Starry River of the Sky

Madam Chang is the Moon Lady, and although this is not explicitly revealed until the very end of the novel, Lin injects many subtler hints into the narrative. For example, Madam Chang possesses an ethereal beauty, and “the light in her dark eyes made them shine like stars” (25); this can easily be interpreted as a metaphor for how the moonlight shines in the sky when the moon is where it’s supposed to be. In Chinese mythology, the Moon Lady was originally a human woman wed to a great archer who shot down the extra suns in the sky to keep the world from burning. Following this feat, the archer became cruel, and his wife fled to the moon, where she lived out her days in the moon palace among the other creatures who lived there. It is unclear exactly how long the moon has been missing from the sky at the book’s outset, and there is evidence to suggest that Madam Chang has journeyed to the inn because she perceives that Rendi is the hero she needs. Madam Chang expresses herself and her history through stories, embodying the theme of Storytelling as a Self-Portrait. Through these tales, she offers intertwining narratives of figures from Chinese mythology, and these stories-within-a-story develop her character arc and help to ground the novel within the conventions of Chinese culture.

Peiyi is the innkeeper’s daughter, and although she is young, she is also “fearless yet vulnerable” (242). Peiyi’s character development concerns her desire avoid abandonment. Following the disappearance of her brother and the death of her mother, Peiyi dreads the thought that people will leave because in her experience, they do not come back. At the beginning of the book, she despises Rendi for his mean-spirited attitude, and she doesn’t understand why the people she loves leave while this terrible boy stays. As she and Rendi get to know each other, however, Peiyi comes to understand that Rendi has endured great injustices from his father, and she wishes for him to stay because she and her father care about him and will treat him well. Feeling wanted by Peiyi and her father helps Rendi to realize that he can’t give up on his own family, and by the end of the book, he and Peiyi go their separate ways, each having helped the other to understand where they truly belong.

Mr. Shan is the wise spirit of the mountain who left the village when Peiyi’s ancestor insulted him. As a result of the mountain’s disappearance, the moon fell from the sky, and this sequence of events represents how a single negative comment directed at one person can have far-reaching consequences. Prior to the opening of the novel, Mr. Shan loses his book of wisdom when Jiming knocks it from his hands in a fit of anger, and this incident demonstrates once again The Destructive Power of Anger. Without the book, a piece of Mr. Shan is missing, and he is largely distracted and distant, helped slightly by the toad he finds and by Madam Chang’s presence. When Mr. Shan recovers his book, he regains the part of himself that he had lost, and this is the final step in putting the world back to normal and restoring the moon to its position in the sky. With his book, he brings his mountain back, which allows him to hoist the moon and Madam Chang into the sky, thus restoring balance to the world.

Rendi’s father is a magistrate who lusts for power. He is described as tigerlike by those around him, for he often roars his displeasure and wounds those around him with vicious claws of anger and biting words. His abusive anger provides the catalyst for Rendi’s journey to find himself. In one of Rendi’s later stories, he describes the events that make him leave home, the most painful event of which involves his father’s furious assertion that the broken pieces of a gift from the king are worth more than his own children. This declaration makes Rendi feel betrayed and causes him to hold onto bitter anger for the first portion of the book. Later, a duke whom Rendi recognizes comes to the inn in search of Rendi, and this moment initiates Rendi’s path toward forgiveness. Rendi has held onto his anger because he does not believe that his father can change, but upon learning that his father is worried about him, Rendi wonders if the man deserves another chance. This shift also demonstrates the common truth that distance from a problem often provides new clarity. Rendi’s father didn’t care for Rendi when the boy was home, for he only valued what Rendi could do for his political career. With the fear of his son’s death on his conscience, however, the man realizes what is truly important.