Alice’s grandmother had begun her tradition of storytelling long ago with Alice’s father, Kuan, and his siblings. Through Unpolished Gem, Alice ultimately implies that words and stories, for better or worse, have the power to influence and change one’s life.Īs a memoir, storytelling is the very foundation of Unpolished Gem, and this is mirrored in the stories that Alice’s grandmother tells. Language and storytelling prove to be powerful ways for Alice to carry her culture and history into the future however, she also argues that language has the power to divide and exclude. Stories, especially didactic stories, and the words that make them up are thus central to Alice’s life and experiences.

Alice’s parents name her after Lewis Carrol’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, and her own stress-induced mental breakdown coincides with her reading of William Shakespeare’s King Lear, a play in which the title character also descends into complete madness. Her parents are frequent storytellers as well, and Alice often relies on works of literature and films to enhance her writing and convey her feelings and experiences. Removed from her Eastern heritage, Alice’s Chinese roots come alive through her grandmother Huyen Thai’s stories of the old country, and it is through these stories that Alice discovers what it means to be Chinese.

Alice Pung’s memoir, Unpolished Gem, follows her young life growing up in Australia as the daughter of Chinese immigrants from Cambodia.

Unpolished gem pung