soontornvat provides plenty of excitement while bringing questions of expansionism and decolonization to young readers. Deirdre F. Baker March/April 2022 p.(c) Copyright 2022. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

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Review by Kirkus Book Review

Sodsai Mudawan has worked her way onto a ship sailing toward the unknown--as long as no one discovers the truth about her past. Twelve-year-old Sai is from the marshy Fens, an area whose residents are looked down upon. But with the right clothing and some quick thinking, she's earned an Assistantship with Paiyoon, the Mangkon Royal Navy's Master Mapmaker, at least until her 13th birthday, at which point, when she does not receive a lineal, or golden bracelet whose links represent the recipient's noble ancestors, her lowly status will be clear to everyone, including Paiyoon. Luckily for Sai, before her birthday Paiyoon secures a spot on a royal ship bound for the south--the direction of a mysterious, shadowy continent and rumored dragons--that is tasked with claiming treasure for the kingdom. Paiyoon takes Sai with him on a voyage that could finally allow her to move beyond the Fens, but as she sails farther from home, she will have to decide whom to trust and what sacrifices she is willing to make for her future. Mangkon is inspired by Thailand, and most characters are implied to be Asian. One supporting character has a parent from a foreign land that is allied with Mangkon, allowing room to address questions of exploration and colonization. Exploits on the high seas and complex characters combine in a tale full of both excitement and heart. An engrossing adventure with the feeling of a whole world to be explored. (map) (Fantasy. 9-13) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

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Chapter One A Golden Morning I must have looked like all the other Assistants standing in line for breakfast that morning at the Three Onions Café. We all wore the same starched white shirts, gray trousers, and stiff black cotton aprons with deep pockets. The Assistant's uniform was meant to put each of us on the same level, making us equals for the one year we would spend in service. What a joke. We may have worn the same clothes, but it was still clear as glass where we stood. We knew without asking who among us had carriages and who had to walk, whose mothers held important positions on this or that council, which of us had maids and which ones had to clean out their own bed pots. No one ever said anything, but we knew. I lingered at the back of the line, doing my impression of the shy girl: feet tilted inward, head tipped down, looking like someone who had nothing to add to the conversation. You could learn more about people if they didn't think you were worth talking to, and I had a whole list of other details I needed to pay close attention to if I was going to play along with them. Hair: combed free of lice and braided lovingly by my "mother" (or even better--my "maid"). Fingernails: cleaned out and filed. Shoes: the right kind, purchased from the right shop, shined, and with nothing icky sticking to the soles. Spine: held straight, as if I were proud of where I came from and had a bright future to look forward to. Grumble! I coughed to mask the sound of my growling stomach. A full belly was the one thing I couldn't fake, and coming to the Three Onions in the morning only made the grumbling worse. The steam in the wood-paneled restaurant smelled of fresh oysters, chopped garlic, and green herbs. It took real effort not to stick out my tongue and lick the air. Something felt different from other mornings, though. The kids in line were chattier than usual. A tall Assistant leaned her elbow on the counter while the others pressed in close, hanging on her words. I called her Tippy because of the way she tipped her head back to look down at the rest of us. I didn't know much about her except that she worked for a Master Pastry Chef near the temple square. Tippy had always been popular and pretty, but that morning, she was glowing. She laughed and smoothed her long braid over her shoulder. The light from the café windows bounced off something golden and shiny at her wrist. So that was it. A lineal. A pang of jealousy worked its way into my empty stomach. She must have turned thirteen the day before. The other Assistants pushed in closer to gape at Tippy's gold bracelet. "Hold it up so we can all see!" said one of them. "Oh, it's so pretty!" The others oohed and aahed as Tippy held up her wrist and gave the bracelet a little jangle. "How many links is that--five?" asked another girl, unable to hide the envy in her voice. That spring, she had been the first among us to get her lineal. She touched it now self-consciously: four golden loops hanging from a brooch pinned to her blouse. Tippy answered, a little too loudly, "Actually, it's seven." Everyone murmured and pressed in closer to count the golden rings of her bracelet for themselves. Each link in a lineal represented one generation of ancestors--ancestors whose names you knew, ones you were proud to claim. In my mind, I let out a snort. With a background that fine, what was she doing as a baker's Assistant? Suddenly, I realized that all the eyes in the café had turned to me. Tripe! At least I thought I'd snorted in my mind. Tippy narrowed her eyes at me. "You, at the back of the line. What's your name?" "Order forty-nine!" shouted a shrill voice behind the counter. Thank the heavens! I squeezed past the girls to get to the counter, then bowed to Mrs. Noom and took the container of porridge from her. "Thank you, ma'am," I said in the meekest version of my shy-girl voice. "I had better be going. I'm already late!" I could feel the other Assistants' eyes on me as I passed. I knew they were sizing me up. They couldn't look down their noses at me until they figured out which rung of the ladder I stood on. And what if they knew the truth--that I wasn't even on the ladder? That in a few months, when I turned thirteen, there wouldn't be so much as a cake crumb, let alone a lineal celebration? I had no proud family line, no noble ancestors. There was exactly one link to my past, and it certainly wasn't made of gold. If they knew the truth, they would think I was nothing. And who could blame them? Excerpted from The Last Mapmaker by Christina Soontornvat All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.

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