The Selchie's Seed

By Shulamith Levey Oppenheim

Book Overview

A mysterious white whale brings fifteen-year-old Marian's magical heritage to light in this spellbinding fantasy. "Extraordinary."-- Boston Globe

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0152014128
• ISBN13: 9780152014124
• Release Date: October 1996
• Publisher: Houghton Mifflin
• Length: 96 Pages
• Weight: 0.35 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.4" x 5.0" x 7.5"
• Age Range: 7 to 10 years
• Grade Range: Grades 2 to 5

Customer Reviews

Irish mythology in a girl's comming-of-age theme

My Mother read The Selchie's Seed to my sister and me when I was about 10 years old. The stark black and white drawings by Dianne Goode were fantastic; evocative and soft in their depiction of a rugged coastal landscape. The story is of a young girl's discovery of a white whale in the wave-tossed inlet along the shore of her tiny Irish fishing village. When the girl tells her parents about the whale her Father's reaction is angry, but her Mother seeems to have been expecting the whale's intrusion into their lives. Later, the girl overhears her parents' heated discusion about her and the whale. She learns of her Selchie blood and of the connection she has with the whale at the inlet. This is a story of the power of choosing one's path in life. The girl in The Selchie's Seed experiences her passage into womanhood through a calling to return to the family of the Selchie. In some senses this is a story of reclaiming one's self, and of freedom. The Irish myth of the Selchie (silky-skinned seal people) who swim to shore, shed their seal skins and walk in the skin of a human comes into play in this tale. But more contemporary issues of power over others, over one's self and one's choices are explored in Oppenheim's wonderful story. This is a book for girls and for boys (the relationship between the girl and her brother is strong and offers a healing male/female relationship in the face of her Father's helpless anger at the loss of his daughter) to learn from and enjoy. It's left a lasting impression on me, and will remain with me throughout the rest of my adult life.