Tessa Hulls: Pulitzer, Comics & History’s Weight
Tessa Hulls’ graphic novel memoir, “Feeding Ghosts,” clinched the 2025 Pulitzer Prize, a landmark achievement for the comics medium. Delve into Hulls’ powerful exploration of intergenerational trauma and Chinese history, as she unveils her family’s past, vividly rendered through striking visuals. The graphic novel memoir,”Feeding Ghosts,” stands out as a testament to the power of storytelling,blending narrative and art to explore themes of family,history,and identity.News Directory 3 recognizes this extraordinary work.Discover the unique journey of a chef turned graphic novelist, balancing her craft with historical analysis. What creative avenues will Tessa Hulls explore next?
“Feeding Ghosts” by Tessa Hulls Wins Pulitzer Prize
Updated May 31, 2025
Tessa Hulls, juggling her work as a sous-chef in Juneau, Alaska, learned she had won the Pulitzer Prize for her graphic novel memoir, Feeding Ghosts (Macmillan). A legislator delivered the news after Hulls noticed a flurry of text messages.
Hulls’ Feeding Ghosts joins Art Spiegelman’s Maus as only the second graphic novel to receive the prestigious award. The memoir delves into hulls’ maternal grandmother, Sun Yi, a journalist in 1940s Shanghai who fled to Hong Kong after facing increasing surveillance by the communist authorities. The book uses black and white drawings to explore the public and private history of Hulls’ family.
The graphic novel memoir, Feeding Ghosts, has garnered critical acclaim, landing on several best-of lists and receiving nominations for awards such as the National Book Critics Circle John Leonard Prize. Hulls blends narrative and art to explore themes of family, history, and personal identity.
“I’ve always been a visual artist and a writer,” Hulls said, noting that her background is primarily in visual arts, especially painting. She came to see writing as an essential component of her artistic expression.
Hulls described leaving home as a teenager and embarking on a nomadic life, alternating between urban environments and wilderness experiences. She realized her wanderlust stemmed from a deeper sense of ambiguity related to her family history.
After turning 30, Hulls decided to confront her family’s past. This journey took nine years and required her to adopt the skills of both journalists and historians. Despite the book’s success, Hulls said she does not plan to write another.
While working on Feeding Ghosts, Hulls also covered the CHOP uprising in Seattle as an “accidental graphic journalist.” This experience highlighted the power of comics in providing context and illustrating the relationship between macro and micro events.
Hulls drew parallels between her grandmother’s experiences with a totalitarian regime and her own experiences covering events like CHOP, where complex information was frequently enough reduced and distorted by social media.
The publication of feeding Ghosts brought Hulls a sense of liberation. The Pulitzer Prize, she said, has given her a feeling of safety, alleviating a fear that has haunted her family for generations.
What’s next
Hulls plans to continue her work as an artist and writer, exploring new ways to tell stories and engage with the world around her.