Reviews tagging 'Death of parent'

The Island of Sea Women by Lisa See

103 reviews

toastyyslut's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful informative reflective sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

beautiful, gut wrenching. made me cry multiple times. the female relationships in this are so deeply beautiful and passionate 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Death and Death of parent

jedore's review

dark emotional informative inspiring sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

“You should be more careful out there,” the doctor says. “You have a dangerous job. I mean, do you see men doing it?”

“Of course not!” Young-sook exclaims. “The world knows that the cold water will cause their penises to shrivel and die.”

This is my fourth Lisa See book...and the second one that made my all-time favorite list (Snow Flower and the Secret Fan is the first). Lisa is an amazing author, goddess of research, and master of character development.

I've gotten a glimpse of the horrific treatment of Koreans by the Japanese (Pachinko) and the U.S. (The Peoples' History of the United States), but this story was an intimate and personal journey into the lives of those living on the island of Jeju. Wow, just wow...as I close the cover of what feels like every book I read these days, my faith in humanity lessens. The ability of one "tribe's" ability to completely disassociate and commit horrors against "outsiders" is mind boggling.

The story also cemented a personal opinion that I've been pondering for some time now, one based both on my own life experiences and the thousands of books I've read.

Women are, in general and by far, the stronger sex.

In the face of poverty, war, and other intense hardships, I've observed (personally or literally) many a man fall apart and their women carry them (as well as their children). The haenyo divers of Jeju took this to a whole other level as they were not only capable of carrying their men emotionally, but physically as well. 

A week after closing the back cover of this book and I still find myself thinking about the perfectly imperfect heroines of this story and replaying many of the scenes in my mind. Add this to the fact that I have a more complete knowledge about history (so I can do what I can to stop it from repeating) and it's no wonder it's an all-time favorite. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Violence, Police brutality, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Colonisation, and War

Moderate: Religious bigotry

Minor: Alcoholism

kaitlinjohnson's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Violence, and War

Moderate: Death of parent

Minor: Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Rape, and Suicidal thoughts

galexy_brain's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Sheesh. I've never read a book that's made me cry this much before. This book was an eye-opening look into a world that I'd heard very little about before and left me floored and humbled.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Violence, Grief, Death of parent, and Murder

Moderate: Body horror, Domestic abuse, Gore, Physical abuse, Torture, Colonisation, and War

Minor: Alcoholism, Body shaming, Cancer, Child abuse, Child death, Infertility, Misogyny, Rape, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Religious bigotry, Pregnancy, Abandonment, and Classism

naomi_k's review against another edition

dark emotional informative reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Torture, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Grief, Death of parent, and Pregnancy

Moderate: Alcoholism, Body shaming, Toxic relationship, Xenophobia, Medical content, Pregnancy, Toxic friendship, Colonisation, War, and Classism

Minor: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Misogyny, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, and Vomit

abrdoodle's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Gore, Violence, Grief, Death of parent, and Murder

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Mental illness, Racism, Sexism, Torture, Blood, Pregnancy, Toxic friendship, Colonisation, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Addiction, Alcoholism, Bullying, Cancer, Infidelity, Misogyny, Rape, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, and Alcohol

kiakrat's review against another edition

4.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Torture, Death of parent, Murder, and War

Moderate: Rape

ilana_pop's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad medium-paced

5.0

THIS is why i love books. One of the best book I have ever read, no exaggeration. Lisa See is incredible.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Genocide, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Police brutality, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Death of parent, Murder, Colonisation, and War

Moderate: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Rape, and Pregnancy

rhijane's review against another edition

adventurous emotional informative inspiring sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Violence, Police brutality, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Colonisation, and War

leweylibrary's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

I feel like I need to mention first and foremost that there are some hardcore trigger warnings that hit hard and fast in the middle. I was listening to that part on audiobook so I could get this book done in time to take the physical version back to the library, and I had to pause it and just sit there like damn. And then the next chapter hit hard with the drama. I was personally fine with those parts, I just wasn't expecting them at all from the description or anything.

Those parts hit at just the right time though because I had been getting a bit bored. There's not a ton of dialogue, and the pace is really slow, but when those parts hit, I was reinvested lol.

One thing that helped keep my attention was Young-sook's friendship with Mi-Ja. You learn right off the bat that they had a serious falling out, but you don't know why. You watch their friendship grow stronger and stronger, all the while thinking what could possibly be bad enough that tears them apart?? Aaaand then it happens, and you're like ah. Right yeah no that makes sense. But then Young-sook just holds such a hella grudge and can't move past it which is frustrating. The ending to this conflict felt a bit rushed, so it wasn't as satisfying to me as it could've been.

All that said, I did learn a LOT and am glad I read it!

Quotes:

• Her house is the nest where she hides the joy, laughter, sorrows, and regrets of her life. (3)
• How different it is with friendship. No one picks a friend for us; we come together by choice. We are not tied together through ceremony or the responsibility to create a son; we tie ourselves together through moments. The spark when we first meet. Laughter and tears shared. Secrets packed away to be treasured, hoarded, and protected. The wonder that someone can be so different from you and yet still understand your heart in a way no one else ever will. (36)
• Young-sook's mother used to say that the sea was like a mother while Young-sook's grandmother said that the sea was better than a mother. After all these years, Young-sook knows her grandmother to be the most right. The sea is better than a mother. You can love your mother, and she still might leave you. You can love or hate the sea, but it will always be there. Forever. The sea has been the center of her life. It has nurtured her and stolen from her, but it has never left. (79)
• I loved her. I would always love her. That was far more important than the men we were to marry. (126)
• Oh, I understood life and death, but I didn't yet have a true comprehension of all that could happen between your first and last breaths. This was a mistake I would live with for the rest of my life. (138)
• I'd watched my mother die in the sea. I'd seen Yu-ri go into the sea one person and come out another. I understood the sea to be dangerous, but what was happening on dry land confused and scared me. In the last few months, I'd witnessed several people get shot in front of me. I'd seen people on both sides beaten. Those who'd been killed or injured were all Korean--whether from the mainland or Jeju--and the perpetrators had all been our countrymen. This was unfathomable to me, and I couldn't stop shaking from fear, not even when my husband held me tight and told me he would keep us safe. (197)
• I stopped breathing, holding in air longer than could be possible, as if I were in the deepest part of the sea. When I couldn't hold it any longer, I sucked in not the quick death of seawater but instead unforgetting, unrelenting, life-giving air. (231)
• To understand everything is to forgive. (363)

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Gore, Violence, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Rape, Sexual violence, and Suicidal thoughts