Abby has recently learned she was a drop box baby. She always knew she was adopted, the science didn't match her features to her adoptive parents', but the recent revelation of her birth mother discarding her in a church drop box, leads her to start to search for where she came from.

It's very rare that I am moved to tears by a book, but I will say that this book had me crying. We Carry the Sea in Our Hands is such a beautifully written novel. Abby is such a real and raw character, examining the world (and later grief and trauma) through a scientific lens. I loved the way this book was written and my heart broke continually for Abby, The more doors she tried to open, the more doors got slammed in her face. But through it all, she never loses hope and persists even in the face of impossible odds.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for this ALC. Michelle H. Lee was a fantastic narrator. She perfectly encapsulates everything that Abby is. I cannot recommend this book enough. It's such a poignant and powerful piece that everyone should read.

This novel is an interesting mix of science and fiction. For me, though, it weighed too heavily on the science side. The author makes a valiant attempt to explain the science in layman's terms, but it was just too technical for someone who's not in the field. After a while, I found myself tuning out the scientific parts. I was glad to be listening to the audiobook because it saved me from having to sift through all of it. Overall, I thought this was strong for a debut, and I'd be curious to read the author's next book.

Thank you NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for allowing me early access to the ARC audiobook edition of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

I fear that I am not the target audience for this book.
While the DNA aspect, Abby's adoption, and seeking out her birth mother was all interesting, I felt that the addition of all of the sea slug content to be quite boring and unfortunately found myself nodding off more than once. I wanted to like this more than I did.

Thanks to Netgalley I was able to listen to and rate the audiobook. Unfortunately, it was not a book I would recommend to my friends. It was filled with too much biological science and hard to follow at times, dare I say "sluggish."

Abby is a Korean Orphan. Her American dad leaves Korea and her mother feels the only thing she can do is give the baby up. Abby goes through the foster system in the US. As an adult she becomes a scientist studying sea slugs and makes a great discovery.

This book has a lot of biological science in it. It was pretty heavy at times and hard for me to follow at times as well. I did enjoy leaning about the sea slugs. I also liked watching Abby come terms with her life and the need to connect with her biological mother.

I think this is a great book if you like found family and really enjoy and want to dive into science.

I want to thank NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for a copy of the audiobook.

The main character in We Carry the Sea in Our Hands had been orphaned twice, once by her birth mother as an infant and then additionally by adoptive parents. This was well balanced with the main characters research with sea slugs and her adoptive sisters investigative journaling.

I could sense that young women might find an interest in science as a result of reading We Carry the Sea in Our Hands.

This was a very well written book and author Janie Kim did a fabulous job with her debut novel! Please! Keep writing! I was especially curious about the science (especially since the author is a biology PhD student at Stanford!) and was so glad that she addressed it at the end of the book.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for approving my request to listen to the "advance copy" of the audiobook in exchange for an honest review. Very well done by narrator Michelle H. Lee! Publication date is Jul 9, 2024. Approx 8 hours.

We Carry The Sea in Our Hands is beautiful written and thought provoking novel.

When Abby learned, that as an infant, she was abandoned in the “ drop-box” of an orphanage in Korea, she felt a deep loss. This loss was perpetuated when she ended up in America only to be adopted, abandoned again and placed in foster care. Being alone much of the time led her to find solace in the local library where she read books that sparked her interest in science. This interest catapults her into a life of living and breathing science.

I was immediately drawn into the story by Janie Kim’s writing. Each scene was purposeful and flowed into the next. It kept me yearning to find out what would happen and how it would change Abby’s life. I really liked that because I had recently read a few books with ( in my point of view) too much needless writing. Whether it was an off subject side story or a pages of inner monologue, I found myself just wanting to get to the end.

Abby’s bond with her dear friend Iseul was all enduring and their bond made it easier for Abby to push through the hardships of life. I was awed at Abby’s ability to keep forging ahead in the field of science where she was seen as a “ lowly” female and a minority who was used to do “filler”tasks.
I was excited when she got her time to shine and her brilliant intelligence could no longer be ignored.

I love that Abby’s research about life origins “ accidentally” reveals a secret in her life! The thing she loved to do ( science) would be the catalyst to peace in her life.

I don’t want to give away spoilers so I’ll only say that I was worried about not being able to understand the science in the book but Kim does a wonderful job at explaining things. Although some parts were fiction much of the scientific explanations were facts. I learned so much! It’s amazing what lives in the sea!

If you like books about strong women, perseverance during hardship and overcoming trauma, you will most likely enjoy this book! The narrator, Michelle H. Lee did an amazing job! Highly recommended!

Many thanks to Dreamscape Media and Janie Kim for the arc via NetGalley!!

Well written and interesting novel with a great narrator that suits the story. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced audio copy.

☆ <b> 3 </b> ☆

If I had a penny for every time this month the Korean practice of <i> haenyeo </i> showed up in a book I was reading I would have two pennies, which isn't that much but it's still weird that it happened twice.

<i> We Carry The Sea in Our Hands </i> is a sweet story of a girl adopted from Korea, who grows up to become a scientist whose discoveries bring her onto a collision course with the mysteries of her past. In terms of themes think search for origins, the aftermaths of loss and trauma, and found family. In terms of aesthetics,think bioluminescent shorelines, sea slugs and STEM.

While I liked the vision of the story, the main character Abby remains underdefined and is therefore hard to connect with. The themes are sometimes handled quite heavy-handedly, and there is also some some strange repetitions of information we have already been told that made the novel feel underedited.

Thank you to NetGalley for the arc of this novel, in exchange for a honest review!

Title: We Carry the Sea in Our Hands
Author: Janie Kim
Format: Audiobook
Narrator: Michelle H. Lee

OK, wow. Just.. the science, the culture... just wow.

Abby Rodier is a Korean researcher studying biological life. As a baby, she was given up for adoption, and had a complicated life with an adoptive family that didn't love her. Even though her best friend's family took her in as their own, she still questioned her place in the family vs. the biological children. Throughout the book, Abby uses her new scientific discovery to find her biological family.

The author slowly weaves pieces of Korean culture into Abby's life, from how she sleeps over at Iseul's house, to how her family gets medical treatment. And the whole time, she's trying to grapple with her identity as a daughter in a culture that gave her away and didn't always treat her right.

On top of this is the science. I really appreciated the addendum at the end which explained more about what parts are real and which parts were made up or hypothesized. Abby thinks in science. It talks about the brain's perception of patterns and pareidolia. About hereditary traits like widow's peaks. About the origins of life in an ocean rift. And the author connected this all as a way to describe grief, relationships, belonging, perseverance, or understanding. It was full of beautiful metaphors that create a stoic contrast of logical science to the vibrance of life.

I think the narrator choice was spot on, as I felt the robotic inclinations of the main character, and the contrast to strong emotions in her voice. It almost gave an effect like the character is struggling to compartmentalize her feelings and go back to the science. The narrator really enhanced this book for me, so I would definitely recommend the audiobook version.

Thanks to Netgalley and Dreamscape Media for the digital advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

This was an unexpected delight of a debut featuring a Korean born 'drop-box baby' who gets adopted by a Korean American immigrant couple and grows up to be a sea slug scientist. Obsessed with tracking down her birth parents and concerned for her journalist friend who gets caught up in an undercover smuggling scheme, this story was singularly moving and told in such poetic prose. Great on audio too with a GORGEOUS cover! Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital and audio copy in exchange for my honest review. Janie Kim is definitely a writer to watch!

Many thanks to NetGalley, Alcove Press and Dreamscape Media for gifting me both a digital and audio ARC of the debut novel by Janie Kim, with the audio wonderfully narrated by Michelle H. Lee. All opinions expressed in this review are my own - 4.5 stars!

Abby was a "drop-box baby," a Korean orphan whose mother left her as an infant. Her experience in the American foster care system was traumatic, and she sought refuge with her best friend, Iseul and her family, who welcomed her as another daughter. Abby and Iseul remain fast friends into adulthood. Abby is working at a university studying the origins of life in sea slugs. This work leads her to wonder about her birth family. But when a tragedy occurs, Abby is devastated and unsure how to go on.

This was an ambitious book, with lots of both true and speculative science, but it all works beautifully. The writing is wonderful and feels lyrical and magical. I loved the family Abby found in Iseul's home, and the characters in this book are where it truly shines as such themes of family, trauma, grief, and the importance of communication are explored. Fabulous debut!

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for my copy of We Carry the Sea in Our Hands by Janie Kim Narrated by Michelle H. Lee in exchange for an honest review. It publishes July 9, 2024.
First off the narration of this book was very well-done. I highly recommend Michelle H. Lee as a reader.
This book has a fascinating premise and I found it very readable. I definitely didn't want to put it down. I loved the way it kept returning to science, whether legit, or made up for the story, I felt that it was an interesting way to present this book. I appreciated the author's note, and it's definitely worth your time to read, it gives a lot of context to the overall book.
I feel like I learned a lot from this book, and I think a lot of readers will connect with Abby, and her longing to learn about her origins, along with the overarching theme of origins running throughout this book.

Novel Concept: 5/5
Execution of Novel Concept: 4/5

Title: 5/5
Characterization: 5/5
Dialogue: 5/5
Plot: 4/5
Atmosphere: 5/5
Theme: 5/5
Prose: 5/5

Does this pass the Bechdel Test: Yes

Title
This title works in the literal sense of the main character carrying the sea in her hands at the end of the novel--but there is a more thematic purpose to this title. It is the way that the sea has caused a change in humanity, and how in our connection to the sea we are destined to evolve. That is to say, it is metaphorically in our hands. I think what makes this title work best is the indivisibility from the work itself. This title cannot really belong to another book--it's specific. It's what initially drew me in.

Characterization
Everyone acts like fully realized people with interesting flaws and quirks. There's a thematic discussion about agency and the difference of acting on your own will verses letting things happen to you. Abby is as complicated as any person would be--and that's what I like about her. She is a maelstrom of mixed emotions, navigating the impossible landscape of what it means to belong and where that belonging is.

The clever thing about her character is how the way she sees faces in banal things--clouds, static, paint--naturally develops into the more speculative elements of this book. It begins as a thoughtless part of her grieving process and evolves into the tool used to help her find closure in her broken familial life.

Dialogue
The dialogue is natural sounding. There is a matter-of-fact tone to the novel's voice which makes sense given the scientific aspects the novel wishes to explore. Intermixed within that is also the stories of Korean Folk Tales. It's a weave of mind and magic--and both are taken seriously.

Communication is a theme in this novel, so the literal language barrier that Abby sometimes faces helps characterize that communication theme.

Plot
The plot is good. I appreciate that things are consistently happening and it never feels like we're stalling out for any dramatic literary purpose--which is always my fear and hesitancy with literary fiction. I remain a little confused at how we got to the water that kicks of the plot and I also felt odd it came in so late in the novel. But really that's my only hitch. It definitely felt like the author hand was moving so the plot could continue but it is, if anything, a minor complaint.

Atmosphere
This novel is very well researched and the notes at the end of the novel of what is scientifically accurate and what was made up for the novel is well appreciated. It allows the reader to come off of this novel feeling like they've actually learned something. The world is believable and full of life and character. Thematically, we cannot escape the thematic atmosphere. The overwhelming sense of loss and grief that permeates every word of the story.

Theme
This is a novel about disconnection and communication. Various characters are in all states of disconnection from their loved ones and peers and the lack of communication intensifies this. Abby is a drop box baby, abandoned by her adopted parents, taken in by another. Iseul often goes radio silent for her journalist projects--and so on and so forth.

And in this being about disconnection, this novel strives to get the characters to connect. To get people to be freely open with each other and understand each other. To strengthen the bonds they already have and form new ones.

Prose
The writing is very beautiful. We're never stalled in a corner and the novel never feels like it overextends its stay. The pacing and tension is fairly spot on. The audiobook narration is beautiful. I think the dips into scientific explanation were natural and unobtrusive and the addition of Korean Folk Tales was fun.

A solid read, although it failed to get me truly hooked. I loved the science bits, but the narrative felt a little repetitive in some parts and rushed in others. All in all, three stars from me.

Abby is looking for the origins of life - her own and that of a sea slug. As an infant, Abby was what is known as a "drop box baby", left by her mother who could not care for her. Adopted by less than affectionate parents, she became guarded and withdrawn. When taken in by her best friend's parents, she finally found a family who loved her as she was. Still, Abby wanted to know who her birth mother was.

Abby conducts research on sea slugs as a scientist. Much of the happenings in her life make their way into metaphors of the slug's life. The prose is lovely, but the repetitive scientific passages did slow down the story for me, I found it hard to stay connected to Abby in a meaningful way and more than once had push through a bit longer to find something for me to hold on to.

That being said, this is an amazing work for a debut author., I look forward to reading more from Janie Kim as she refines and further develops her obvious skills as a storyteller..

My thanks to NetGalley and Alcove Press for the ALC of this book.

"I have two lab notebooks. The regular one is for observing life as a biological phenomenon. The second one is for observing life as a personal experiment. This is the second one."


This was a beautiful but sad book about the meaning of family and sense of self. Abby, a former "drop box baby" was abandoned at birth but she's now seeking answers about her past. There's a lot of loss and grief in this book, but it's woven into a complex story about adoption, abandonment, and guilt. I loved the ocean themes and the speculative fiction elements to the story. I didn't realize this book was a debut when I was reading it and honestly I would never have realized if I hadn't seen it written somewhere - this absolutely doesn't read like a debut. Highly recommend this one if you like stories about characters finding out who they are and speculative fiction novels. This was wonderful to read on audio, the narrator did a great job infusing the emotion into their words.

4.5 stars, rounded up for GR

A huge thank you to the author and the publisher for providing an e-ARC via Netgalley. This does not affect my opinion regarding the book.

I really loved the audiobook of “We Carry the Sea in Our Hands” by Janie Kim, narrated by Michelle H. Lee. The combination of science, looking at the benefits of tragic events and the main character Abby searching for her birth mother make for a unique and engaging story. Abby’s study of sea slugs was surprisingly interesting, and I love how she used her knowledge of biology to help in her quest. This is a wonderful debut novel, and it is not a surprise that Janie Kim is a PhD student in biology at Stanford, although I don’t know how she has the time to do both. Great narration by Michelle H. Lee. Recommended for readers who appreciate stories of grief, longing and resilience. Thanks for NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for the eARC.

This was a wonderful story of family—both searching for one’s biological family and appreciating found/adopted family. There’s quite a bit of science talk in the book, which could be a turn-off for some, but I found it helped me connect with the main character, who I loved.

One thing I LOVE in books is a lot of science. I’d say this was more LitFic with a teeny dose of scifi. Heartfelt in the exploration of familial roots/ what that tie us together, grief and trauma.

Abby is a scientist working with sea slugs and her work often has her questioning her place in the world and where she came from. She is considered a “drop box baby” and her experiences in the foster system has left her with a hard time connecting with people and limited relationships. She is hoping finding her birth mother will help her understand herself.

I really enjoyed this as a nerd I love a lab setting and descriptions of research and findings. The sea is a theme in this and it felt like the writing flowed like the seas too with big crashes and slow flowing bits it made for interesting pacing.

Excellent debut and I am excited to see what the author does next.

Thanks to Netgalley and Dreamscape Media for an alc.