Importance of Story-Telling

Story-telling symbolizes the passing on of information and culture from one generation to the next in this novel. Though Halmoni's stories are often about magic or about other things that it would be easy for Lily to dismiss as crazy or nonsensical, Lily has a deep respect for Halmoni's stories because she is fascinated about what they tell her about Korean culture. Her own mother, Joan, never speaks of Korean culture and never tells whimsical stories, thus for Lily the story-telling with Halmoni is tied up inextricably with learning about her ancestors and her family's history.