Jeju’s haenyeos learnt to expand their lungs and dive into the depths of the ocean to look for food to feed their families. Once a matrifocal society, very few haenyeos are now to be found. Those left have traded their skin-showing, white diving clothes for wetsuits.

The Island of Sea Women throws light on the women divers of Jeju throughout the Japanese occupation, the Korean War, and everything that happened in between and after these events. This story is about two friends whose paths are crossed during extraordinary circumstances. They become friends, train to become haenyeos together, but they were star-crossed as it took just one event to break a bond as strong as a diamond.

We witness this relationship between two soul sisters through Lisa See's phenomenal writing. Not a word seems out of place; the book is that well-crafted. My mind is blown by how well-researched it was, and I applaud @lisasee_writer for taking the pains to do justice to the events.

As someone who knew only a little about Jeju, I strongly feel it’s an important book. The characters might be fictional, but the events were very much real, and that broke my heart. I guess I got teary-eyed for the first time in years while reading.

You will find melancholy in these pages, but you will also find love, strength, and determination. It is a slow-moving read, but it will leave you breathless and break your heart.