Christina Soontornvat facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Christina Soontornvat
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Soontornvat at the 2023 Texas Book Festival
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| Born | 1980 (age 44–45) |
| Occupation | Author |
| Education | Trinity University (BS) University of Texas at Austin (MS) |
| Period | 2016–present |
| Genre | Children's and young adult fiction |
Christina Soontornvat (Thai: คริสติน่า สุนทรวัฒน์) was born in 1980. She is an American author, a teacher, and even a mechanical engineer. She is famous for writing books for children and young adults.
Christina has won several important awards for her books. In 2021, she received two Newbery Honor awards. These were for her books A Wish in the Dark and All Thirteen: The Incredible Cave Rescue of the Thai Boys' Soccer Team. One was a fiction book, and the other was a true story. She won another Newbery Honor in 2023 for her book "The Last Mapmaker".
Contents
Who is Christina Soontornvat?
Christina Soontornvat was born in 1980. Her father, Amnaj Soontornvat, was a business owner from Thailand. Her grandfather, Saengchai Sunthornwat, was a well-known person in Thai broadcasting.
Christina went to Weatherford High School in Weatherford, Texas. She finished high school in 1998. She then studied mechanical engineering at Trinity University. She earned her degree in 2002. Later, she got another degree in science education from the University of Texas at Austin in 2007.
Christina's Career as a Writer
Before becoming a full-time author, Christina Soontornvat worked at a science museum. This job probably helped her with her love for learning and sharing knowledge.
In 2020, Christina wrote two popular children's books. These were A Wish in the Dark and All Thirteen: The Incredible Cave Rescue of the Thai Boys' Soccer Team. All Thirteen tells the true story of the 2018 Tham Luang cave rescue. This was when a boys' soccer team got trapped in a cave in Thailand. Christina wanted to tell the story from a Thai point of view. She also wanted to teach people about Thailand.
Both A Wish in the Dark and All Thirteen won a Newbery Honor in 2021. This was a big achievement! Christina was only the third author ever to win two Newbery awards in the same year. She was also the first author to win two Newbery awards in the same year for both a fiction book and a non-fiction book.
Everywhere Book Fest
In 2020, many book festivals were canceled because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Christina Soontornvat decided to help. She teamed up with other writers, Ellen Oh and Melanie Conklin. Together, they created the Everywhere Book Fest.
This online festival took place on May 1–2, 2020. It featured many authors who write for children and young adults. They shared live and pre-recorded videos. Over 43,000 people watched the festival online. It was a great way for readers to connect with authors during a difficult time.
Books by Christina Soontornvat
Christina Soontornvat has written many exciting books.
The Changelings series
- The Changelings (2016)
- In a Dark Land: A Changelings Story (2017)
The Diary of an Ice Princess series
- Snow Place Like Home (2019)
- Frost Friends Forever (2019)
- On Thin Ice (2019)
- The Big Freeze (2020)
- Slush Puppy Love (2020)
- Icing on the Snowflake (2020)
Other books
- The Blunders: A Counting Catastrophe! (2020)
- A Wish in the Dark (2020)
- Simon at the Art Museum (2020)
- All Thirteen: The Incredible Cave Rescue of the Thai Boys' Soccer Team (2020)
- The Ramble Shamble Children (2021)
- The Last Mapmaker (2022)
- The Tryout
