Giving Up the Ghost: A Story About Friendship, 80s Rock, a Lost Scrap of Paper, and What It Means to Be Haunted [Paperback]

In Giving Up the Ghost, Eric Nuzum brings readers into his life and lets them experience it for themselves. Somehow, his descriptions are so dead-on that I was mesmerized and couldn't put the book down. When Nuzum was spooked by an experience, so was I. When something sad happened to him, I had tears in my eyes. I longed to know what made Laura tick, just as he did; I, too, was frustrated by her.
People who have dealt with mental illness, regardless of severity, will almost certainly be able to relate to Nuzum's experiences. Anyone who has not dealt with mental illness should be able to better understand what it's like after reading Nuzum's vibrant description. And the conclusions he draws are definitely genuine food for thought.
The fact that I stayed up till 2 or 3 in the morning just to finish the book speaks for itself. It's one of the most compelling reads I've picked up recently. For once I barely thought about format, word choice, etc. because I was completely caught up in the moment.

Eric Nuzum is more afraid of ghosts than most people are (a mere preview for a horror movie is enough to make him leave the room). He traces this fear back to his adolescence, when nightmares of a little girl in a blue dress and noises from his parents' attic convinced him that his home was haunted. Already a directionless teen who doesn't fit in with his peers, Eric begins to lose control when "Little Girl" starts following him outside the attic and into his daily life, using alcohol and drugs as a means of coping. The one bright spot in his life is his best friend, a girl named Laura, who sticks by him even when he ends up in a mental ward. In the present day, Eric is going on a ghost hunt to finally confront his fears. But this is more complicated than he first thinks, because, even more than ghosts, what he's afraid of is his past.

"Giving Up the Ghost" pulled me in right from the start, due mostly to Nuzum's frank, personable writing style. Instead of putting on airs and trying to impress the reader with his language, he seems to tell the story as directly as he can. Doing this while still being funny and poetic is quite difficult, but Nuzum manages quite well.

The heart of the book, though, lies in the story of his past. Nuzum holds nothing back but describes his awkward youth in painful detail, relating even the things he's most ashamed of (like when he had a drug-induced tantrum over a box of Cap'n Crunch Cereal). He is very good at talking about the world as he experienced it, making it easier for the reader to understand his feelings. The things he tells about Laura, too, give a clear portrait of the girl, a devoted friend and (sometimes sophomoric) philosopher who marches to the beat of her own drummer. Nuzum captures the best and worst of youth through his description of her and himself- the intensity of feeling, the awkwardness, the dissatisfaction with the world, and the potential for nobility. It is all so relatable, so easy to empathize with. Nuzum is also quick to comment on the sophomorisms of his youth, which prevents the character of his younger self from becoming annoying.

The sections on ghost hunting were interesting, but not as compelling or emotionally charged as the sections on the past. Still, I felt they were necessary to the book, as they are what leads Nuzum to finally confront his past. He is good at creating a creepy atmosphere during these parts, as well as making a case for both believing in ghosts and being more skeptical about them. Whatever he decides about them, he ultimately leaves the question open for the reader.

IN SHORT: "Giving Up the Ghost" is a powerful, darkly humorous read with sharp, personable writing. Nuzum makes both his young self and his friend Laura seem so real to the reader, and so sympathetic. This is an emotionally trying read, but it is worth it to get to know them. This is a book that will stick with me for a long time.

Ah, memories. Sometimes they aren't so good. But this book actually brought me some good ones at the author's expense, I'm afraid. His memories are of growing up in Canton, Ohio in the mid-eighties. I lived in Akron in the early eighties, and Nuzum gets the atmosphere of neglect and depression that permeated the area at that time perfectly. A person couldn't help but feel nihilistic growing up there. That his music of choice reflects that doesn't surprise me. The music he mentions throughout the book brought back fond memories also.

But Nuzum begins to feel the presence of a little girl in his home, in the attic directly opposite his bedroom. I think we all have those feelings at times, a dark hallway suddenly looks sinister, an odd noise that seems otherworldly. Unfortunately, he never gets over this feeling and it begins to affect his ability to even pretend to be normal. Add in some drugs and alcohol, and it's no surprise that he winds up in a mental ward. His descriptions of his decline and illness are graveyard humor, funny and sad at the same time. That the girl who helps him in his time of need turns out to be not exactly who he thought she was, and comes to a sad end herself, just follows the general theme of his troubled youth.

He mixes in stories of his quest to discover if ghosts really exist by visiting haunted places with his tale of breaking down and his fight to fix himself. The memories are recalled in a surreal manner that makes you begin to wonder what really happened and what was a figment of his illness. Did he ever get an answer? Is there an answer? I guess you'll have to pick up this fun yet troubling read and find out.