The Island of Sea Women by Lisa See

One Maryland, One Book has been hosting state-wide readings, discussions, and author interviews for thirteen years now and they aren't going to let a pandemic stop them. The author Lisa See http://www.lisasee.com/ has been plumbing the depths of her Chinese-American background in fiction and memoir for many years now, developing a loyal fan base. She will be in zoom rooms all over Maryland next month to discuss her latest historical novel about the very remarkable, real women of Jeju Island, Korea, who have been supporting their families for generations by diving for abalone, octopus, sea urchins, and other edible creatures.


Spanning seventy years, See's story commences in 1938 during the run up to World War II and revolves

around the very complicated politics of the Korean peninsula and its subjugation by Japan. You may feel the need to head to Wikipedia to supplement your knowledge of this time and place. Still, there is a universal quality to the suffering of any people denied the right to self-rule and this suffering informs  the entire novel.


At the heart of the story is the enduring power of female friendships but also the inability to let go of wrongs. At one point our narrator Young-sook says of herself that she knows she has a heart of ice, that the anger and resentment she's harbored against her best friend Mi-Ja for decades is only hurting herself. But how do you forgive someone whose actions, or lack thereof, results in the death of your husband and son? Is that even possible?


Friends from early childhood, Mi-Ja and Young-sook were inseparable. They trained, as all the Jeju Island girls did, to be divers, the renowned Haenyeo who worked the sea while the men stayed home with the babies. The women were spiritualists, worshipping the goddesses of the mountains and oceans and relying on the advice of a shaman prior to boarding their boats. Often the girls traveled as far as Russia to dive during more propitious seasons. But one year, upon returning to Jeju, Mi-Ja and Young-sook meet a worldly charmer on the dock who offers help with their trunks. It will be decades before the horrific ramifications of Lee Sang-mun's appearance in their lives will be fully understood.


I'll admit that I had read more than sixty pages before the stories of these women and their families really grabbed me. The story began slowly but eventually I was immersed in the idea of this matrifocal society and the strengths and weaknesses of its culture. Ironically, though the women were the source of income, the men still held the power through property ownership. Women were illiterate, though education for boys was a coveted goal. Poverty was rampant and years of occupation and war brought refugees from the mountains to the seaside.


For seven years hunger and fear turned one against another as rebel forces formed and turned against the local constabulary. Protesters were tortured and murdered. Entire villages were burned and the people massacred but to speak of it brought a death sentence. Yet through all the upheaval these amazing women found solace in their friendships and in the sea. If stories of strength and resilience are your cup of tea then Lisa See's "The Island of Sea Women" should be your next read.