Unexpected Passages is a graphic memoir that tells the story of the the author’s grandfather, Irving’s, remarkable escape from the Holocaust via Poland, Lithuania, Japan, and China, while reflecting on her own Jewish history growing up in the United States, the granddaughter of a survivor. The book explores her family’s Yiddish history and her mother’s decades-long journey toward translating Irving’s Yiddish wartime letters. Kept for more than 50 years, the contents of the letters turned out to contain more questions than answers about her grandfather as a young refugee.
This project was made possible by a Trailer Blaze artist residency and 4Culture grant.
Selected pages from the forthcoming book below.
Interested in hosting an Unexpected Passages book talk with Rachel?
About Rachel Scheer
Rachel Scheer is a comics artist and elementary school teacher. Rachel’s comics have been published by Edutopia, The Stranger, the Seattle Weekly, Fantagraphics and more. She is a recent recipient of a Trailer Blaze artist residency and 4Culture grant for her graphic novel Unexpected Passages..
