The Road to Bangkok: The Travelling Library Chronicles of Maizey Lee

by Erni Salleh

Talking plants, evil scientists, and mobile book vans—Maizey doesn't know where to start!

Imagination loss has hit everyone over 35, but 11-year-old Maizey Lee has bigger problems that that. Her life is turned upside down when her father disappears in a fire and mother decides to take them globe-trotting in a library on wheels. She has to get back to Singapore in time to sit for PSLE, or she'll be stuck in primary school forever! But with her mother determined to visit the world book capital to keep her Imagination alive, her plant friend Curie causing havoc with her powers, and an sinister pharmaceautical company chasing after them, will she ever be able to get her normal life back?

In this first foray into the world of travelling libraries, talking plants and scientific espionage, it's up to Maizey to save Imagination. As she goes swimming with turtles, plucks coconuts with monkeys and races across Bangkok on a far-too-small scooter, Maizey is about to learn that every encounter she picks up along the way will guide her to understand the power of stories and the importance in keeping Imagination alive.

237 pages, Kindle Edition

Published April 24, 2024

About the author

Erni Salleh is the author of The Java Enigma, which was shortlisted for the 2020 Epigram Books Fiction Prize. She completed her Master's in Southeast Asian Studies at the National University of Singapore, where she first got interested in colonial maps, art, religion and ancient kingdoms of the region. A librarian by profession and a self-professed antiques aficionado, she travels the region collecting bits of the past—from 19th century ceremonial scrolls in Laos to generations-old kerises in a remote village in Yogyakarta. When she’s not writing, Erni continues telling stories, be it to a room full of toddlers and parents, or storyboarding a puzzle adventure book for tweens.

Reviews

[RekiB · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely loved this book. As I am a library assistant myself, this book caught my attention immediately when I went through the kids section of a bookshop in Singapore.
The writing is excellent, quick and witty, perfectly suitable for kids, young adults and adults alike. I love how the author harmoniously blends the themes of geography, anthropology, bothany, travel and adventure. It's a fun story that keeps you engaged all the way through. I can't wait for the sequel ❤️!

[Vivian Teo · Rating 5 out of 5]

How does the idea of travelling the world in a book van sound to you? Well, it sounds like an adventure to me! And that's what 11-year-old Maizey Lee embarks on in Erni Salleh's new middle grade book, The Travelling Library Chronicles of Maizey Lee: The Road to Bangkok.

Set in a world where adults are losing their imagination, Maizey, her mum and her atuk set off on a road trip in a travelling library. Their journey, however, becomes complicated and dangerous when they are tailed by an evil pharmaceutical company believed to be connected to the disappearance of Maizey's scientist father. With a journal and talking plant (!) left behind by her father, Maizey starts to uncover secrets about her father's disappearance while learning to deal with the changes and challenges in her life.

As per blurb by yours truly, this is a fun and delightful story about courage and dealing with change, that will have you rooting for its brave protagonist 💪🏽I also love that readers get to experience through Maizey, who is half Malay, half Welsh, what it's like to grow up in a mixed-race family, and go on a journey around the world. We visit Malaysia and Thailand in the first book of this series and I believe it's China next in the sequel 😉 I highly recommend this for readers 8-12 years old who love adventure and mystery stories.

Thank you, Epigram Books and Erni, for the signed copy and lovely message in the book ❤ The Travelling Library Chronicles of Maizey Lee: The Road to Bangkok is now available at Epigram Books and bookstores in Singapore.

[Min · Rating 4 out of 5]

Maizey is half-Welsh and half-Malay, and it's lovely to see her learning to be proud of her heritage. While Maizey's story is not representative of every mixed child, I appreciate that this book shares her experience coming from different cultures, and also when she gets to confide in a new friend who is also biracial.

For an 11-year-old, the journey that Maizey embarks on is definitely not a smooth or easy ride, and I find it important and appreciate that Maizey talks about her feelings and emotions, rather than suppressing them.

This is a children's book but I have to say that I got anxious from the threat posed by the bad people chasing them down 🤣 Love seeing familiar places mentioned such as Tioman Islands and Mersing! A personal favourite is when Maizey's grandfather refers to PSLE as 'Pesslee'.

A fun read full of adventure with a travelling library and a talking plant, and our botany loving protagonist 💚