Why Is Everybody Yelling?

A powerfully moving graphic-novel memoir of family secrets, religious identity, and coming of age in the shadow of the Holocaust.
"A wonderful book about figuring out who we are and who we want to be when we grow up. It's also about being an American—especially a first-generation American." —Roz Chast
In 1950s New York, Marisabina Russo is a devoted Catholic schoolgirl who loves her faith—until she discovers a shocking secret: she's Jewish by blood, and her family members are survivors of the Holocaust. With an absent father, a demanding mother, and troubled older half-brothers, Marisabina's childhood is thrown into turmoil.
As she journeys into the transformative 1960s, this heartfelt and unexpectedly humorous memoir, skillfully illustrated by the acclaimed picture book creator herself, explores the burdens of memory, guilt, and the struggle to form an identity entirely one's own. Why Is Everybody Yelling? is a poignant coming-of-age story that grapples with family history, religion, and the quest for self-discovery in the aftermath of World War II.