
Pencil and paper,
imagination and image,
better than reality…
In middle school, the other kids “seem to understand how to be in the world in a way that I do not,” notes Briana (pg. 5) during the mid 1990s.
Mum absolutely unpredictable, Dad completely predictable, distant from one another in the same house, distant from only child Briana, too… as they skirt the edges of being poor, is anyone the parent here?
At her Berkeley high school, Briana has a hard time concentrating in classes… is there a point?
Notes to friends, sketching on homework pages, notes from friends, making mixtapes instead of doing homework, repeat, repeat, repeat.
She literally draws herself into a dark place of loneliness, then draws herself back out into the real world again.
This graphic novel memoir chronicles the artist’s school years in muted tones, often sadly somber, yet ending with hope as she continues to draw: “Dear paper, dear pencil, you are saving my life…” (pg. 200). She shares three ways to fold a note and her favorite mixtape playlist, too.
What notes and messages from friends would you save forever?
**kmm
Book info: Raised by Ghosts / Briana Loewinsohn. Fantagraphics, 2025. [author site https://www.instagram.com/brianabreaks/] [publisher site https://www.fantagraphics.com/products/raised-by-ghosts] Review copy and cover image courtesy of the publisher.