The Island Of Sea Women

 Jeju is an island off the Korean peninsula much like Sicily is an island off the Italian peninsula. Jeju is part of South Korea but also separate. Jeju is the setting for The Island of Sea Women written by Lisa See. She also wrote Shanghai Girls and I enjoyed that story. In this book the sea women are called haenyeo because they dive underwater to forage for good. Without wet suits or scuba gear, the women dive deep for abalone, octopus, sea cucumbers, anemone, and mussels. This is dangerous work because abalone will grip the rock tightly when threatened which traps the divers whose knife is attached to their wrist. When the book begins the island is run by the Japanese. Young-sook and Mi-ja are 12 year old friends who are just learning the trade. Mi-ja's reputation is tarnished because her father was a collaborator with the Japanese. The two young women remain friends through world war two, the Korean war and the American presence in Korea. The story was interesting because the society on Jeju is matriarchal. The women provide the income while the men stay home and watch the young children. I always think a good book will take me away from my present circumstances and this book definitely took me far away.