This week we are discussing The Cartographers by Peng Shepherd, Ch. 1-11.
Content Warning!!! This book contains situations and subjects related to: parental death, murder, blood, fire, kidnapping.
Spoiler Warning!!! This post is full of spoilers for The Cartographers by Peng Shepherd.
Discussion:
Jacilyn: Hello friends, and welcome to our first discussion of The Cartographers, by Peng Shepherd. The first section of this book has been a wild ride, and I can’t help but be frustrated with our protagonist, Nell. The danger surrounding her father’s death - which she thought could have been suspicious right away - and that highway map has been clear from almost the start, and yet she’s traipsing around, having conversations with connected people in spaces where they are surrounded by people! Wakes, a crowded book and map expo. She has also been entirely too open and honest with Irene - I don’t trust her, nor do I trust most of the folks on the NYPL Board. Right now, I think the only people Nell can truly trust are Swann and Felix.
Michaela: Nell is driving me crazy with how irresponsible she’s being. Clearly she has not watched enough crime shows or heist films. I literally texted Jac while reading and said “this bitch is stupid” and I still stand by that, Nell is just telling people left and right all the things she’s found. Ma’am keep some of it to yourself, you’re literally being followed. Then she doesn't even want to accept her incredibly obvious tail despite all the evidence she’s getting into something dangerous. Your own father and a friend, the security guard, have already been killed in relation to this map, maybe have a little discretion.
I’m glad that at the very least Swann and Felix tried to make her see the danger or accept the danger. So far I don’t know how I feel about Felix, him putting the blame on Nell for Dr. Young firing them is a big red flag for me. Nell is not responsible for Felix deciding that he wanted to stand up for her in the Junk Box Incident. I won’t say Felix should be thrown in the trash just yet, but he does have a strike one in my book. Swann feels almost too friendly and trustworthy, like am I supposed to love him like Nell does or am I supposed to be wary of the trust she has in him? I can’t tell yet. Then all these Cartographers are being real weird, I’m so curious to know the entire backstory with the fire. We learned so much in this first section I feel like I’m still digesting it.
Jacilyn: It definitely isn’t fair for Felix to blame Nell for what happened with the Junk Box Incident. I honestly think that Dr. Young demanded they be fired in order to try to protect them. He knew that Nell wouldn’t just let it go - she’s as stubborn as he is - and that could put her in danger. There’s still a lot to learn when it comes to the Cartographers, though. Everyone talks about them like they’re the ones to be scared of, but that doesn’t seem to make sense with what we know so far. Were they some sort of vigilantes? Does this map have some bad vibes that existed before these rich people started searching for it, or is it the game that has created these bad vibes? Why were the maps being destroyed in the first place? Is this map cursed in some way, and that’s the way magical realism comes into play? I really don’t know yet, but I definitely want to keep reading to find out.
I’m really enjoying the way that flashbacks are incorporated into the book. So far, I’m pretty convinced that Wally is actually William Haberson, and the reason he stays out of the public eye is because he has something to do with the deaths surrounding this map - potentially even Tam’s. I’m not convinced that her death was a total accident, although I couldn’t exactly explain why yet. Something just doesn’t feel right about it all. I definitely don’t trust him, though. His obsession with this ultimate map seems to stem from an ulterior motive - and I would be willing to bet that he is trying to find the map.
My heart hurts for Nell, in spite of my frustration with her. She had a complicated relationship with her father, and now he’s dead, potentially murdered, and she’s learning about the person he used to be from people she didn’t even know had any involvement in her family’s lives. She never got to know the father that he was when she was young, before her mom passed. The kind of happy and goofy and carefree man he was. I know that grief can do horrible things to people, but it’s not fair that Nell was impacted in the way she was.
Michaela: I agree that Dr. Young was probably trying to protect Nell, that or he just had an intense reaction to seeing Tam’s map again. Either way I still think he did the wrong thing, even in trying to protect Nell from this whole 1930s gas station map drama he could have just told her what was going on. I didn’t even realize that this book had a magical realism element to it until you said it and now I’m even more intrigued by this map. What is so special about it that it caused a father to create this huge rift with his daughter and only connection with his wife who passed away? Also, when we met the board of the NYPL my immediate thought was ‘of course it’s a rich people game’, disgusting honestly, no regard for people's safety or their time and energy, just throwing money around to find some seemingly random map as far as they know.
The flashbacks in this book are written really well, I feel like they draw me more into the story rather than take me out like some flashbacks can. I totally agree, I don’t think Tam’s death was a complete accident, something is very off about this whole thing. If Wally and William don’t end up being the same person then I am totally lost, they’re so similar. The only person we don’t know a lot about is this Bear guy, and he’s the one who provided the house. I think Wally/William is super suspicious, Francis is being real weird (conveniently has the ability to disappear from a dead end room just like the burglar), Romona is cagey but seems genuinely nice just scared, the Youngs are dead, and Eve seems okay so far, at the very least she’s willing to share some info with Nell about the group and their past. But at the same time maybe that's a way for Eve to try to get Nell to trust her. But also this whole group of friends reminds me of Jac and I’s college friend group also. They’re all really cute together in the flashbacks, especially once Nell comes along and they all just love her so much. Ugh fucking adorable!
This whole Dreamer’s Atlas thing sounds super cool and I’d definitely buy it but, maybe because I’m not a map person, I fail to see how it would revolutionize or change the map world forever like the group thinks it will. I think it’d be a huge success and would bring extra attention to the field, especially amongst people like me who like to hang maps of fantasy/historical places up as decor but they’re all super intense about it. Maybe that’s just for the book though? I really don’t know, I am not educated enough in that field to know how realistic this part of the story is. It feels romanticized to me, which I still like a lot for the story anyways.
Jacilyn: I would also buy something like the Dreamer’s Atlas, but I can’t say that I understand exactly what…. Use it would have, beyond being something that those who like maps could enjoy? They talk about it like it’s some revolutionary thing, and perhaps it is and my lack of insight into the world of cartography is impacting my understanding.
The whole friendship turned family thing also reminds me of our friend group in college, even if that isn’t exactly the same as it used to be. I’m a sucker for found family, and the story of the Cartographer’s definitely scratches that itch for me. I have some suspicions regarding Bear, too, honestly. If Wally isn’t William, then I could perhaps see Bear being William - I’m not sure if it was ever established if Bear was his actual name or just a nickname. No matter what, though, I’m going to be tense until we discover who exactly is going around committing burglaries and killing people.
Well, friends, that brings us to the end of our first discussion. So much happened in this section, but there’s still so much of the story that’s a mystery to us. I’m looking forward to learning more about how the Cartographers went from a family to spread out and afraid. We’ll see you next time!
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