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liralen's review
4.0
One of several books I've read recently written by adult adoptees who went looking for their roots. Each of the authors I'm thinking of grew up in a different country ([b:Jenny Heijun Wills|43416752|Older Sister. Not Necessarily Related. A Memoir|Jenny Heijun Wills|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1553537970l/43416752._SX50_.jpg|67461604] in Canada, [b:Nicole Chung|30297153|All You Can Ever Know A Memoir|Nicole Chung|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1519748414l/30297153._SY75_.jpg|50777526] in the U.S., Lisa Wool-Rim Sjöblom in Sweden), but the questions are by and large the same: why and how and what would life have been like if...?
In Palimpsest (a new word for me—'a manuscript or piece of writing material on which later writing has been superimposed on effaced earlier writing; something reused or altered but still bearing visible traces of its earlier form'), Sjöblom chronicles her search for her biological family in Korea. It's a maddening search: every question she asks of various agencies in Korea produces contradictory and often unhelpful results; often, the organisations meant to help people reunite with their families seem to spend their time trying to convince adoptees that that's impossible or unnecessary. Nobody wants to think that, perhaps, adoptees might not be satisfied with an unknown history.
This is graphic memoir, and though I'm not in love with the style of art (personal preference—it's pretty; I just like more detail), it adds a nice layer to the story—fitting, for a palimpsest. Just as Sjöblom's story has been partially redrawn for her, she redraws her own history, or as much of it as she can fill in. For every answer another question, and I can only imagine that there will be more books along these lines as Sjöblom's generation hunts for those answers.
In Palimpsest (a new word for me—'a manuscript or piece of writing material on which later writing has been superimposed on effaced earlier writing; something reused or altered but still bearing visible traces of its earlier form'), Sjöblom chronicles her search for her biological family in Korea. It's a maddening search: every question she asks of various agencies in Korea produces contradictory and often unhelpful results; often, the organisations meant to help people reunite with their families seem to spend their time trying to convince adoptees that that's impossible or unnecessary. Nobody wants to think that, perhaps, adoptees might not be satisfied with an unknown history.
This is graphic memoir, and though I'm not in love with the style of art (personal preference—it's pretty; I just like more detail), it adds a nice layer to the story—fitting, for a palimpsest. Just as Sjöblom's story has been partially redrawn for her, she redraws her own history, or as much of it as she can fill in. For every answer another question, and I can only imagine that there will be more books along these lines as Sjöblom's generation hunts for those answers.
chonkeyhong's review against another edition
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
4.25
hnagarne's review
5.0
mar 2024
this memoir makes me feel so seen and i am so grateful it exists
-----
feb 2020
Like history, which is written by the winners, the adoption narrative is written by the adopters. It's often times sanitized and packaged in a neat little bow, marketed to people as simply the best thing you could do for those needy, starving children across the globe. Answer the Call to Adopt Now!
Palimpsest, written by a Korean adoptee raised in Sweden, challenges that narrative. It made me feel so seen. I devoured it in only a couple hours, thoroughly captivated by the way it expressed so many things I've felt (and feared) over the past decade or so of exploring my own identity as an adoptee. By weaving in her real adoption paperwork, emails from agencies, and other paper/electronic documents, Sjöblom offers a window into the complicated and roadblocked reality of discovering one's own past.
The artwork is beautiful and the message is clear. Adoptees are not blank slates; rather, we are something of a palimpsest. Our origins are often erased, brushed over by a shinier story, but traces of those origins still linger.
There are not many own voices books about adoption, and I'm so thankful to have been introduced to this one by people in my community.
this memoir makes me feel so seen and i am so grateful it exists
-----
feb 2020
Like history, which is written by the winners, the adoption narrative is written by the adopters. It's often times sanitized and packaged in a neat little bow, marketed to people as simply the best thing you could do for those needy, starving children across the globe. Answer the Call to Adopt Now!
Palimpsest, written by a Korean adoptee raised in Sweden, challenges that narrative. It made me feel so seen. I devoured it in only a couple hours, thoroughly captivated by the way it expressed so many things I've felt (and feared) over the past decade or so of exploring my own identity as an adoptee. By weaving in her real adoption paperwork, emails from agencies, and other paper/electronic documents, Sjöblom offers a window into the complicated and roadblocked reality of discovering one's own past.
The artwork is beautiful and the message is clear. Adoptees are not blank slates; rather, we are something of a palimpsest. Our origins are often erased, brushed over by a shinier story, but traces of those origins still linger.
There are not many own voices books about adoption, and I'm so thankful to have been introduced to this one by people in my community.
brambresseleers's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
slow-paced
3.0
azazellos_fang's review against another edition
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
5.0
shewasfiction's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
reflective
sad
fast-paced
4.0
panda_incognito's review
5.0
This heart-rending graphic novel shares the author's story about her struggle for identity as a Korean adoptee in Sweden, and the challenges that she faced as she tried to uncover the truth about her background and find her birth mother. The simple, sepia-toned illustrations and text support each other well, and the graphic novel format helps to convey the author's depth of emotion. I really appreciated this, and am glad that I had the chance to read it.
This book shows how many hoops she and her partner had to jump through to get information about her past, and exposes the truth about child trafficking within international adoptions. It is incredible how many layers of secrets and lies she had to deal with through the organizations that were supposed to be helping her, and I would definitely recommend this to adoptees with similar backgrounds, and to parents who are considering adoption and need to be aware of the ethical issues associated with international adoption and be prepared to vet the agencies that they work with.
This book is similar, in many ways, to Nicole Chung's memoir, [b:All You Can Ever Know|30297153|All You Can Ever Know|Nicole Chung|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1519748414l/30297153._SY75_.jpg|50777526], but they also have significant differences in terms of the author's cultural backgrounds, life experiences, and discoveries about their families of origin. I would recommend both of these books to anyone who is interested in international adoption, and hope that as the conversation shifts from only elevating the voices of adoptive parents, more and more adoptees will be able to write publicly about their experiences.
This book shows how many hoops she and her partner had to jump through to get information about her past, and exposes the truth about child trafficking within international adoptions. It is incredible how many layers of secrets and lies she had to deal with through the organizations that were supposed to be helping her, and I would definitely recommend this to adoptees with similar backgrounds, and to parents who are considering adoption and need to be aware of the ethical issues associated with international adoption and be prepared to vet the agencies that they work with.
This book is similar, in many ways, to Nicole Chung's memoir, [b:All You Can Ever Know|30297153|All You Can Ever Know|Nicole Chung|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1519748414l/30297153._SY75_.jpg|50777526], but they also have significant differences in terms of the author's cultural backgrounds, life experiences, and discoveries about their families of origin. I would recommend both of these books to anyone who is interested in international adoption, and hope that as the conversation shifts from only elevating the voices of adoptive parents, more and more adoptees will be able to write publicly about their experiences.
kimmulholland's review
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
4.0