I really enjoyed this graphic novel memoir. I do not typically read memoir/non fiction so a graphic novel was a great way to ease in. The art was absolutely beautiful and it handled difficult topics such as mental health, racism, abuse, friendships, family, and more. I wish it was longer so we could get even more of the story but it was good. 4/5 stars overall.

This was a powerful and poignant memoir. This YA coming-of-age graphic memoir was powerful, and so honest and open. Deb and her family immigrated to America from South Korea when she was three. She struggles with her life feeling in limbo, and she learns to navigate tough relationships with her parents (especially her mom), and her friends. The struggles she faces are intensified by not feeling fully Korean or fully American, and she faces struggles with abuse, mental health and self-harm. The story in split into five parts and follows Deb through all four years of high school, and her visit after high school to Seoul.

The illustrations capture the emotions and struggles beautifully and painfully. They are in done in a gorgeous dusty blue monochrome style. The layout is easy to follow for those familiar with the graphic novel format, and the font used was easy to read. The author also includes some Korean in the text, but in the context readers will not struggle to understand what is going on in the story. I think this is an important book for high schools and all libraries to keep in their collections. This is considered YA, but adults would benefit from reading this story as well.

This was so beautifully done, from the story to the illustrations. I sobbed pretty much the entire time and I finished in a day. Though im not Korean and will never experience the same things, my heart still ached for this story.

so beautiful and worth every second, this will stay with me forever

Thank you for entrusting me with an e-ARC of this graphic novel. I do have prior experience reading webtoons and manga, so I enjoyed these types of formats.

This is a memoir of the author, her struggles with her mental health during most of her high school years. Born from Korean parents yet growing up in American soil, she had a hard time finding where she fit in, having a disparity with both cultures. This tackles her dynamics with her friends, family, and Korean culture.

I’d first like to enumerate some trigger warnings, mental health, emotional abuse, suicide. I was unaware of these, so I hope this helps future readers.

First off, the art style is so beautiful. Every panel and page are filled with artistic drawings that I couldn’t help but take a closer look at the details. This also helped me practice reading some Korean, I knew some words but definitely not all. Despite having lots of Korean characters in the dialogue, it wouldn’t really hinder anyone from understanding what it meant. Maybe you could even empathize more with the character.

I felt a rollercoaster of emotions here, how much the author went through and how she slowly overcame her problems. It wasn’t an easy process, and she still continues to learn how to be more forgiving to herself and to others.

Any kind of relationship is hard, as problems accumulate, cracks start to show up more. It is your choice if you still want to mend it, break it, or leave it be.

“I Left Behind More Than Just My Home Country When We Moved to the US. I’m Both Non-American and Non-Korean. Forever in Between..”

This graphic memoir spots the light on very important topics: being different in both your own home and where you live(As immigrant who doesn’t fit in neither Korea nor America), growing up in a very toxic household(A mother abusing her children verbally and physically. A father who doesn’t stop her, yes he’s caring and not directly abusing his children, but his silence indirectly does.), conditional love between parents and their kids(How grades, beauty, and perfection as a whole is everything.), friendships and how complicated it is(Kate and Quinn With Deb.), the importance of therapy. and what i personally find most important is: there is no such thing as "Different Culture" nor "Asian Thing"! Abuse is still abuse!

As a person who struggles with their relationship with their mother, I’m still unable to forgive her, i don’t even find “forgiveness” a choice to make right now. But reading the conversation between Deborah and her father in the last couple pages about forgiving her mother made me cry.

Beautiful drawing and color palette, but sometimes the characters look totally alike such as Deborah’s friends and sometimes it’s hard to distinguish between them. Also i got really confused when Quinn cut her relationship with Deb, it toke me a while to figure it out, maybe that’s on me, but I thought the situation needed to be clearer.
And if i may, a note to Netgalley: the quality of the graphic novel file on the Netgalley app is very low, please fix that.
Still, a powerful, magnificent read. Absolutely recommend!

Trigger Warnings: racism, suicide attempts, self-harm, body-shaming, toxic relationships, depression and anxiety, verbal and physical abuse.

In Limbo shines a light on one Korean-American teenager’s journey through high school, as she deals with attempting to meet the standards set by her mother, changing friendships, and inner voices that tell her lies about who she is and her worth to the world. Deb JJ Lee’s graphic memoir is beautifully illustrated and heartbreakingly honest. Her Korean family moved to the United States when she was a toddler, and the story picks up as Deb is starting her freshman year of high school. As Deb goes through the next four years, she struggles and works through the pressures of high school, the ups and downs of friendships, and a very rocky relationship with her mother. She reaches some very low points. (SPOILER ALERT-TW for self-harm) But we also see growth in Deb, and I would encourage readers to not skip the note at the end of the graphic novel. As I said before, the artwork for In Limbo is lovely and anchors Deb’s story in a visceral way. It emphasizes the story, the hurt and the healing that Deb shares throughout this memoir.

4.5/5 stars

Thank you to NetGalley, the publishers, and the author for this advanced reading copy in exchange for an honest review.

From the cover through the final afterthoughts and acknowledgements, this author shows through her memoir how painful and how beautiful it can be to be “in limbo” in our lives. This story follows the main character through her experiences of struggling to fit in with her Korean culture and American culture. Amidst this, she also struggles with abuse from her mother, anxiety within friendships, and career discovery. Her story of struggles and hope are artistically shared through a variety of artistic mediums that push the bounds of what a graphic novel can be. I truly enjoyed the variety of art styles throughout and how the genera was pushed to its limits. I think every choice helped to really make readers feel the emotions, disconnect, and harmony of it all throughout the pages and storyline.

I think it is crucial to remember while reading this that it is a memoir. It is raw at times with triggering (but real and necessary) topics. While some may discourage the read for mentions of suicide, I think this memoir works to create hope most of all. She shows a very realistic (her own lives experiences) of falling into deep depression and leaving paths of destruction along the way. She also artfully shows a path of healing that she took that I hope young readers may be able to really grasp on to if they relate to these feelings. I appreciate it greatly for its complexity, rawness, and for showing us a beautiful path forward even if we are “in limbo” through childhood, adolescence, and beyond.

I think the art style was a lovely way to portray this identity split. I can see this being a must purchase for most libraries.

This was so beautiful and heart-wrenching "In Limbo" explores the rollercoaster of emotions teenagers go through in high school and also heavier topics such as depression, abuse, social anxiety and racism. This memoir has incredible depth and is even unsettling in times with how raw it gets and how alone Deb is when going through all this alone. I truly felt for her on this emotional journey and related in parts, I wish there was content warnings in the beginning so I knew what I was getting into. I did really enjoy this, the only downside was I didn't agree with Deb's actions and attitude towards her friends, in some parts I didn't understand her but as it is a memoir I don't feel like I am in a place to fully judge this.

Thank you to First Second Books and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

In Limbo: A Graphic Memoir by Deb JJ Lee is a wonderful, heartwrenching YA graphic novel about the author/artist's own experience growing up. The story revolves around Jung-Jin (Deborah) Lee, who immigrated to New Jersey from Seoul when she was 3. As she enters adolescence, she deals with conflicts involving her monolid eyes, grades in school, pressure from her parents, and lack of friends. How will Deborah be able to save her mental health?

Overall, In Limbo: A Graphic Memoir is a lovely graphic novel that I can see being taught in high schools everywhere, especially 10th-12th graders. One highlight of this book is the absolutely jaw-dropping artwork. Every page is beautifully and meticulously drawn. Another highlight of this book is how it talks about topics related to Asian American identity and mental health. This book could totally help teens who struggle like the author did in high school. The only warning I have is to make sure you read the trigger warnings before you start. If you're intrigued by the description, or if you're a fan of YA graphic novels in general, I highly recommend that you check out this book when it comes out in March!

This was incredible. I love reading graphic memoirs, seriously!!
I would definitely recommend this format as one of the best to put yourself in someone else's shoes and think about their life experiences.
It's a quick read and it's very worth to me. The art in here is gorgeous!!vWould recommend.

In my opinion the way Deb JJ Lee tells her story through art in this Graphic Memoir is brilliant. Not only does it fit her perfectly, but I feel the graphics help the reader relate more to her story than if it would have "just" been a written memoir. By visualing it for the reader the story comes to life and I was able to quickly connect with Deb's character. A lot of what Deb went through in life is unfortunately still the common experience for people from Asia. I can definitely see how working on this memoir turned out to be therapeutic and I want to thank Deb for sharing her story with us, that probably wasn't the easiest thing to do.

The ending left me wanting more, it did feel a little abrupt. I really wanted to know how she got through the surgery and how the rest of her time in Korea was. But maybe that's a story for another time.

I'll bee keeping an eye out for more work from Deb.

This was such a beautiful story and a beautiful graphic memoir. I really appreciate the way the art style reflected the emotions of the characters and really added to the story. A beautiful description of mental illness and I’m really glad the author decided to share their story as I’m sure many people will see themselves represented in these pages and feel they are not alone.

This graphic novel was very compelling. I was intrigued with the story and read it quickly because I wanted to continue to learn more about the main character. I loved the artwork - I could spend hours looking at all the beautiful details. Some parts of the story were difficult to read about, but I appreciate the honesty the author used when writing about the difficult topics.

In turns heartbreaking and humorous, In Limbo tells the story of the author’s experience growing up Korean in America. She battles first love, parental abuse, and deep depression as she tries to figure out what it means to be forever too Korean to be American and too American to be Korean. This graphic memoir has beautiful artwork that makes her thoughts and feelings come to life, and immerses readers in her world. Check on triggers before reading - suicidal ideation, parental abuse, racism to name a few - but it is well worth the read.

I'm into this graphic novel, it is sad yet relatable for me. Deborah did suffer a lot about family, friends and career plus self esteem. Hoping that her life now is doing well more success and happiness. Applaud for her talent in arts, more stories to share. Thank you, Netgalley for the ARC!

4.25🌟, rounded to 4🌟

Since this is a memoir, I don't have much to talk about in terms of the 'plot'. I will say that the story's told really clearly so it's pretty easy to understand what's going on at any time. I appreciate the neat font used for the speech bubbles because trust me, I've read some graphic novels with questionable fonts. They're a nightmare to read. This doesn't have that problem, in my opinion. The font is nice plus it's easy to identify the 'owner' of each speech bubble because again, I've been burned before and the scars ain't pretty.

Oh and I really really like the graphics! The choice in limiting the colour palette led to pretty stunning images. And it definitely helped to hammer in the more hard-hitting themes that exist in this novel.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a free digital copy of this in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed this graphic memoir a lot, the art was beautiful and the story flowed calmly and with a pervasive sense of melancholy. I do definitely prefer her colourful illustrations though - the cover is stunning! I wish some of the contents were also colourful, though I'm aware of how much more work that would have been.

First of all, I would like to thank Netgalley for the eARC of this book.

I have always loved stories, especially stories that people have to tell, their own stories. So I really wanted to be able to read this book and it was so beautiful and I loved it so much that I finished it in one day.

Deborah's story has struck a chord in my heart, many times I have seen myself reflected in her story. She doesn't try to hide from us the hard times she has been through, the battles she has faced and the mistakes she has made. She is honest and tough as she explores so many difficult issues that many of us have faced in our lives. Family, friends, domestic abuse, depression, identity. Not feeling a part of something that people expect you to be a part of, when you are not enough of this but not fully the other either. This is not a unique story and different from others, but that makes it easier to empathize with, it is the true story of a girl trying to move forward and facing problems and struggling with what she has, like all of us. And it's brave and it's honest and it's beautiful.

I really appreciate Deborah for throwing herself out into the world like that, just like that. Vulnerable and brave. But yes the TWs need to be reviewed as they deal with issues such as suicide attempts, domestic abuse, depression and bullying.

My ratings on memoirs and other non fiction works are based purely on how the story is told and in cases like these, the graphics too. So following that line my final rating is 4/5

As soon as I saw this memoir, I knew I had to read it. I love Deb's art! I was introduced to her work in college and was mindblown by how good it was. I still have her "Koi Girl" series hanging on my wall, and I love using her "Koi" Google Meet background at work.

"In Limbo" is about Deb's experiences growing up, facing racism, loneliness, and mental health struggles. I really admired Deb for following their own path, from quitting orchestra to committing to art. The art on every page was beautiful, and made this memoir truly unforgettable.