Anya's Ghost by Vera Brosgol Review

WARNING: THERE MAY BE SPOILERS BELOW

Anya could really use a friend. But her new BFF isn't kidding about the "Forever" part.

Of all the things Anya expected to find at the bottom of an old well, a new friend was not one of them. Especially not a new friend who’s been dead for a century.

Falling down a well is bad enough, but Anya's normal life might actually be worse. She's embarrassed by her family, self-conscious about her body, and she's pretty much given up on fitting in at school. A new friend—even a ghost—is just what she needs.

Or so she thinks. Spooky, sardonic, and secretly sincere, Anya's Ghost is a wonderfully entertaining debut from author/artist Vera Brosgol. 

So, remember how I said I didn't really like graphic novels? Well, I still don't, but I might pick one up if it appeals to me enough. It's like fantasy, I don't really like it, but if one leaps out at me I'll put aside my prejudices for long enough to read it. Hey, that's how I discovered some of my favorite books, like The Road or Marina or the Six of Crows duology. 

So I picked up Anya's Ghost because it seemed like a really sweet graphic novel with some very mild horror elements about a girl from a Russian immigrant family who wanted to fit in despite everything and ends up meeting a ghost. As I strongly believe that Ghosts R Great, as well as my interest in Russian culture, I knew I had to read this book. 

I suppose, despite the ages of the characters, that it's middle grade, though I can't really tell with graphic novels. But the depth, or lack thereof, was right along the same level I've come to expect from middle grade works and thus I file it under middle grade. Fight me.

First, the negative. It had the same problem as the other graphic novels I read this month in that it seemed to be lacking depth, and felt rushed, leaving me wanting more from Anya and her story. The ghost thing, as well as the crush thing, felt like the author was really rushing to resolve that storyline. It's rare that I say this, but this book could be at least 100 pages longer. In fact, after finishing, I went on Goodreads, hoping for a sequel. I wanted more of Anya and her world and her friendship with Siobhan. Heck, I'd be fine with a webcomic- in fact, if she hadn't resolved the ghost storyline, this book idea would make a really freaking cute slice-of-life webcomic along the same lines as Sandra and Woo, or a more dramatic comedy like that one about the English school and the forest whose title I can't think of at the moment (sorry, it's been like 3 or 4 years since my webcomic phase- I stopped reading them when I started reading novels again). I mean, I guess that isn't a negative, since that means I liked the book enough to want more.

Because I did. I liked the message Brosgol was trying to get at. I liked the characters, and thought each one had a ton of potential. I loved Anya's family, and how even though she was embarrassed by them and how they tried to cling on to their old traditions while still assimilating to some degree, she still loved them- especially her brother, Sasha, who was your typical pain in the ass but loveable little brother, and her mother who, sure, was a little embarrassing but worked really hard to give her daughter a private school education- albeit a bad one. And I did love how Anya's crush's girlfriend wasn't some generic bitchy blonde mean girl, but was actually a really nice person. She reminded me of a girl I knew in high school- blond, beautiful, athletic, good grades, gifted singer, etc etc but also one of the nicest girls I knew. I think people like that exist just to make the rest of us feel bad.

So I guess my final thought is that this book is one of the best graphic novels I've read. Which I suppose isn't saying much, but still. Also, if I could, I'd commission Brosgol to write a webcomic based on Anya's Ghost. I suppose what this is means is that, while I don't love speculative fiction in real books, it's a lot better in graphic novels. Maybe it's because of the shorter length or the pretty illustrations, but if I must read speculative fiction in the future, especially paranormal or fantasy, I'd love it to be in graphic novel form. I think I'd pay good money to see books like Six of Crows or Marina (please God make that happen!) in graphic novel format. Not The Road though. I don't think that one would work too well.

7.5-8 out of 10