When the Sea Turned to Silver is about a girl
named Pinmei who is the granddaughter of Amah, a great storyteller who knows
many Chinese folktales. One day, the evil emperor has her grandmother
kidnapped, and Pinmei and her friend Yishan go on a quest to rescue her. I
borrowed this book from my local library.
I liked the air of mystery to the story, the characters, and
the world. Questions are raised such as why the emperor took the grandmother,
who is the emperor really, how Pinmei will and Yishan save Amah, and how much
truth is in the folktales Amah and Pinmei tell throughout the book.
I enjoyed the folklore in the book and Grace Lin’s
illustrations are beautiful and colorful. Her illustrations drew me into the
story, and the cover art was one of the first things that got my attention when
I saw the book in the library.
The writing style is different from most books I’ve read,
and I liked that as well. It is poetic, and there seems to be a simplicity to
the writing style. Maybe it’s because of the way Grace Lin describes things and
the things she chooses to describe are different from most other books I’ve
read. Some stories choose to describe as many things as possible when it comes
to setting, but this book seems to focus on just a few descriptions about a
setting. The imagery, metaphors, and similes the writer uses for the story are
simple but also beautiful. There are times where I feel some of them are a bit
repetitive or some different variations of another simile, but they are still
enjoyable to read.
Pinmei, the main character, is shy and timid, which is
something I can relate to. She becomes braver as the story progresses. There
are positive messages such as doing what is right even though it may not be
easy and even though you may be afraid. I liked some of Pinmei’s character growth.
One thing that I didn’t like about the book was that there
were times where I wondered why the characters were telling a folktale during
what I felt was an urgent situation. Why not give a quick summary of the
folktale instead of telling the whole thing? Why not hurry?
Another thing I didn’t like about the book was the main
message, which was that stories are the key to immortality. In the author’s
note, Grace Lin explains that she believes that stories are the secret to
immortality because they “are how we share our lives and what we truly mourn
when they are lost. Stories are what connect us to our past and carry us to our
future. They are what we cherish and what we remember” (Lin, 370).
The message is similar to the idea that no one is
really gone so long as you remember them, that even though they are dead, they
live on forever in memory. I don’t agree with the main message of the book.
Though stories can help us remember people, they do not make people immortal.
Stories may not last forever. Some are forgotten or lost through time, which
Grace Lin acknowledges.
I think the idea that people live on in memory is partially
based on the assumption that there is no life after death, which isn’t true. When
people die, they either go to heaven or hell. The secret to immortality, or
everlasting life, isn’t a secret at all; Jesus is the way, the truth, and life.
If a person has given their life to Jesus, they will go to heaven and forever
be with God, but if not, they will go to hell. As John 3:36 states, “He who
believes in the Son has everlasting life; and he who does not believe the Son
shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him.”
Overall, the book was enjoyable to read, and I would recommend
it to anyone who’s interested in Chinese folklore and children’s fantasy books.
I plan on reading Grace Lin’s other books.
Citations
Lin, Grace. When the Sea Turned to Silver. Hachette
Book Group, 2016.
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