Raised by Ghosts is a memoir in graphic novel form by Briana Loewinsohn aimed at young adults. It takes place during Briana’s youth and adolescence in California during the 1990s. The story deals with Briana’s time in middle and high school and the ways in which one navigates friendships, classes, extra-curricular activities, and family. Rather than bash us over the head with plot points and set pieces, Loewinsohn’s story accumulates tension as Briana navigates having an excellent set of friends with a constant feeling of deep loneliness. The result is a coming-of-age story that will resonate with anyone who encountered childhood.
Buy Raised by GhostsRaised by Ghosts is impressive because of its interesting structure and artistic accomplishments. The typical four-frames per page utilized by Loewinsohn is broken up by one-page notes from Briana to her friends. These are presented as the classic folded notes students pass to their classmates to this day, and they are filled with the musings of childhood and apprehensions of the future. One note reads, “Some things in life are hot and cold and overwhelming and absent all at the same time,” while another note reads, “When is this class over? Why isn’t it lunch? Or summer. Or anything but right now?” Briana’s notes are pithy and bright, humorous and nonsensical, adult and childlike all wrapped into one.
Loewinsohn’s artwork is in no way flashy; still, her simple lines and deep, earthy colors give depth and meaning to Briana’s life. This visual style grows in complexity and texture as Briana’s story unfolds. There are lots of pictures of walls with dialogue coming from behind them. There are many empty rooms. Even the crowded hallways of high school leave Briana on her own as though she were the only person in the world. This is a graphic novel that is obsessed with atmosphere and emotion.
By the end, Raised by Ghosts is about being invisible in a world that busies itself with being seen. Briana’s parents are words in an empty room. Over and over again, Briana and her parents miss each other both physically and metaphorically. But it isn’t all despair. Briana slowly makes friends who in no way fill the void left by her parents, but they are a help. There are trips to the record store, mix tapes to be curated for each other, and relationship dramas to be acted out. Briana starts to warm to the idea that life can be a mess sometimes, but her friends, and her budding artistic talents, are true and trustworthy.
Loewinsohn treats teenage pain with respect: this is not a romanticized portrayal of growing up. Instead, Briana leaves us with a feeling of hopefulness in a, sometimes, dark world. You’ll wish you’d known her back when you needed her.
