In the past week, I've discovered the joy in reading graphic novels. I work at a bookstore and on a slow morning, I started poking around in the graphic novel section, a very popular section, to familiarize myself with the offerings and I came across Kristen Radtke’s Seek You: A Journey Through American Loneliness. i read the first few pages and I was locked-in. Luckily, it was an exceptionally quiet morning, allowing me to read between gaps in customers. I finished it within my shift.

Radke’s graphic novel explores the themes of loneliness, using interviews, personal experiences, and scientific research to understand the topic. I was struck by some of the statistics listed, including research that identifies three times in our lives where we are most prone to feeling lonely: late 20’s, early 50’s, and late 80’s. I’m only forty-four, but I can attest to feeling exceptionally lonely in my late 20’s/early 30’s, having gone through a divorce and losing my mom, living alone in my childhood home. Although I was going out on lots of dates and had many friends, living alone was not easy for me. I tried my best to never be home. I hope the statistic for early 50’s doesn’t hold true, because that’s on my horizon!

Radke explores in quite extensive and horrific detail Harlow’s experiments on Rhesus monkeys, which he conducted to determine the importance of attachment, socialization, and nurturing. I was aware of Harlow’s experiments, but revisiting the subject with both Radke’s words and illustrations created an affecting experience. I now understand the appeal and power of graphic novels. They way words and pictures are combine have the affect of visiting an art exhibition, offering a very different reading experience.

I finished Seek You on Saturday and I’ve spoken about it to several people. It made me consider my own experiences with loneliness and also the need to reach out to others. I’ve since written two letters to childhood friends and called a dear elderly friend. Seek You gave me the opportunity to consider important relationships in my life and the clarity to prioritize. It’s a special literary and visual experience.