Excellent graphic novel about a young boy struggling after his parents divorce with his faith in his parents as well as his God. Good depiction of mental health issues

inspired by the author's real childhood experience, this graphic novel shows complicated dynamics in a family between Mormon church values and parents divorce. Corey and his sister lived with their mom but has mandatory "visitations" every week with their father. one day, their mother told them they didn't need to attend visitation and ran away for weeks into Nevada desert. and the mother's paranoid became more apparent as the story unfolded, and Corey started to doubt her faith.

that was pretty intense and to be honest i couldn't fully wrap my head around the situation. I believe the author's story but also can't believe that it was real somehow. I like the storytelling style that flows nicely, also the simple but neat illustrations.

This one was so hevy. It reminded me a lot of Hey Kiddo just with a religious aspects. . It's a deep lesson on mental illness and religion that gets to the point of fanaticism. Reminded me of my past at times. Based on the author's real life experiences. Highly recommend.

While this isn't the book I'd hand to a struggling student on their darkest day, it is the book I'd share with students who are struggling with feelings of hopelessness, especially in regards to poverty, family life, and mental illness. It's not a memoir, but the story is heavily influenced by Corey's own childhood experiences with homelessness & a parent going through a mental health crisis. I know I make this sound very dark, but the story ends showing the light at the end of the tunnel.

I'm a sucker for graphic memoirs, and this one was tough to read but incredibly important. Inspired by true events, this young adult graphic novel explores family dynamics, mental illness, and religion. Corey Egbert draws from his upbringing in the Mormon church and takes readers on an emotional journey through imagination, memory, faith, and truth. With great storytelling and beautiful illustrations, I think many students will connect with this one.

The colored pencil graphic memoir of a Mormon boy abducted by his mentally ill mother. Her mental illness and her religious background leads her to be overprotective of her kids and alienate their dad with an accusation of sexual abuse. The muted colors add introspection to Egbert's memoir of struggling with his mother's faith, his own heterosexual sexuality, and his own faith.

A semi-autobiographical graphic novel about Corey and his younger sister Sarah, who are kidnapped by their mother and on the run in their car while she has religious hallucinations. Corey and Sarah's parents had divorced a few years prior because their mother was convinced that their father was sexually abusing Sarah. They barely talk to their father and haven't seen their paternal grandparents since the divorce. During their run from the law, Corey starts to feel that maybe his mother isn't correct, and Sarah doesn't believe that her father ever hurt her as a toddler. Told in soft pinks and grays with fuzzy details makes it feel that these are memories and not facts from his childhood. His young teen self is awkward at times and second-hand embarrassment is prevalent. There is a sort of happy ending, but it doesn't seem like their mother ever really got the help she needed. In the acknowledgments, he mentions that he didn't really talk to his mom throughout his older life, and it seems that she never gave up the idea that god had called her to be a certain way. It's a unique look at a not-so-unique story.

After her own father is discovered to have been molesting a little girl, Corey's mom starts to believe her husband is doing the same to their daughter. Though investigators find no evidence, she is still convinced of his guilt. She seethes whenever Corey and his sister Sarah have visitation with their father. Convinced that God is guiding her, she takes the kids and runs. Soon the three are lurching across the Nevada desert, living in their car, evading police, and running out of money. As food grows scarce, and tempers flare, Corey begins to wonder if there's something other than religious fervor influencing his mother's thoughts.

Based on the author's own experiences, this graphic novel/memoir presents a fascinating and involving look at mental illness as seen through the eyes of a child. This book would make a great addition to any library's young adult graphic novel collection.

Visitations was an excellent graphic novel. I loved the character study and the illustrations were so well done

A creepy but fascinating story, drawn from the author's personal experience, but with a more fantastical twist. From an adult perspective, it may be alarming when Corey's mom starts claiming her husband is an evil influence trying to pull Corey and his little sister Sarah away from God — but it's clear through his narration that he not only considers this normal, he truly believes in the things his religious upbringing has taught him, and he's afraid of anything that might interfere with his relationship with God. By the time his mother takes Corey and Sarah on an unplanned road trip to escape her husband because she believes he's Satan, though, the cracks are starting to show, as Corey experiences a slow-burn crisis of faith and his mother becomes more and more erratic.

As someone raised in the Southern Baptist church, around equally extreme and black-and-white beliefs, a lot of this resonated for me, particularly Corey's struggle to reconcile the more reasonable, plausible world around him with the extreme things he's being taught and told, and the disjunction between what his mother believes and what the rest of the world thinks about the situation he's found himself in — namely that his mother has kidnapped him and Sarah and is neglecting and abusing them by forcing them to live in a car and starve rather than letting them see their father.

This one reminded me a fair bit of Blankets, both because of the personal (and religious) aspects of the story and because of the sharp, chilly, often blue-aspected art. They'd make good companion pieces, and they're both essential reads for kids growing up in religious households and coming to realize that the teachings they were raised with aren't the only (or the only reasonable) perspective on the world.

I really enjoyed this, even if the author and I have different experiences and outlooks regarding Mormonism. It was emotional and real.

This book a great read. I can see teens really loving this book and the pretty illustration/images. I can't wait to see all the teens love this book as much as I did.

This is a beautifully illustrated graphic novel. The story is powerful, sad, and heartfelt, even more so because it is a true story.

Actual rating: 4.0-4.5 stars.

Visitations by Corey Egbert is a young adult graphic novel based on true events. When Corey was a child, his parents divorced due--in part--to allegations that his father was a pedophile toward Corey's younger sister, Sarah. This was later proven false, but Corey's mother--who, unbeknownst to everyone, suffered from paranoid schizophrenia--truly believed these allegations, possibly because of childhood trauma concerning her own father. As Corey reaches adolescence and begins to question the truth, his mother, and his Mormon faith, things come to a head when his mother kidnaps her children. This book discusses a lot of tough topics, especially the relationship between religion and mental health, but it also ends on a positive note.

I am by no means an expert on religion, including any denomination of Christianity, but there are many factual connections between faith, faith leaders, and unacceptable behavior toward women and children (as well as perception of science and mental illness). While some details of this book may have been tweaked a little for narrative purposes, Corey's story is an important one to be told, especially for those who may be seeking help. The point of it is not to vilify one's beliefs (or religion in general), but to think clearly, question the world in a healthy way, and to receive help and care when needed, especially from loved ones who truly care about one's wellbeing. As for Rae the ghost, whether she really appeared or was a poignant hallucination...the reader must draw their own conclusions.

Readers who value this story may also be interested in: Educated by Tara Westover, Hidden Valley Road by Robert Kolker, Not My Father's Son by Alan Cumming, and I'm Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy.

I thought that this graphic novel dove into mental illness and religion in a really interesting way. This was heart wrenching, emotional, hopeful, and a beautiful story of resilience. I really enjoyed reading this, and I think it has a perfect spot in the library.

Rating: 4 stars

I received a digital copy of this book through the publisher on NetGalley for an honest review.

Visitations is a young adult graphic novel. It tells the real-life story of the author’s Mormon upbringing and what it was like living with his mother and having visitation with his father. What I enjoyed about reading this graphic novel is that it touches on some serious themes, such as mental health and illness, grief, and family dynamics. And that it does it in a way that I feel would make this an appropriate read for young audiences.

Seeing these themes in a story like Visitations is important and is something I enjoy reading. I enjoy stories that have themes like the ones in this graphic novel as I feel like these types of stories need to be told. I also enjoy seeing them because it could be the perfect read for someone going through the same experiences. I also enjoyed this book because the story shared in it is based off of Corey Egbert’s life. I enjoyed getting to read a graphic novel that’s inspired by true events in the author’s life as I haven’t read too many graphic novels like this one before, so it was nice to see.

If there was anything with Visitations I didn’t particularly enjoy it would probably have to be the presence of the ghost in this novel. Its not that I didn’t particularly like her character or anything. My dislike comes from that the way the blurb reads of this book I thought she would play more of a role in this story than she actually does. I did find the way Corey introduces her into the story interesting, just thought she was more of a character in it than she ends up being. I also wanted to read more in Visitations too as I felt like I wanted to find out what their lives were like after the events that had transpired in the story as this novel felt too short for me even though I did enjoy it.

As a whole, Visitations is a wonderfully crafted graphic novel inspired by true events in Corey’s life that I highly recommend to anyone who can relate to growing up in a religious household, has delt with the struggles that come with your parents getting divorced, and has experienced grief of a loved one in their lives. Especially to anyone who enjoys reading graphic novels and reading stories that are inspired by true events in the author’s life.

Visitations is set to release on December 17, 2024 for anyone interested in reading this young adult graphic novel.

This graphic novel did a beautiful and thorough job of showing the reader the main character's journey from complete and unwavering doubt to the realization that things are more complicated than he believed and then how he was going to navigate these new feelings and beliefs. We get a layered catalyst that only adds to the complexity of the situation and the character's internal struggles. So much emotion given to readers in manageable doses.

Heartbreaking yet hopeful, this memoir chronicles the author's journey to discover his own truth while navigating his parents' divorce and his mother's intense religious beliefs. This is an important and inspiring story.

I really enjoy a graphic novel that can dive into religion and mental illness in a way I haven't seen before. Mixed with the family trauma and dynamics that I could relate to in many ways, Visitations will be one I can easily recommend to friends and viewers.

This graphic novel memoir was heartbreaking to read. There was a lot going on that Corey and his sister had to deal with. Mental illness, kidnapping, parental unstability. This book sheds a light on issues that we do not usually thinkabout and does a great job at it.