Synopses & Reviews
The first time Eliza sees Wah Chung, he is squatting beside some rocks on the pathway to her island. Eliza's island is the one on which the lighthouse -- operated and maintained by her father -- stands, sending its beacon of safety to ships at sea. The pathway to the island is a treacherous one, engulfed by water when the tide is high, passable only when the tide is low and reveals the secret life of the sea on the rocks and in the pools that remain.
Although Eliza is careful to avoid Wah Chung as he paints among the rocks (after all, he is a Chinaman), when a "sneaker wave" approaches the passage, it is Wah Chung who warns her and then rescues Eliza's goat, Parthenia, before both are swept away.
It is a simple act of kindness, but one that causes Eliza to doubt many things. Are the Celestials, as the Chinese immigrants are called, such a threat to their small town? Are they really heathens, as her father claims? And what should she do when the townspeople conspire to expel these people forcibly? How will Eliza act, in the face of her father's strong beliefs and his duties as the lighthouse keeper, when Wah Chung comes to her for help in return?
Synopsis
Eliza Jane lives in a lighthouse on the northern California coast in 1896. One day a Chinese boy crosses her path, and everything changes. Eliza Jane is forbidden to have anything to do with Wah Chang, but he soon saves her from a dangerous wave. However, tensions in her community explode and the people decide to rid their town of the Chinese. Can Eliza Jane defy the will of her community to do the right thing?
About the Author
Susan Fletcher's previous books include the trilogy of
Dragon's Milk, Flight of the Dragon Kyn, and
Sign of the Dove, and most recently,
Shadow Spinner. Ms. Fletcher lives in Lake Oswego, Oregon, with her husband, their daughter, and a black cat named Nimbus.
Table of Contents
ContentsPrologue: Parting Waters
The China Boy
Heathen?s Hat
Contraption
The Blurts
Someone?s Sister
The Baby
Riled
Bitter Cup
Chinese Must Go
Get You From Me
Ill Night
Misery at a Distance
Too Kind
Wah Chung
Storm
It Would Taint Us
Last Look Back
Epilogue: Andrew John
Author?s Note
Acknowledgments