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The China Coin
Allan Baillie's masterpiece – an exciting journey into China set against the background of Tiananmen Square.
Paperback
First published January 1, 1991
About the author
Allan Baillie
58 books15 followersAllan Baillie was born in Scotland but has lived most of his life in Australia, where he attended several Victorian bush schools and eventually settled in Melbourne. He has worked as a journalist and published books in fourteen countries.
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
April 14, 2026
Writing this so I can call back to it in class
- very childish writing style
Yes, it's a teenager writing this but still, I felt like listening to some grumpy kid complaining the whole time. However, there were moments where that worked to make things hit harder and the way she (Leah) described the different cities of China was interesting.
- the main plot dragged along
I think the problem was that I didn't find the mystery interesting to begin with, but for most of the book, they are either not really doing anything about it or moving forwards very very slowly.
- Tiananmen Square and the Revolution
The way that the Revolution was incorporated into book was actually quite well done, with it popping up rarely in the beginning, the reader learning about it and then becoming a bigger topic. However, the childish voice just hindered me to really get into touch with it. Plus, in the end, it overshadows the main plot... Like what do I care about a broken coin when the people are about to be dying in the streets. Also, it was a selling point for the book as I understood it and then the Girl wasn't even there? Which is obviously good for her, and I'm glad that there weren't any graphic descriptions of violence and gore (!!) however, that made the ending fall flat for me. There is this build up and premise for the massacre and then it's little more than noises in the distance? It's a stylistic choice but it just didn't work for me. The time after was described with details but it even they seemed flat and it was very short, but at the point I was at, I was glad about it.
- simple characters
The reason why the plot dragged along was because the focus shifted to the relationship of Leah and her Mom. Which, they had their moments. Mainly, though, they were caricatures. Teenage daughter who doesn't want to be here and Non-communicating Mother that is revealed to be more than just a mother but also... A PERSON...
The death of Ke was clear to me the moment I realised that he was not just a random rebel on the street and so, I didn't care.
The reader is introduced to two villages and both contain some family of Leah? She proceeds to have a crush on a family member? Very estranged family but she just figured out he was and it never even crossed her mind?
As I'm not Chinese, I cannot judge that part of the book, the accuracy of history, culture, language etc. The translation between languages I found represented not unlike I had it with my family. Although, it seemed to me that Leah had little to no prior interest in China but she appeared almost fluent? Found that a bit weird, but that was probably for storytelling.
Yeah, all of this causes the book to be predictable. It was a fairly boring read, although I liked in the beginning and it was easy to read. I don't look forward to having analysing it.
- very childish writing style
Yes, it's a teenager writing this but still, I felt like listening to some grumpy kid complaining the whole time. However, there were moments where that worked to make things hit harder and the way she (Leah) described the different cities of China was interesting.
- the main plot dragged along
I think the problem was that I didn't find the mystery interesting to begin with, but for most of the book, they are either not really doing anything about it or moving forwards very very slowly.
- Tiananmen Square and the Revolution
The way that the Revolution was incorporated into book was actually quite well done, with it popping up rarely in the beginning, the reader learning about it and then becoming a bigger topic. However, the childish voice just hindered me to really get into touch with it. Plus, in the end, it overshadows the main plot... Like what do I care about a broken coin when the people are about to be dying in the streets. Also, it was a selling point for the book as I understood it and then the Girl wasn't even there? Which is obviously good for her, and I'm glad that there weren't any graphic descriptions of violence and gore (!!) however, that made the ending fall flat for me. There is this build up and premise for the massacre and then it's little more than noises in the distance? It's a stylistic choice but it just didn't work for me. The time after was described with details but it even they seemed flat and it was very short, but at the point I was at, I was glad about it.
- simple characters
The reason why the plot dragged along was because the focus shifted to the relationship of Leah and her Mom. Which, they had their moments. Mainly, though, they were caricatures. Teenage daughter who doesn't want to be here and Non-communicating Mother that is revealed to be more than just a mother but also... A PERSON...
The death of Ke was clear to me the moment I realised that he was not just a random rebel on the street and so, I didn't care.
The reader is introduced to two villages and both contain some family of Leah? She proceeds to have a crush on a family member? Very estranged family but she just figured out he was and it never even crossed her mind?
As I'm not Chinese, I cannot judge that part of the book, the accuracy of history, culture, language etc. The translation between languages I found represented not unlike I had it with my family. Although, it seemed to me that Leah had little to no prior interest in China but she appeared almost fluent? Found that a bit weird, but that was probably for storytelling.
Yeah, all of this causes the book to be predictable. It was a fairly boring read, although I liked in the beginning and it was easy to read. I don't look forward to having analysing it.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 15, 2020
read this half out of a curiosity of what they're still teaching in the NSW Engaging with Asia directive, and also out of a misplaced desire to hurt myself
What I will say is that the book is more accurate than I thought it would be. There are moments where difficulty in language and translation is explained as well as possible, and there were times where emotional events were handled well. It does read like a book planned to be a journey of rediscovery, which derails halfway - I imagine it mirrors the author's original plans for the book and how history ended up changing its course.
The problem with this book though is that any 200 page YA novel is unable to properly explain the history of modern China in a nuanced way. It tries its hardest but it splits itself on too many bases and I can only imagine how hard it is to follow for someone who isn't Chinese. Particularly egregious is the early chapters where Leah and Joan go to a different Chinese city in every second chapter, and there's no proper sense of place at all. And yet, paradoxically, this book feels written specifically for people who aren't Chinese - Leah is for all intents and purposes Australian, her voice seems to despise China and consider everything dirty or alien. The entire country gets portrayed in a foreign or exoticised lens the entire time. And I had so much trouble with the narration style; it's third person limited from Leah's perspective but occasionally dips into second person to explain her thoughts? It just means that anything which could be emotionally impactful is undercut by a snarky comment, which pushes against the reader and prevents proper immersion.
Also it is good to be careful if anyone out there is considering teaching this in 2020 or after since it's still prescribed. In the West, particularly Australia, we're lucky to have a fairly stable socioeconomic and political history across the last 40 or so years, but this is not the case in China. This book came out in 1992 and the China of today is almost unrecognisably different; it approaches certain topics in a way which can be seen as insensitive today, and it would be irresponsible to consider this book anything other than historical fiction, written from an outsider's perspective. I would hope there's better stuff than this out there somewhere.
What I will say is that the book is more accurate than I thought it would be. There are moments where difficulty in language and translation is explained as well as possible, and there were times where emotional events were handled well. It does read like a book planned to be a journey of rediscovery, which derails halfway - I imagine it mirrors the author's original plans for the book and how history ended up changing its course.
The problem with this book though is that any 200 page YA novel is unable to properly explain the history of modern China in a nuanced way. It tries its hardest but it splits itself on too many bases and I can only imagine how hard it is to follow for someone who isn't Chinese. Particularly egregious is the early chapters where Leah and Joan go to a different Chinese city in every second chapter, and there's no proper sense of place at all. And yet, paradoxically, this book feels written specifically for people who aren't Chinese - Leah is for all intents and purposes Australian, her voice seems to despise China and consider everything dirty or alien. The entire country gets portrayed in a foreign or exoticised lens the entire time. And I had so much trouble with the narration style; it's third person limited from Leah's perspective but occasionally dips into second person to explain her thoughts? It just means that anything which could be emotionally impactful is undercut by a snarky comment, which pushes against the reader and prevents proper immersion.
Also it is good to be careful if anyone out there is considering teaching this in 2020 or after since it's still prescribed. In the West, particularly Australia, we're lucky to have a fairly stable socioeconomic and political history across the last 40 or so years, but this is not the case in China. This book came out in 1992 and the China of today is almost unrecognisably different; it approaches certain topics in a way which can be seen as insensitive today, and it would be irresponsible to consider this book anything other than historical fiction, written from an outsider's perspective. I would hope there's better stuff than this out there somewhere.
February 23, 2024
Leah a young girl has just lost her father, but he had one last request - to find the other half of a coin in China. With little information to go on, Leah and her mother head to China.
They find some family but were distant relations and they were hoping to get money from Leah's mother, but they were aware of the plans.
They moved on to Red Star Village which had been re-named after the commune. The family they were staying with ended up being In-Laws.
But China was unsafe in 1990 as the terror, protests, and riots in Tiananmen Square were in full swing.
Did they find the other half of the coin and their ancestral home before being evacuated from China?
Another great read in such vivid detail. The unrest of China at the time would have been hard on many families, especially the deaths of many students.
They find some family but were distant relations and they were hoping to get money from Leah's mother, but they were aware of the plans.
They moved on to Red Star Village which had been re-named after the commune. The family they were staying with ended up being In-Laws.
But China was unsafe in 1990 as the terror, protests, and riots in Tiananmen Square were in full swing.
Did they find the other half of the coin and their ancestral home before being evacuated from China?
Another great read in such vivid detail. The unrest of China at the time would have been hard on many families, especially the deaths of many students.
January 26, 2025
I read this for my English class in high school. It is a very easy book to read, but it is very boring. It is really hard to keep reading it without feeling bored.
July 29, 2016
Took me some time to finish this book not because I didn't like it but because I was quite busy, even so I did enjoy reading this touching story about Leah and her mother who travel across China in search of lost relatives and the answers to an ancient coin but things that unfold in Tiananmen Square bring both mother and daughter closer together.
June 3, 2012
A look at the vastness of China as a mum and her daughter search for family because of the mystery of an ancient coin that leads then to Tiananmen Square. Their travels helped me re-visit many of the extraordinary places I saw in China during my visit a few years ago.
July 10, 2008
A touching story, about finding yourself and your relationship to others through journeying.
August 31, 2011
An engaging exploration of life during the events of student uprisings in China during the 1980s.
January 7, 2016
Still broken.
Always broken.
Always broken.
Read
January 30, 2017I really need to read that book as I was in hsc ESL
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews