Ghosts

Ghosts, written by Raina Telgemeier, tells the story about a family who lives moves to a town in Northern California, due to the cystic fibrosis condition of one of the main characters, Maya. The family consists of Maya, Catrina and their mother and father. The town they move to, Bahia de la Luna, is known for the ghosts that can be seen, particularly during the autumn and winter months. It has been said that the ghosts like the town because of the fog and wind that is prevalent throughout most of the year. However, what makes the town special is that on "Dia de los Muertos" (Day of the Dead), the mission on the highest hill becomes the closest portal between the living and the dead, where the townspeople meet and receive the ghosts that come back to visit their loved ones, by hosting a huge celebration for them.

Prior to moving to Bahia de la Luna, the family had no idea about the ghosts in the town, but once they learn about them, Maya becomes the most interested about them, while her older sister, Cat, tries to avoid them at all costs. Once the sisters encounter their first ghost, with the aid of their friend and neighbor, Carlos, the ghosts accidentally hurt Maya, almost killing her due to her cystic fibrosis condition. Afterwards, Cat becomes even more resentful toward the ghosts, until she learns to accept them as good entities once she decides to go to the Day of the Dead celebration and meets the ghosts of the loved ones to those in the town.

The themes of the book that we discussed as a group are the acceptance of death, how a health condition affects a family, and being open to change. Although we mostly agreed that we didn't like the concept of graphic novels due to the limited opportunities for character development, when contrasted with novel prose, the illustrations that were presented were amusing and allowed the reader to digest the details within the illustrations for themselves. We also discussed that although the theme of death might be a little too much for younger readers, there is a "filter" that readers may choose to integrate, in order to concentrate on other themes in the book, such as Maya's cystic fibrosis, ghosts, Mexican culture and change. We also thought that the significance of the fog in the book could have different meanings such as the Cat's fear or the uncertainty of future events.