Last week I posted “Getting Lucky,” a memoir-in-progress I admired, in part, for its total divergence from anything familiar to me. Today, I’m ridiculously excited to post an excerpt from “Lucky,” an already-published collection of autobiographical short stories in graphic novel form. The appeal of this one is just the opposite: I think author/artist Gabrielle Bell may be sketching from a tiny drafting table inside my brain.

In simple line drawings and clear, evocative prose, Bell documents life as a twentysomething New York artist with both universal relatability and her own unusual perspective. Sure, there is angst and self-doubt, ambition and small victories, but there is also the quest for the perfect loft-bedded room in a Brooklyn apartment full of strangers. Bell covers a series of menial day jobs, but prefers nude modellng and jewelry assembly to waitressing and espresso-pressing. She captures the mundane rhythms, instability, and ennui of young New York creative life, while making it completely engaging and sometimes strangely lovely.

Below, an excerpt. Here, an interview with Gabrielle Bell. Here, get your own copy already!