Ghosts by Raina Telgemeier
- readerskitchen
- Nov 2, 2016
- 2 min read
Title: Ghosts
Author/Illustrator: Raina Telgemeier
Publisher:
Published:
Rating: 5 Stars
I really loved this book. I read it in an hour and then spent another hour just contemplating all of the complexities of it. Raina's illustrations are so complex and deep and you could spend hour taking them in fully. This was my first time reading one of her books, but they all came highly recommended by my students.
The sisters in this book, Maya and Cat have a complex, loving relationship. It's perfect. The girls truly love each other and you can see that, but that doesn't mean they like each other all of the time. Maya, the younger sister, suffers from cystic fibrosis. The disease doesn't stop her from being one of the most lively characters in the book.
The main thing I noticed as I read/looked at the book was the seamless and beautiful integration of racial diversity. In one scene, at the town's fair, you can see a zoomed out shot of the people and my heart was warmed at how truly diverse the scene was. Cat's friends are also very different from her, both racially and in personality. The inclusion of some details about cystic fibrosis was also a welcome addition.
All in all, the complexity of the story and its emotions, in addition to the inclusion of diversity, culture, and history make it a book I would really like my students to read.
That said, as I've been sharing the book with my students, I encourage them to look into the things they find interesting. I provide them with resources on Dia de los Muertos (many are already very familiar with it, coming from Mexico themselves). As a teacher, it's my responsibility to make sure that my students are conscientious, critical consumers of information. That includes stories in graphic novels...If I can do that for them, then they can enjoy any story while looking critically at aspects of it. That should be the job of any adult who presents a child with a book. Tell them to love it. Then tell them to learn more about it.
I truly loved this story and I encourage anyone to read it. Highly recommend.
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