Wednesday, 14 December 2022

GHOSTS by Raina Telgemeier

“‘There’s something different about this town…’ Catrina and her family are moving to the coast of Northern California because her little sister, Maya, is sick. Cat isn’t happy about leaving her friends for Bahía de la Luna, but Maya has cystic fibrosis and will benefit from the cool, salty air that blows in from the sea. As the girls explore their new home, a neighbour lets them in on a secret; there are ghosts in Bahía de la Luna. Maya is determined to meet one, but Cat wants nothing to do with them. As the time of the year when ghosts reunite with their loved ones approaches, Cat must figure out how to put aside her fears for her sister’s sake – and her own.”

What is the book about?

Catrina feels her whole life is ending when her parents announce that they will be moving to the North of California. She feels like it is ruining her life because of the lack of sunlight and lack of friends that she is going to find in Bahía de la Luna, but she has no choice but to pretend to be happy because the main reason for the move isn’t her dad’s new job, but, in fact, that her little sister, Maya, has cystic fibrosis and will benefit from the cool, salty, sea air from the coast. When they arrive and go exploring in their new home, they encounter a neighbour, who lets them in on a secret about Bahía de la Luna – the town is full of ghosts. Maya is beyond excited and all she wants is to meet one, but Cat is far from happy and wants to ignore the nightmare. But, as the time of year when ghosts appear and live alongside people for a night approaches, Cat must set aside her fear of ghosts and face them for her sister and herself…

What were your initial thoughts on the book?

When my sister bought this book, I was beyond excited to read it. I knew it was going to be a fast and incredibly interesting read that I was going to absolutely love and I was beyond ready to read. Once I read the blurb, I was even more desperate to read the book as I was so intrigued and curious to learn more about the ghosts that would be found in Bahía de la Luna. I was really excited and, once I finally began to read, I knew that my excitement for the book was well deserved because of how I was already reaching the end, when I thought that I had only just started to read. It really was a great read and I knew that from the start.

Who was your favourite character and why? 

My favourite character was, no doubt, Maya. She was extremely inspirational in the way that she didn’t let her illness deter her from having fun and, in fact, I think that having cystic fibrosis made her braver than any other character. She knew that she was going to die earlier than she should if she wasn’t ill, but she didn’t let that stop her and instead she decided to live her life to the fullest and I think she was one of the happiest children I have ever read about. However, she was also a practical person and she was incredibly stubborn and it didn’t matter what she wanted, she was determined to get it, even if it was risky. She was incredibly inspirational and taught me to face my own fears and not let them stop me from having fun because life is short and it is important to live it to the fullest.

What was your favourite part of the book and why?

My favourite part of the book was at the end when Catrina finally set her fears aside and faced the ghosts for her sister, who couldn’t be there herself, but mainly herself. Cat had been prepared to hide away and not leave the house all night, rather than go with her friends to the Day of the Dead party. However, Maya was determined to not let Cat make the mistake of not going and somehow managed to convince Cat to go. It took her a while to get comfortable there, but finally Cat was able to let her fear of ghosts and death go so that she could enjoy the party just like everyone else. I really enjoyed this part of the book because it taught me that my fears are what are stopping me from living my life to the best I possibly could and if I didn’t face them, I would always be living my life in a box, not reaching my full potential as I should if I let my fears go and chose to enjoy a fearless, happy life. 

What was your overall impression of the book?

Overall, Ghosts was a really incredible book and I really loved reading it. One thing that I really loved about it was how it began to consider big topics that a lot of us always think about, like death and the afterlife and what it is like to die. I really liked this because it was really easy to relate to what Maya wanted – to know what it was like to die and what would happen. Everyone has thought about this at least a few times in life and I really liked how I was able to explore one possibility of what may happen after we die (becoming ghosts). Another thing that I really liked about the novel was how it mixed reality with fantasy and superstitions. Death is a reality and it’s something that will happen to us all one day, hopefully after we have lead a long happy life. However, this isn’t always the case and it is extremely real that there are people whose life ends before they are able to truly live their life. Raina Telgemeier mixed this sad reality (represented through Maya) with the fantasy and superstition of becoming a ghost after you die and being able to continue leading a good life (as a dead ghost). This made death a little less scary and showed me that even if I die I will still have a chance to be happy (if this superstition is true). Ghosts was a really incredible graphic novel and I just adored reading it. 

Would you recommend this book?  

I recommend reading this book, especially for those who love some adventure and some superstition. It is a great read for anyone over 10 who struggles finding books fun and interesting to read.

Summarise the book in one sentence. (Verdict)  

An amazing, superstitious adventure.

Reviewed by Aldara Gutierrez Reviriego

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