Adopting Grace

by Anna Jinja

Anna Jinja's debut novel, Adopting Grace, follows the journey of Grace, a 39-year-old Korean-American woman who was adopted as an infant from South Korea by a Norwegian family in Iowa. As Grace grapples with her husband's affair with his high school sweetheart, her therapist suggests exploring deep-rooted issues tied to her adoption. Grace, however, believes her stress stems from juggling the demands of raising two daughters, running a small business, designing a bridal gown for a challenging client, and managing complex relationships within her family. This poignant story delves into Grace’s struggles as a wife, mother, and adoptee, exploring what it truly means to be part of a family.

Genres: Fiction

332 pages, Paperback

Published November 12, 2024

Reviews

[Greg]

It was hard for me to realize that this was the first novel this woman has written because I cannot recall any time in recent years when I have so quickly become immersed in the characters, their history, and their stories!

And for this reason, it was the most emotionally involved reading I've done in many a year as it was so easy to "feel" what the various persons in this book were experiencing, and those experiences ran the gamut: kids being kids (with all the pros and cons of that), family being family (with the joys, pains and anguish of that), and friend and partner relationships, with all the ups and downs and complications of that.

Interestingly, I didn't encounter any truly "bad" people, as in incorrigibly horrible or wicked. Rather, I "met" a number of persons each of whom was wrestling with some of their own issues which could, on occasion, cause them to speak or act "badly." This mirrored what I have experienced in my own life.

The only "complaint" -- and that's not quite the right word -- that I have about "Adopting Grace" is that it ended without the kind of catharsis that I always yearn for in reading a novel: a marriage in serious trouble was NOT resolved (even if there were hints that some new directions might be coming).

When I finished what turned out to be the last chapter I unconsciously just tried to "turn" to the next one, thinking, "Surely this is not the end of the book!" But it was.

So I experienced some disappointment because I did not get even a hint of a "happy outcome" that would resolve the most significant issue throughout the book (but, of course, this is also true of many times in my own life when a satisfactory resolution was never reached, and some relationships just...faded away).

[Jumi]

Rating: 2.5/5

I chose this novel for two reasons:

1. Author:

Like the protagonist of the novel, the author, Anna Jinja was adopted from South Korea and grew up in Iowa. Given the description of the novel and being an own voice story, I expected deep exploration of identity and belongingness in Adopting Grace. 

2. Description:

The description of the book talks about Grace's struggle as a mother, wife and adoptee, and the themes mentioned for it are humour, satire, multicultural interests, parenting and families. 

All things considered, my expectation from Adopting Grace was an in-depth exploration of the above themes, told with humour and satire. 

What I didn't expect was a light hearted drama, almost a romcom women's fiction kind. Not that I don't enjoy a good chick-lit (I still use the term and think it's as respectful a genre as any other!), but this was not at all my expectations from Adopting Grace, given its books description and theme tags.

But though not happy about the wrong expectations set, I shift my mood and dig into the novel with an open heart. The writing style is light, breezy and captivating, the characters draw you in, and soon I am in the heart of a humourous family drama, with Grace juggling to raise her kids, win back her husband, forgive her mother, avoid being too friendly with her husband's girlfriend and hate the panda in the neighbour's lawn.

But even as a light drama, ultimately Adopting Grace disappoints me because:

1. Grace's adoption issue was never explored below the surface. This being an own voice novel, I expected a lot in this front. Some crumbs are thrown here and there, but they are scattered haywire and do not line up to lead anywhere.

2. Mary Ann's arc took up a lot of space in the novel. It's a touching arc. But absence of Mary Ann's arc would not have affected the plot of Adopting Grace even one bit, and I cannot help but wonder if it was used just as a filler. This is not fair to readers.

3. There are too many open ends in the novel: What happenes to Mathew and Nadia, how is the equation between the three kids sorted, why was Emily interested in befriending Grace, what happens to the Panda (since it occupied so much space in the story), etc. Conflicts, confusion and situations are thrown into the plot one after another, and most of them remain without answer after the novel ends. This is also not fair to readers.

4. The cover I see in Goodreads for this novel is in sync with the vibe and genre of the book, but the cover used in Netgalley is quite misleading, it leads you to expect a serious drama.


When I reached the end of the book, all these unresolved 'conflicts' disappointed me a lot, but till then, when I didn't know that I would be left in the lurch at the climax, I had a good time with the book—the writing style is captivating, and so are the characters, they feel real, you can see the drama unfolding in front of your eyes. So despite my low rating for the novel, I want to praise Anna Jinja for her fabulous writing in this debut novel. I hope she publishes more books, I will be happy to check them out. What this book needed was a much tighter editing of arcs and their closures, and correct labelling.


Thanks to Netgalley and publisher Midwestern books for giving me an e-book of Adopting Grace in exchange for an honest review.


Q: Do I recommend Adopting Grace to my fellow readers?

A: No

[Sharmeen]

My first ARC read thanks to Net Galley!

I absolutely loved Grace - the main character. Completely in awe of herself-awarenesss (for the most part), her work, her parenting. Her whole family: such great characters, flaws and all. 

Her husband though... just wanted to smack him. 

The storyline was interesting to read along, keep you hooked, with flashbacks allowing you to get more context. Grace's character development was also satisfactory.

Regarding adoption: some great gems, conversations about chosen family, different perspectives from adoptive parents. However, it wasn't enough for me. I wish the topic, and Grace's post-adoption journey had been explored in more detail. The blurb made me expect different.

And, spoiler alert, so many things simply left open ended: why did Emily want to be friends with Grace? What about Grace's biological history she had wanted to trace? Where did her need to reject her South Asian heritage come from? How did her adoption affect her current issues? And what was Mary Jane's backstory?

[Katinka]

Grace is a Korean woman who was adopted as an infant by an American family in Iowa who are of Norwegian descent. Her parents also had several children of their own, so she has always been part of a large family. She married in college after discovering she was pregnant, so never really had a chance to discover who she was as an individual. For most of her life, she has focused on pleasing and taking care of those around her: primarily her husband and her children. Now, she and her husband are separated; he has been having an affair with his high school sweetheart and wants a divorce. Grace is starting her own business as a seamstress/dressmaker, and must figure out not only who she is on her own, but what she actually wants her life to be.

I read a review copy of this book and enjoyed it. I will admit that it wasn’t what I had expected when I first started reading. I expected it to be primarily about Grace being adopted more than anything else, instead, this story was about a woman who was in the middle of a divorce she didn’t think she wanted and trying to discover who she was going to be if she wasn’t primarily Mark’s wife. There were a number of issues and difficulties that she had to face and come to terms with, but all of it made this seem to me to be a story about her actually discovering herself for the first time.

She was no longer Mark’s wife & the mother of his children, but Grace, a talented seamstress and clothing designer, a sister, a friend, and the mother to two wonderful daughters. It was a story about a woman truly finding herself for the first time. It was a fascinating tale of self discovery, and something that I really enjoyed reading. (I do need to mention here that this book does not appear to have a kindle version as I could only find it in paperback form on Amazon.)

This book drew me in and kept me wanting to read. In the beginning, I will admit wanting to tell Grace that her husband was never going to be hers again more than once as for a long time she seemed to think that he would change his mind and return to her and their daughters despite the fact that his girlfriend and her son were moving in with him. But as she came to that realization and acceptance of it, Grace also began a friendship with the woman that was going to be part of her extended family, regardless of any initial desire to dislike and/or resent her for having been "the other woman."

I believe that anyone who enjoys nonfiction stories about people and the lives they thought they wanted and then discovering themselves after something unexpected happens that forever alters the life and plan they had created. I also feel that anyone who enjoys stories dealing with blended families or adults who were adopted from foreign countries would enjoy this book.

[One Anjana]

As much as I found this book enjoyable as a whole, I can't lie that I'm a bit disappointed with the 'adoption' premise.

Adopting Grace tells a story about Grace, a mother who was adopted from South Korea as a baby. As she faces turmoil in her marriage, it inevitably changes many aspects of her life. From there, she also learned to accept herself. Through her encounter with several people, she came to understand that even though she was adopted, she always had a home and was surrounded by loved ones.

My initial thought was that the story would concentrate on Grace's past and her struggles as an adoptee. Instead, the narrative concentrates on Grace's difficulties with her marriage and her everyday routine. I believe this falls far short of the promised premise.

Despite that, I found myself enjoying the interactions between the characters in this book. Grace and her big family have a very lovely and supportive relationship. Ian, Grace's new neighbor, is also an amusing and captivating character. Although he may not always be there, his presence is like a quiet source of support.

In general, this book talks about the true meaning of family. Because blood relations do not always represent real family. The writing is light and fun, so it is easy to enjoy in a short time.

Thank you to NetGalley and Midwestern Books for the review copy.

[Michelle McDonald]

I felt so connected with so many parts of this book. I devoured this in 2 days. One of my BFFs was adopted from S Korea as an infant and that is probably what first drew me in. I love this cover (huge dog lover). I was so grateful to score my copy of this book via NetGalley, which has a different cover. I like this one with the dog much more.

I love when I read a book and it just feels like it was meant for me to read at this particular time in my life. That is how I felt about this one. It was very well rounded as far as serious, funny, sad, happy, all of the emotions were there for me... My only complaint would be that I wished it was longer! I was not ready for it to end. I think it would be really fun to read spin offs from pretty much any of the different characters POVs.

[Racheal]

I so appreciated reading this book! This is the story of Grace, a 39 year old mom who was adopted from South Korea as a baby. There is so much going on in the book, from her memories growing up in a white family in Iowa, to raising her daughters as a newly single mom after her husband leaves her for another woman. She also has a big family with big personalities, some interesting clients and friends, and a therapist who provides a space for her to process what’s happening in her life. There is a strong focus on Iowa- with real places noted, which was fun! I wish that some of the topics could have had more depth, but overall a funny, emotional, and meaningful look at one woman’s life!

[Taylor]

This to me was truly a story of finding yourself through heartbreak. It presents a person trying to find herself and her role in life, love, and friendships, without taking into consideration what she wants, but rather what she expects others want. The book made me recognise that setting boundaries is important, but finding yourself is even more important, and you should not feel ashamed of being your true self. I really want others to read this and experience a sad, but honest look in the life of a woman absolutely going through it all. Thank you for this story.

[Shawn B]

I found this book to be captivating. It drew me in at the beginning with complex and interesting characters. Graces has a lot going on and as a mom I found that relatable. I appreciate how it normalizes the importance of working on good mental health.

It is full of snatches of wisdom, outrageous overreacting, some self loathing, a couple surprises at the end and love of family no matter how crazy the members. Great debut novel. Would love to see a part two.

[Andrew Gustafson]

Met Anna at a book fair and learned about her work and this book.

I was surprised to hear we have similar backgrounds. I’m also adopted from Korea and was raised by my Scandinavian heritage parent in Iowa.

Anna’s writing shares an open and honest perspective on several topics both unique to adoptees as well larger societal issues, such as divorce and mental health.

This was a n easy and a quick read for me - once I started I could not put it down.

[Parsnip]

I won't go into details about this one, because it feels unfair to bring down an arc.
I'd say it's partially just not my type of book. If you like lighthearted family stories this might be for you though. However, don't expect to much about adoption, I found the synopsis deceptive on that one.

1,5/5

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC

[Michael]

I’m very glad I read this novel. The author weaves an intelligent, engaging, thoughtful story with expertise and wisdom. I often think novels don’t know how to end well. This one definitely did. Excellent work!

[Ashley Pester]

Loved the story line!! Thought about all the changes and seasons we endure from childhood to adult life, sometimes coming to terms with the present situation is difficult. We sometimes miss other signs of peace and good! Loved Grace’s story. The characters were well developed!!

[Wendy Porter]

Funny and heartwarming

I really enjoyed Anna Jinja’s first novel finding it funny, complicated, challenging and full of heart. I would love to see a part two or series!

[The Delulu Book]

Okay, Adopting Grace talks about this south korean woman who was adopted almost at birth, by norwegian descent parents, Gracer during college married her then boyfriend because she got pregnant, only for her to find out she's being cheated on by her husband 15 or so yearts later, the husband divorces Grace to be with his mistress Emily, all this is happening meanwhile she tries to be a good mother, good friend, good seamstress, and in her own opinion failling in almost all of them.

I bet you read that and thought oh this book is good for sure, and I'm honestly telling you, its not, none of the characters are likeable, not Grace not her family, not her daughters, and especially not the husband and mistress, maybe Mary Anne, Grace's customer, and Ian, Grace's neighboor, but they do not compensate the hot mess all the other characters are, its so tiresome the way teenagers are depicted, with parents who don't know how to handle them this is specially important for this book since motherhood its an important topic, overall it was not a nice experience, I finished it because of my need to always finish books and this feeling that something was bound to happen, well, that "something" happens ( like at 90% of the book ) and out of the 2 stars one is just for that ending, I almost liked it, it was perfect until the teenage daughter was nasty again and Grace was your trustworthy doormath which made it seem like nothing changed at all.

Overall it was an interesting learning experience, maybe I'm not the right person for this book, I feel like the description was a bit misleading because what I read and what was described have almost nothing in common.
I cannot recommend this book.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review, all opinions here stated are my own.