In this searing graphic memoir, Leela Corman pushes boundaries, incorporating jarring analogies, ironic humor, and deep introspection. In the book’s opening, she describes the Polish forest where her grandfather hid from the Nazis. She then abruptly compares this setting to the Catskill Mountains — a bucolic home for many American Jews — preparing readers for a challenging book.
Visiting Poland for the dedication of a memorial at a mass grave of Jews in Grybów, Corman raises questions about guilt, remorse, and responsibility. She identifies deeply with her family’s roots in Poland, stating that “My body is a mass grave containing all the dead I never knew.” Yet she also familiarizes herself with her non-Jewish hosts’ culture, through their food, mourning rituals, and more.
Corman’s personal life has been marked by confusion and loss, and a coded sense of fear permeates her thoughts. Without equating her own history with that of Poland’s Jews, she acknowledges that intergenerational trauma never disappears entirely. Drawing on scholarship about cultural diffusion, she reflects on societal changes that can’t be easily reconciled with past events. In Berlin, Vietnamese restaurants and women wearing hijabs are seemingly accepted parts of the city’s life. But despite this contemporary multiculturalism, there are constant reminders of the Holocaust that stir up “an epigenetic storm” inside her.
Making broad philosophical statements — like “life is an ambush” and “birth is not a binary” — could be a risk for authors. However, Corman’s honesty and vivid illustrations ground the text in reality.
The death of Corman’s young daughter hovers over the narrative — just as, in one illustration, she is raised up by disembodied hands during her second labor. Ultimately, she succeeds in connecting her anguish and attempted recovery to the specter of death in Jewish history. Every page of Corman’s memoir demands courage and vulnerability, both of herself and her readers. You Are Not a Guest is a distinguished addition to the canon of graphic literature.
Emily Schneider writes about literature, feminism, and culture for Tablet, The Forward, The Horn Book, and other publications, and writes about children’s books on her blog. She has a Ph.D. in Romance Languages and Literatures.