RISING WATER: The Story of the Thai Cave Rescue written by Marc Aronson is a compelling piece of non-fiction for middle grade readers about the astonishing rescue of the twelve boys of the Wild Boars Soccer Club and their coach. They had wandered into the cave system and were trapped when the rainy season came early to Thailand.
An international group of experts quickly responded to the emergency including Thai Navy Seals, Australian cave divers, British cave divers and the United States Military.
They faced one problem after another in their collective effort to find the location of the boys. They tried to pump water out of the cave, but torrents of rain kept coming. They tried to find another way to enter the cave, but no place was found. When cave divers did find the boys and their coach on a sand mound deep in the system they had been there for nine days without food, communication with the outside world or dry clothes.
There is a very useful map of the cave system that gives readers a clear idea of the length of the system from the cave entrance to chamber nine where the boys were found.
The conclusion that each boy would have to be sedated so that they would not panic during their three-hour ordeal under water to freedom was crucial. There are 12 color photographs that set the scene and trace the action. The boys had to be rescued one at a time.
RISING WATER: The Story of the Thai Cave Rescue written by Marc Aronson complete with biographical sketches of each boy and a discussion of how the meditation skills their coach taught them helped the boys cope is designed for readers 10-14 years of age (Atheneum Books for Young Readers, 2019).
Questions for RISING WATER: The Story of the Thai Cave Rescue
The boys in this book were trapped on a sand mound deep in a flooded cave system without any communication to the outside world, food or dry clothes. Their coach taught them how to practice meditation in order to pass the time and quiet their fears. If you were ever trapped for just one day with several friends in a safe but confining space how do you think you would pass the time? Think about it. Make a list of actions you might take to harness the time while you wait to be rescued. Is there a game you and your friends could play? Are there stories you could share?
Why did the boys and their coach think it was safe to enter the cave system? What did the sign outside the cave entrance say? How would you re-design this sign in order to warn people reading it about the dangers no matter when the rainy season usually begins. Get out paper and pencils and markers and draw what you think would be an effective sign. You can use symbols as well as words.
The international cooperation on these rescue teams was overwhelming. There were many heroes on these teams. Select one hero for further biographical research. Why did you select that person?