Where the Mountain Meets the Moon

Here is a title that has been sitting on my tbr pile for quite some time. After all of the Mock Newbery results started pouring in, it was obvious that it was time to move this to the top of the pile! On my way to Boston for ALA’s Midwinter Conference, I had just the time I needed to get reading.

Minli’s family is very poor. In fact, everyone in her village is very poor. They live in the shadow of the Fruitless Mountain, where crops do not grow, and the land is barren and tough. It is all her family can do to work daily on their land and try to harvest enough rice to eat that day. Minli’s parents have very different outlooks on the their existence with Ma spending her time sighing bitterly over their fortune while her Ba fills their empty hours with colourful stories filled with mythical creatures, magic and far off lands. Ma scoffs at the stories, but Minli simply comes alive and seems to glow while she listens.

One day a goldfish seller comes into their little village declaring that a goldfish in the house will bring fortune into one’s home. Minli, with her faith in story, believes the goldfish seller and rushes into her home to get the 2 coins that are hers alone from when she was born. The fish costs her one of her coins and even though others in the village warn her not to believe the man, she happily brings her new fish home.

When her parents return from the fields, her mother is shocked and disappointed that Minli wasted her coin. Ba, however, reminds her that the money is Minli’s to do with what she pleases. Ma only sees the fish as another mouth to feed…something that Minli had not thought about when she first spotted the fish.

Minli decides in the dark of night to free the fish, so that her parents will not have to worry about feeding it. When she releases it in the river, something amazing happens. The fish speaks to her, and tells her how she can change the fortune of her family.

Soon Minli is off on her own, chasing her dream of helping her parents change their fortune. What follows is an adventure of discovery involving a flightless dragon, a boy with one friend, and the Old Man of the Moon.

Grace Lin has written an enchanting story that mixes a rich cultural landscape with a magical quest. Minli has such a pure spirit, that readers can’t help but root for her to overcome all of the odds and help her family. Between the “outside” stories, the pacing is perfect, and while I wondered at first if I would be able to keep momentum during the telling of the “outside” stories, it is managed with ease. Where the Mountain Meets the Moon has all of the qualities of a book with staying power. It will be interesting to see if this appears on some of the lists this year!

The Dragon's Child

I am always on the look-out for a good immigration story. The topic is a big one in our curriculum. Imagine my delight upon having The Dragon's Child A Story of Angel Island, by Laurence and Kathleen Yep delivered by my fab colleague Jen.

A young boy, Gim Lew, is living with his family in his father's village in China. Father doesn't stay with them, however. He is a Guest of the Golden Mountain. In other words, he lives in America. He comes back periodically, brings money, and takes the sons away. Gim Lew first met his father two years ago, when he was seven years old. His father is a dragon, and the boy is nothing like him.

Gim Lew has a stutter and uses his left hand as well. He is just getting hit with the bamboo rod by his Uncle Jing, when word comes that his father has returned. His father is the most important man in the village, and as he usually brings gifts from San Fransisco, everyone is excited about his arrival. The New Year is just over, and most people could use the extra food that celebrations bring.

Gim Lew is shy around his father. His stutter is more pronounced, and he struggles to communicate with this important man. Imagine his surprise when he finds out that he too, is to return to the Golden Mountain with his father. Eventhough he does not want to go, he knows he must. The situation in China is precarious. If bandits do not get paid, they destroy villages. If the weather fails and the crops die, families will have nothing to eat if money is not sent.

Father soon starts preparing the boy for the "test". Gim Lew must learn every answer to any question that American immigration might ask of him. He is only ten. Can he overcome his shyness and his stutter to please his father?

Laurence and Kathleen Yep tell of the start of a journey and the stay at Angel Island. This story is a piece of their family history, though fictionalized. Readers get a clear view of a Chinese village, and of Shanghai as well. The journey on the ship is not glamorous, and one can only imagine the heat and stench of the hold. Even though Gim Lew's father is an American citizen, and therefore his children are too, the racism he faces everytime that he travels is intense and predictable.

The text is chock full of details that will enrich many a lesson on social justice, immigration, and family. There is a fourteen page essay after the conclusion of the book that details some of the hardships and legislation faced by the Chinese (and American Chinese) from the mid 1800s until the mid 1900s. Also included are some family photographs, and photos of the ships and of Angel Island.

A moving piece of historical fiction.