The Changeling Sea

by Patricia A. McKillip

Book Overview

World Fantasy Award winner Patricia A. McKillip tells "an enchanting fantasy that is tinged with realism and romance." (School Library Journal)

Since the day her father's fishing boat returned without him, Peri and her mother have mourned his loss. Her mother sinks into a deep depression and spends her days gazing out at the sea. Unable to control her anger and sadness any longer, Peri uses the small magic she knows...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0141312629
• ISBN13: 9780141312620
• Release Date: April 2003
• Publisher: Firebird
• Length: 144 Pages
• Weight: 0.10 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.4" x 6.4" x 6.8"
• Age Range: 12 years and up
• Grade Range: Grade 7 and higher

Customer Reviews

Heartrending!

I actually kind of liked this book, if only it hadn't been so darn sad! (SPOILER ALERT) Peri and Kir fall in love, but they don't get to be together. He goes to live under the sea, leaving her heartbroken, and the way the book ended suggested that she will probably get married to the magician. Peri and Kir's separation was so heartrending and terribly sad! After I finished reading the book my heart felt darkened and heavy with sadness...I cried... If people really knew what it's like to be in love with someone and yet be kept apart from them, then they wouldn't write about it and they wouldn't enjoy reading about it and they wouldn't laugh about it or laugh at people who suffer through such pains that it inflicts. The pain and the love don't go away as easily as the ending of this book implies.

McKillip is a master...

Despite the age reccomendations on this book (9 to 12), McKillip's story is a wonderful fairy tale for any reader, as are all of her other works. The Changling Sea is an excellent combination of fantasy and reality - the balance of hard working villagers and magical beings from another world make this story not only enchanting, but lovely in its realism. Fans of McKillip will of course love this story. For children and adults who have never read her: this is a great place to start.

Bewitching

One of Patricia McKillip's lesser-known works, "Changeling Sea" is reminiscent of her rare short novel "Something Rich and Strange," as both deal with the sea and its pull on human beings. Thankfully this book will soon be reprinted by the excellent imprint Firebird books; it's an enchanting short novel full of vivid images and characters.Peri's father was drowned, and her mother lives half in a dream world. Peri herself scrubs floors for a living, and remains embittered against the sea that stole her parents both in body and in mind. One night as she is weaving hexes to cast into the sea, she encounters Kir, a young prince with an obsessive longing for the sea. He asks her to put a mysterious message in with her hexes, and she agrees. A sea-dragon with a gold chain around its neck surfaces not long after she tosses the hexes into the ocean, and a passing mage named Lyo tries to take the chain for the fishermen -- except he accidently turns it into hundreds of tiny flowers.Soon strange things begin to surface from the sea, just after Kir and his father leave for a distant island. Peri encounters the sea dragon pulling itself onto the land, and sees it transform into a naked young man who strongly resembles Kir. A years-old web of magic, love, revenge, and sea-longing must be unraveled before Kir can find peace, and Peri can find love.One of the enchanting things about Patricia McKillip's novels is their simplicity. Though we have some of the essential trappings of typical fantasy -- wizards, dragons, mermaids, kings and princes and plenty of magic -- they are used in a very diffeent manner than most readers will be used to. The plotline is deceptively simple, and has the feeling of being far more complex than it is. Several plot elements can be guessed ahead of time, but this does not detract from the storyline.As always, her prose is full of magic; the descriptions are lush and beautiful, even the descriptions of the sea-dragon. In such cases as the description of the sea-lady, they are exceptional, even for McKillip. At the same time, this dreaminess is balanced out by the homey atmosphere of the inn where Peri works. The dialogue ranges from poetic, almost songlike, to chummy and amusing.Peri is an unusual heroine: she isn't pretty, sweet-natured, powerful, or anything unusual but kind and angsty. McKillip repeatedly emphasizes that, unlike Cinderella, Snow White or similar floor-scrubbing protagonists, Peri has calloused knees, perpetually messy hair, and a nose that she perceives as being too big. Yet she is entrancing to some of the male characters, and respected by all of them. Lyo is reminiscent of the "Riddlemaster" character Rood, with his offputting wit and uncanny clear sight. Kir drips angst and unhappiness, especially since he seems unable to love anything or anyone on the land. The unnamed sea-dragon/youth is almost babylike in his trust and eagerness to learn."Changeling Sea" is an exceptional story, full of magic, romance, and a

One of the Best!

No matter the age of the reader, Patricia McKillip has always astounded with her power to draw us into her intricately crafted worlds seemingly without conscious effort. Her prose, always beautiful, paints such gorgeous pictures in our heads that it is impossible not to be engaged as soon as we pick up the page. The Changeling Sea follows the life of a small young woman named Periwinkle (but everyone just calls her Peri) as she deals with the realities of a father taken by the sea and a mother who does nothing but grieve for him. From the very start, introduced to this unlikely heroine as she scrubs floors at a local Inn, we cannot help but be charmed by her. Even better, as the tale goes on, despite her lack of concern for what others think, this woman not only catches two princes but also becomes the focal point in a web of intrigue, mystery, enchantment, and power. That she ends up finding new resources of power within herself intrigues and delights us; for a change, and unlike most fairytale characters, this girl is neither beautiful nor classically sweet, and yet she still ends up with a happy ending.Despite its age, this classic will never grow old. I recommend it to anyone, as a great intro to fantasy and as an evocative fairy tale that bends the definitions in enchanting new ways.

Lyrical, moving, enchanting: vintage McKillip

A magical, moving, and completely original story, peopled with quirkily charming characters. Unlike most fantasy novels, this isn't about wielding swords and spells to save the world, but about the power and wonder of both magic and human relationships. Peri is a likable, offbeat heroine, and the choice she makes regarding the three men who come into her life, the magician, the prince, and the sea dragon, is believable and heartwarming. All the characters, even the most minor ones, have their own lives and agendas, bringing to life the vividly imagined setting of a fishing village on the edge of enchantment. Dialogue is sometimes poetic, sometimes funny, but always well-phrased. The balance in this book between the little moments of daily life and the beauty of magic and feeling reminded me of movies like The Secret Garden and John Sayles' The Secret of Roan Inish.

Why are we so happy that Cinderella doesn't get her prince?

To begin with, the main character, Peri, is not really a Cinderella. She may scrub floors, but Ms. McKillip uses Periwinkle to draw her readers into the story. She is so ordinary and so natural, that readers can easily identify with her. And in the end when she turns out to possess a special magic within herself, readers feel a little more special as well. After having fallen in love with the unreachable sea prince, she neither "lives happily ever after" nor dies as a star crossed lover. Instead she goes on to discover that princes aren't the only catches worth landing. This novel is not only fascinating to read, but it provides a setting for self discovery as well. The style is appropriate for any age of self discoverer.