Last-Place Lin

Overview

Lin's excited about her first school sports day until she comes last. A relatable picture book about endurance and resilience from the award-winning author and Australian Survivor contestant, Wai Chim.

It's Sports Day! Everyone has a different House colour.
I'm in the Red House. Go Red!
It's time for the sack race. On your marks, get set, go!
But not everyone can come first.Sometimes winning means finishing, even if you finish last.

A reassuring celebration of the spirit to keep going, from award-winning author Wai Chim and acclaimed illustrator Freda Chiu.
 

Reviews

"This picture book about perseverance and resilience will prompt conversations about anxieties around sports days - or anything that a child might feel they're bad at - other people's expectations of us and how much we can achieve with peer support. Freda Chiu's illustrations capture the brightness of school sports day, an array of facial expressions, and the diversity of children and adults in the school. Chim's text is pleasingly simple and reassuring for readers aged four-and-up, and includes the occasional stretch word (heave, gaze, footfalls)." —Books+Publishing

"Heart-wrenching... The novel provides an insightful look at the powerful role food plays in our emotional lives." ―The New York Times Book Review on The Surprising Power of a Good Dumpling:

"Gritty details lend depth to this viscerally powerful tale of a teen struggling to help her troubled family." ―Kirkus Reviews, starred review of The Surprising Power of a Good Dumpling

"Combining both somber and inspiring tones, this gripping story is even more poignant as Ming and Li’s story is based on the author’s father’s lived experience. An important and memorable read." ―Booklist,starred review of Freedom Swimmer

"Dual narrators Ming and Li's breathtaking journey and subsequent events feel plausible and poignant, not only because they are based on the lived experience of the author’s father, but also thanks to Chim’s gift for storytelling. A compelling historical story that highlights timeless themes." ―Kirkus Reviews on Freedom Swimmer

Author Biography

Wai Chim is the Chinese-American-Australian author of several children's and YA titles including Freedom Swimmer and most recently The Surprising Power of a Good Dumpling, which was a Kirkus Prize finalist. Last-Place Lin is her first picture book and was inspired by her time on Australian Survivor: Brains v Brawn. Born to immigrant parents in New York, Wai grew up speaking Cantonese at home and brings a lot of her diasporic identity into her work. She spent some time living in Japan before making Australia her permanent home. In addition to writing, Wai works as a Business System Analyst for The Starlight Children's Foundation. She currently lives in Sydney with her husband and beloved cat, Freddie.

Freda Chiu is an author and illustrator from Sydney, Australia. As well as children's book illustrations, her work spans comics, editorial and retail graphics. Outside her art practice, Freda lectures in Illustration at the University of Technology Sydney. Her debut picture book, A Trip to the Hospital, was short-listed for the CBCA Award for New Illustrator and the IBBY Australia Ena Noël Awards. She has most recently illustrated Karen Foxlee's junior fiction series Miss Mary-Kate Martin's Guide to Monsters.

www.fredachiu.com