All Thirteen

{{short description|2020 children's book by Christina Soontornvat}}

{{about|the 2020 children's book|the event it is based on|Tham Luang cave rescue}}

{{Infobox book

| image = All Thirteen (2020 book) cover.jpg

| alt = Book cover depicting three images from the cave rescue

| caption =

| author = Christina Soontornvat

| country = United States

| language = English

| publisher = Candlewick Press

| pub_date = October 13, 2020

| media_type =

| pages = 288

| awards = Newbery Honor, Sibert Honor

| isbn = 978-1-5362-0945-7

| oclc = 1228486011

| website = {{URL|soontornvat.com/books/all-thirteen}}

}}

All Thirteen: The Incredible Cave Rescue of the Thai Boys' Soccer Team is a 2020 nonfiction children's book by American author Christina Soontornvat. It describes the 2018 Tham Luang cave rescue. The book received positive reviews from critics and was awarded a Newbery Honor and a Sibert Honor in 2021.

Synopsis

The book recounts the 2018 Tham Luang cave rescue, in which 12 boys on a soccer team and their coach were rescued after they were trapped in the flooded Tham Luang Nang Non cave. It includes scientific information related to the rescue, including details on caverns and diving, and features photographs and maps of the region.

Background and publication

Soontornvat was visiting family in northern Thailand when the Tham Luang cave story was first reported. According to Soontornvat, upon returning to the United States, she noticed that media coverage was portraying the situation through a predominantly Western lens and decided to tell the story incorporating a Thai perspective. She returned to Thailand two months after the final rescue to interview the volunteers who helped with the rescue efforts, with her father acting as her translator.{{cite news |last1=Blank |first1=Gwen |title=Saving All Thirteen |url=https://www.trinity.edu/news/saving-all-thirteen |access-date=February 11, 2021 |publisher=Trinity University |date=December 1, 2020}}

The book was published by Candlewick Press on October 13, 2020. The audiobook version was narrated by Quincy Surasmith.{{cite news |last1=Cole |first1=Sonja |title=ALA Awards on Audio: 2021 Odyssey and Newbery Winners |url=https://www.audiofilemagazine.com/articles/2021-odyssey-and-newbery-winners/ |access-date=February 15, 2021 |work=AudioFile |date=January 28, 2021}}

Reception

All Thirteen: The Incredible Rescue of the Thai Boys' Soccer Team garnered positive reviews from critics. It received starred reviews from Booklist, The Horn Book Magazine, Kirkus Reviews, Publishers Weekly, and School Library Journal.

Kirkus Reviews praised the storytelling as "masterful" and "expertly crafted".{{cite news |title=All Thirteen |url=https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/christina-soontornvat/all-thirteen/ |access-date=February 14, 2021 |work=Kirkus Reviews |date=August 18, 2020}} Publishers Weekly noted that "Soontornvat delivers humanizing coverage of a harrowing event, attempting to decenter Western media’s lens with great success."{{cite news |title=All Thirteen: The Incredible Cave Rescue of the Thai Boys' Soccer Team |url=https://www.publishersweekly.com/978-1-5362-0945-7 |access-date=February 14, 2021 |work=Publishers Weekly |date=November 5, 2020}} In a review for Booklist, Ronny Khuri wrote that "Soontornvat selects details and measures her pacing with the practiced hand of a skilled storyteller."{{cite news |last1=Khuri |first1=Ronny |title=All Thirteen: The Incredible Cave Rescue of the Thai Boys' Soccer Team |url=https://www.booklistonline.com/All-Thirteen-The-Incredible-Cave-Rescue-of-the-Thai-Boys-Soccer-Team-/pid=9736201 |access-date=February 14, 2021 |work=Booklist |date=August 2020}} V. Lynn Christiansen of School Library Journal compared it to "a heart-pounding adventure story."{{cite news |last1=Christiansen |first1=V. Lynn |title=All Thirteen: The Incredible Cave Rescue of the Thai Boys' Soccer Team |url=https://www.slj.com/?reviewDetail=all-thirteen-the-incredible-cave-rescue-of-the-thai-boys-soccer-team |access-date=February 14, 2021 |work=School Library Journal |date=September 1, 2020}} Jonathan Hunt, writing for The Horn Book Magazine, praised the "lucid prose" and wrote that Soontornvat "keeps a tight focus on the unfolding story".{{cite news |last1=Hunt |first1=Jonathan |title=Review of All Thirteen: The Incredible Cave Rescue of the Thai Boys' Soccer Team |url=https://www.hbook.com/?detailStory=review-of-all-thirteen-the-incredible-cave-rescue-of-the-thai-boys-soccer-team |access-date=February 14, 2021 |work=The Horn Book Magazine |date=November 4, 2020}}

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|+ Accolades for All Thirteen

! Year

! Accolade

! Result

! class="unsortable" | {{abbr|Ref.|Reference}}

rowspan="4" |2021

|Kirkus Prize for Young Readers' Literature

|Winner

| style="text-align:center" | {{Cite web|title=2021 Winners|url=https://www.kirkusreviews.com/prize/2021/|access-date=October 29, 2021|website=Kirkus Reviews}}

Newbery Medal

|Honor

| style="text-align:center" | {{cite news|date=February 1, 2021|title=WHS graduate and author gains two Newbery Honors|work=Weatherford Democrat|url=https://www.weatherforddemocrat.com/news/local_news/whs-graduate-and-author-gains-two-newbery-honors/article_55b67f74-d736-52f4-8222-92a29a0c49fd.html|access-date=February 11, 2021}}

Sibert Medal

|Honor

| style="text-align:center" | {{cite news|last1=Yorio|first1=Kara|date=January 25, 2021|title='When You Trap a Tiger' Wins Newbery, 'We Are Water Protectors' Earns Caldecott at 2021 YMAs|work=School Library Journal|url=https://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/?detailStory=when-you-trap-a-tiger-wins-newbery-we-are-water-protectors-earns-caldecott-at-2021-YMAs|access-date=February 14, 2021}}

YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction

|Finalist

| style="text-align:center" |

References

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