Thank you so much to NetGalley for sending me a copy of this book! I am so surprised that this was my first time read this book.I feel iin love with this book and with this author! This is one of the best books I have ever read in my entire life!

Finding My Voice is a coming of age story about a Korean teen who is bullied by her peers because of her race and struggling with how best to fit in to a traditional Korean values and expectations paired with living a typical American teen's life.

The messages of resilience are timeless. That being said, I didn't truly connect with this book.

I found the narrative to be a bit simplistic and the dialogue didn't flow naturally.
I also didn't feel much emotion from any of the characters.

I have had this audiobook for a few years and unfortunately in the that time I have lost a lot of interest in reading young adult. However I do feel this would be good book to have for older middle school and early high school students. Especially with the past couple years developing into some anti asian hate, this will be important for students to read and also identify with the main character.

Unfortunately the audiobook expired before I could finish it. I will try and see if I can get this from the library.

Thank you to Netgalley and the author for allowing me to read this!

I was instantly intrigued by the synopsis of this book. This book instantly drew me in, I got to explore through the eyes of our main character and this is always my favorite way to discover these details of the story and, it was done very well in this book. I really enjoyed this book and the plot. This author did amazing. I loved the writing style.

this Audiobook was so so good, thanks to Netgalley for putting it on listen now. it's an own voice novel, a story of a Korean American student who is searching for her identity, juggling with societal pressures, peer expectations, teenage drama, high school life. it's a quest for self love, for belonging, for taking your own rights.

This is a highly inspiring book for people who belong to a different culture and not living in their native places, or people who have known a different country as their home, but are seen differently by the people and don't get acceptance,

Ellen Sung lives in Arkin, MN, is a senior in high school, and the daughter of Korean immigrants. As a result of being Korean-American and living in a white community, Ellen is the victim of bullying, name-calling, and overt prejudice and stereotyping from her peers, but even from some teachers. The best way to escape: college. However, that leads to pressure from her father to go to Harvard, MIT, or any one of the Ivy Leagues, just as her sister is doing.

This is a well-written Own Voices novel about growing up "othered" in middle-America and set in the late 1980s (?) where Ellen is working to find her voice against the bigotry she endures. I think this was a very realistic account of what happens when faced by overt racism and name-calling--not just for Ellen, but also the reactions of the people around her--while being non-confrontational. Though mentioned in the summary, I don't find the romance between Ellen and Tomper to be a small, side-plot rather than the primary story-line. I was more interested in the relationship between Ellen and her "perfect" sister, Michelle, as well as with her parents. Although it is set in the 1980s, there are so many parallel incidents to present day 2021 of name-calling, bigotry, and violence against Asian-Americans. Overall, a quick read that was infuriating in the reality of what Ellen experiences, but also hopeful for Ellen and her family.

I received an audio ARC of this book through NetGalley in exchange for my unbiased opinion.

Ellen Sung is a senior at her small town Minnesota high school, sticking out as the only Korean student among an almost exclusively white student population. She just wants to be like the rest of her classmates. The pressure from her parents to get into Harvard and the racism she experiences from others at her school make it difficult, though. When popular, blond Tomkin Sandel falls for her, Ellen hopes that she can spend the rest of her senior year acting like a normal teenager.

The blurb made it sound like the story was primarily focused on Ellen's relationship with Tomkin. However, there was so much more going on in this book. <i>Finding My Voice</i> was originally published in 1992 but has been republished in 2020 because the story stands the test of time. The narrator on the audiobook did a fantastic job bringing the story to life. I enjoyed the story, but I felt like, contrary to the title, Ellen never really found her voice. By the end, however, it seemed like she was getting close to that place. 3.5/5 stars

3.5 Stars

I think this is a very realistic look at how small towns tend to treat people who are different from the "norm". The way Ellen was treated by classmates and even teachers was so disgusting and appalling. Being from Minnesota myself, I was taken aback that someone could be so discriminated against in a place so close to home for me, but I can recognize that those around me are still being discriminated against similarly, 30 years after this book was originally published. The actual plot of this wasn't super exciting, but it was a good representation of what people of color go through in small town America unfortunately. I think this is a timeless novel that could help white people understand life as an Asian American and everything they go through with society and their families.

This was such a hard book for me to finish. I think the main issue was the narrator. For whatever reason, I did not like the narrator :(. The book had too much of a young reader feel for me as well. The book was written as if it was a middle grade or lower, not YA as the subject and protagonist demanded. I think the premise of the book was great, but the audio was just not a good way to read this book.

Going into this novel, I was unsure if it was going to be a memoir or a fictional novel, as I went on, it definitely showed itself as a little bit of both. This novel covered some really important topics such as racism, immigration, and finding one's voice to stand up for themselves. I did not realize this book was released for the first time in the 1990s, they way it handled the topics and how it read, made it seem like it was published recently.

The overall plot for me was ok, nothing super special - a girl in her senior year trying to figure out what school to go to and figuring out her friends, love life, and family. It was great to see the big topics intertwined but I wish there was more to them. I wasn't the biggest fan of the writing in spots, but in others it was great.

3.5/5 stars

🐻 Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing this e-arc!


✨The audiobook was fascinating tho unfortunately boring at times

Finding My Voice tells the story of "Ellen" Sung, a Korean girl living in Arkin, Minnesota. Ellen struggles with being 'different' (read being Asian in an all-white community), racist people, and the academic expectations of her parents. She tries to find her voice when facing bullies, as well as her parents.
I think that there's a lesson in this book that everyone can and should learn, and that's how to use your voice, to speak up when something upsets you, to learn that you don't have to sit back and be quiet when you have an opinion. I think everyone can relate to aspects of this book, Asian or not. I found myself relating to not knowing where you belong.

Ellen Sung is part of the only Korean American family in a small Minnesota town and wants to fit in at school even when her peers won't let her. She falls for the very blond football player Tomper Sandel in her senior year, and he likes her back. Pursuing a romance leads to disappointment from her strict parents, dismay from her friends, and racism from others at school.

This coming of age story involves balancing the strict obedience of East Asian heritage with the freedoms of a "typical" American teenage life. I noticed that the lower-rated Amazon reviews of the book come from those that don't connect with the characters; I suspect they've never been subject to the racism and needling comments that can come from even well meaning people that have no idea how to approach those of different backgrounds. Other races and cultures are only too used to that kind of subtle racist remarks and microaggressions, and it's a reality that still exists no matter how much people want to deny it. The sense of shame that Ellen feels in response to those comments will feel familiar to anyone who had received such comments.

The audiobook is narrated by Jaine Ye, who sounds dead-on as a teenager worrying about fitting in. There are many small details about Ellen's day and life as a high schooler trying so hard to be "normal" yet still make her family happy with her. That should be a fairly universal feeling for any teenager, regardless of racial or ethnic background. The details in each chapter really brings back the feeling of high school, and being the younger sister of a prodigy adds to a lot of her stresses and feelings of inadequacy.

This was a refreshing and enjoyable read that details the experience of an Asian American reconciling and learning to love her integrated culture. I actually didn't know that this was previously published but I'm so glad I stumbled onto this title the second time around. Getting to listen to the audiobook also made the overall experience more impactful, the narrator did a wonderful job articulating the character's emotions and struggles and just made everything seem more alive. As an Asian American, I felt connected to Ellen even though we come from different backgrounds (Korean vs. Taiwanese) because her struggles were so vivid and universal to my own reflections of self-identity. Definitely worth a read if you're looking for an exploration and coming-of-age novel!

Thank you so much for the opportunity to read this book. I'll be posting my review on Goodreads and Amazon

I really enjoyed listening to this audio book. Like most, I listened at a speed of 1.5. I did enjoy the narrator.

I did not realize this book was written back in 1992. It was nice to listen to a YA novel that is not choked full of characters on cell phones. There is something wonderfully simple about those times. Hopeful.

I will be ordering this book for my students. The length was great for reluctant readers and the story was accessible. It can be challenging to get our students to read anything from different perspectives, but I think they would enjoy this story.

This a light and faced paced read which was pretty enjoyable!

Finding my voice follows Ellen Sung, a Korean girl living in Minnesota with her family who struggles with racism and reaching the academic expectations of her parents.

Even though I don't listen to audiobooks very much, I think that this book was narrated brilliantly by the narrator which made me not want to stop listening to it.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an advance audio copy in exchange of an honest review. This did not impact my review in any way

Representation: Korean-American MC, Side Korean characters
Trigger Warnings: Usage of racial swears, Racism

Finding My Voice gives a voice to every first-generation child of immigrants, and to all those trying to reconcile their ethnic background with the culture of the country they find themselves in. It’s a simple story, but timeless, evident in its initial publication in print in 1992 and being reissued as an audiobook in 2020.

Ellen’s experiences with racist classmates and professors and demanding parents on top of the pressures of school life, while also battling internalised shame and racism, all contributed to the realistic representation that made me connect so easily with her. It also helped that the narrator, Jaine Ye, embodied Ellen’s youth and uncertainty in her tone.

Lee does a great job showing you the perspective of a young Korean American teenager who is not only falling in love for the first time but also coming to terms with her identity as an Asian American in small town America and more importantly, finding her own voice in combatting the racism she encounters. I could see ways that Lee could have amplified the story (more conflicts with friends, more nuanced parents other than the stereotypical STUDYING IS LIFE kind of parents, conflict with love interest, etc.) but I appreciated that it was kept simple to focus on the racial bigotry and ultimately her speaking up for herself with her parents, amongst her peers, and with authorities. My recommendation for this one: Pick it up because it’s short, sweet, and may remind you of your high school bestie.