Raised by Ghosts by Briana Loewinsohn 

Publisher: Fantagraphics

Publication Date: February 4, 2025 

Reviewed from library copy

ISBN: 9798875000508

Set in the early 1990s, this graphic memoir tells the story of the author’s middle school and high school years. Raised by divorced parents who could not be more different from one another and yet are both absent from her life, Briana spends much of her time alone. She eats dinner alone, draws and writes in her closet, and listens to her mother complain about her on the phone to other people. Her days are filled with time with her friends, listening to music on her mix tapes, struggles at school. The book doesn’t offer a bright ending, but rather offers space and a way forward through art and writing that Briana found.

The art in this graphic novel is not the brightly colored, poppy graphics one might expect in a YA graphic work. Rather, it is powerfully dark, stormy on the page, filled with isolation and frustration. The images echo the subject matter beautifully, creating a unique reading experience. The setting of the 1990s, speaks to the differences time brings. There are no cell phones, no ways to check in when waiting to be picked up, and adults will find themselves and their own childhoods shared here.

Deep, thoughtful and powerfully quiet. Appropriate for ages 13+.