Lost at Sea by Bryan Lee O'Malley

Lost at Sea is a graphic novel by Bryan Lee O'Malley, creator of the Scott Pilgrim series. First published in 2003 by Oni Press, it tells the coming-of-age story of a shy 18-year-old girl named Raleigh, who believes her soul was stolen by a cat, and the road trip she takes across the United States with several kids from her school that she barely knows.
“Lost at Sea (Comics).” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 17 Aug. 2017, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lost_at_Sea_(comics).

Not really anything like Scott Pilgrim and I still loved it!

I got tired of the angsty main character very quickly. The art is nice, the story is solid and the book had its moments. But it felt like it was trying too hard for some deeper symbolic meaning that just did nothing for me.

I'll admit that I only bought this because of Scott Pilgrim - I was at a talk that O'Malley gave, and didn't have any of my SP books with me, so I bought this so I could get an autograph from him. I'm so glad I did, though, because it's an amazing piece of art.

The art is absolutely beautiful, the story interesting, and the themes solid - this is the best work on teen angst in a generation, at least, and it's message that “if you're feeling like a freak, or a loser, it's probably because you are, but don't worry, because everyone else is as well at times” is a fun take on that phase of life, and something that can still resonate with adults as well.

What O'Malley does here that's interesting, as well, is that he introduces fantasy elements to the story, but makes them completely optional to your understanding of the story. Does Raliegh feel like she doesn't have a soul because her mom sold it to the devil, or just because she's going through a tumultuous time in her life? Likewise, does she get it back from the cat that it was given to, or does she just achieve a sense of belonging with her new friends? Both are equally possible, given the reality the story is placed in.