The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman
|
List Price: Our Price: $7.84 You Save: $10.15 (56%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $0.96 (click here) Category: Book See more book details and other editions |
|---|
Book Reviews of The Graveyard Book
Book Review: Great Storytelling Albeit Dark Content, Darker Than CORALINE.
Summary: 5 Stars
I learned of this book's existence earlier this year when reading book blogs which discussed author Neil Gaiman's blog post telling the story of how he heard that he had just won the John Newbery Medal book award for best children's book of the year.
Gaiman's name was already familiar to me as the author of CORALINE which was made into a children's movie, marketed and promoted in 2008 and released in early 2009. CORALINEwas on my radar because my kids had seen the movie's preview and asked to see it, and our family rule is to read the book first. Lastly a homeschool mom friend blogged that she absolutely loved The Graveyard Book. So after I read the CORALINE book, and after my then 11 year old son read it and loved it as a page-turner, I decided to read The Graveyard Book after seeing our library included it in a special display. I was curious to see if either of my kids was ready to read it. And the fact that it won the Newbery Medal made me wonder what about this book.
My review of The Graveyard Book cannot be without comparison to CORALINE, for one reason being that children who loved CORALINE may then ask to immediately read The Graveyard Book and because I'm a homeschooling parent working hard to promote literacy and all the good that reading can bring to the life of a child. Good children's books read and enjoyed in childhood can open doors to children to become lifelong readers and lifelong learners which is my wish for my children and all children everywhere. Here are my thoughts viewed through "Mommy eyes".
CORALINE is a short book with dark undertones in which we root for the main character to remain safe and hope for a positive ending. There is a moral to that story. The story is straightforward, focusing on one story arch. It is a page turner. The creepy and darkness of CORALINE, combined with its shorter page count may wind up being the first `dark' book that a child ever reads. It is marketed toward 9-12 year old's. Its short page length and its easy vocabulary makes it an easy and fast read for a younger child who is a good reader or it may be simple also for a nine or ten year old to read. The fact that now it has a movie tie-in may draw more child readers to the book. It's page-turning suspense may rivet the most reluctant of readers or make it entertaining for kids who usually prefer lighter, fluffier, happier books. (I have not yet seen the CORALINE movie and cannot compare them but have seen trailers and thought after reading the book that a live action film could be quite scary but the animation seems to have tamed it.)
The Graveyard Book is MORE than CORALINE in all respects. It is longer in length, which is "just right", it's not too short, it's not too long, it is great the way it is, but this page count may not tempt certain readers (younger readers or reluctant readers) as CORALINE's shorter length may. Its story is deeper and more complex. There are multiple strands of action, details that interweave and later wind up making connections to put the story together. In my opinion the story is more suited to an eleven or twelve year old. Younger kids, especially those who may not have the patience or reading ability to get all that is happening may not be as riveted to the story as more mature or more capable readers would be (things I easily get as an adult). There is also the issue of sensitivity to dark content which is more individual-- based on the child's unique nature. One can't always judge by an age if the child is ready for this kind of content.
The Graveyard Book is very supernatural in content. The story is dark, being a good versus evil story in general and as usual we all want the good side to win. I thought the idea was unique, a baby escapes murder by crawling into a graveyard and the ghosts adopt him and raise him in isolation from other humans in order to keep him from danger. The book winds up becoming more complex, unveiling unique magical creatures (not just human ghosts or ghouls) as well as other worlds that exist beyond Earth. Witches are also in the book, as inhabitants of the graveyard and are portrayed in a positive light for one character having been wrongly put to death years earlier for practicing her craft. It is also a coming-of-age story as the child grows up he wants to explore the real human world beyond the graveyard's borders, seeks independence and wants a normal life.
It should go without saying that any parent who does not want their child reading books about witches, ghosts, and supernatural creatures with special magical powers will not like this book.
If your child is sensitive, dislikes suspenseful stories where the life of the main character, a child or a baby was put in danger of being murdered by evil murderers, I would recommend that you pre-read this book. If your child is prone to nightmares after viewing or reading scary things, even a scary commercial, I'd say you should pre-read this book before putting it in your child's hands.
Putting aside all judgments that this book could freak out a nine year old or that too-young kids may miss some of the details in a rush to just find out what happens, and not getting into a debate over dark content marketed to 9-12 year olds, I'll say this. It is a well-written, very good story. I have respect for writers who can pull off a unique story told in a riveting way that has great pacing throughout, it is not easy to do. This book's content may not be what all young readers are interested in reading and it may not be what all parents want their kids reading (some eleven or twelve year old's may be tempted to find more dark stories and wind up going right to Stephen King).
With the Newbery Medal secured and with Gaiman's CORALINE having already been made into a movie I can only assume that THE GRAVEYARD BOOK will also wind up being made into a children's movie, which if done well with a human character and good special effects (versus pure animation) and with a scary musical soundtrack could be scary for teens or even adults!
A final note is I liked the art on the cover of the hardcover book that I read (blue cover with gravestone image) with its optical illusion or "two images, which do you see". Today I saw on the publisher's page, another cover in green, and it crosses the line, it is too much, too gory, the long blade knife with blood all over it looking like it just stabbed someone goes too far for a book being marketed to readers aged 9-12. In my opinion cover art should focus on more general features of the whole story rather than reveal the goriest peak moment of the story.
Book Review: A story about living told amongst the dead.
Summary: 5 Stars
Growing up, I spent 10 days of my every summer at a religious revival we call "Camp Meeting". One of my ancestors helped found the place, a large square of wooden shacks that we call "tents" create a massive commons with an open-air arbor in the center. I spent time in my crib there, and we still go back every year.
There were three places for hanging out at Camp Meeting: The Spring, where buckets no longer drew water for cooking and washing, but kids now engaged in water fights with plastic red cups, and older ones would sneak off for a kiss or clutch. The Stand, a large building in the corner full of candy and confection, where we ate french fries and played cards. And the old cemetery off of one corner, a place for pranks and daring.
The cemetery is gated off now, likely due to the sort of romping that went ignored when I was a child. Back then it was wide open, and we dashed through the headstones, without a care in the world. During the day, the place filled my young head with a false sense of importance. A large chunk of the headstones bore my last name in one of two spellings, a nod to my confused, illiterate, oddly-branching family tree. Still, these were my people, and having so much family in the place made me invincible here. It made this a place that I could roam at night, without the chills and tingles that plagued some of the others.
And the cemetery at night was different-a place for dares. A place to lure younger kids and frighten them. Later, a place to bring a sweetheart so that she could see how brave we were, and to possibly confuse that sensation of fear for something else... In this way the cemetery changed as quickly as we did, even as it stayed the same. Now it is just a cemetery. A sad and quiet place to visit with my wife, share stories from my past, and watch her marvel at the spattering of surnames that are like my own.
When I picked up Neil Gaiman's The Graveyard Book and started reading, my own ghosts came and read along with me. Gaiman's graveyard is a place of peace, adventure, and learning. A nature preserve by day, and a haunted hill at night. Dozens of generations of the deceased, going back to Celtic and Roman days, populate the book. And his story of a young boy growing up in this ancient cemetery, raised by ghosts and keen in the ways of the dead, reminded me very much of my old graveyard at Pleasant Grove Campground.
The book also reminded me of Ender's Game, one of my favorite reads of all time. By the end of the book I was completely attached to the young protagonist, Nobody "Bod" Owens, in a way that I have not been since meeting Ender Wiggins. Like Ender, Bod is introduced to us at a very young age and we watch him mature quickly under harsh and unusual circumstances. I felt protective of Bod in the beginning for his fragility and then awed by the end of the book for his wisdom and strength. It is an inspiring journey for young and old readers alike.
"The Graveyard Book" begins with the brutal murder of Bod's family when he is still in a crib and diapers. Toddling obliviously away from danger, the child ends up in a nearby cemetery where the resident ghosts argue about what to do with him. The Owens, an elderly couple long-deceased, decide to adopt the boy and raise him as their own. Taught in the ways of ghosts, and given powers entrusted to residents of the graveyard, Bod endures growing pains that will be familiar to readers of all ages. But Bod's learning comes from fantastical adventures with the dead, the living, and some things in-between.
For all the death, ghouls, ghosts, and headstones in The Graveyard Book, this is chiefly a tale of living. It is about right and wrong, morality and injustice, and about making the most of the time we have. The sensation at the conclusion of this book it to get out and go do something. To travel and experience. To love without fear of losing. To cherish every breath and not labor on what comes after. This is a lesson that Bod learns early as his surfeit of self-preservation is seen by his mentor as a potential waste:
Bod shrugged. "So?" he said. "It's only death. I mean, all of my best friends are dead."
"Yes." Silas hesitated. "They are. And they are, for the most part, done with the world. You are not. You're alive, Bod. That means you have infinite potential. You can do anything, make anything, dream anything. If you change the world, the world will change. Potential.. Once you're dead, it's gone. Over. You've made what you've made, dreamed your dream, written your name. You may be buried here, you may even walk. But that potential is finished."
Each chapter of the book skips ahead to a different age and centers around a new tale or adventure. Bod interacts with a variety of cemetery denizens from thousands of years of British history. There is a new lore and language which pervades the book, small powers and rules and different types of dead that will appeal to anyone with an active imagination. But Gaiman keeps it simple, not overloading the reader with strange names and magical arts that distract from an elegant story.
"The Graveyard Book" will appeal to anyone over the age of twelve (possibly younger if your child is reading ahead of the curve). The larger print and gorgeous illustrations give the book a wonderful flow. Adults will also appreciate Gaiman's unwillingness to compromise with his prose. His impressive vocabulary, and perfect restraint, will have young and old reaching for a dictionary several times.
All of this intellectual and moral growth makes The Graveyard Book an ideal read for young adults. Especially for the many who become fixated on death and dying and keep their worries to themselves. I certainly was one of these kids, and this book would have been welcomed by my hands 20 years ago. It is an exploration of the joy, magic, and uniqueness of living. For The Graveyard Book is as much a story of Bod's deceased friends marveling at his living potential as it is him being fascinated by their graveyard magic.
The American Library Association awarded The Graveyard Book the John Newberry Medal for best children's book. Get a copy for your child, then sneak it away for yourself when they are done (if you can get them to let it go).
Book Review: "Here comes a candle to light you to bed... and here comes a chopper to chop off your head."
Summary: 5 Stars
THE GRAVEYARD BOOK is iconic British fantasist Neil Gaiman's second go at writing a children's book, and, not too surprisingly, it's terrific. I prefer it to CORALINE (see Coraline - Diamond Distributors), which is also quite good but didn't draw me in as strongly as did this book.
THE GRAVEYARD BOOK begins at night with the slaying of a family at the hands of a gifted, knife-wielding assassin named Jack. But Jack goofed and let one get away, a near 18-month-old toddler who had wandered away from his crib and somehow found his way to an ancient graveyard. THE GRAVEYARD BOOK goes on to tell the little child's story, of how he is adopted by the graveyard's ghosts and of how he is granted the Freedom of the Graveyard (thus guaranteeing him sanctuary rights and also a few unsettling abilities). The child is bestowed a new and unusual name, which is Nobody Owens (or "Bod").
Living in a graveyard, raised by the dead, every day of his life exposed to the supernatural, it's not a surprise, is it, that Bod grows up an extraordinary and very peculiar boy? And how long before he begins to wonder about the outside world, a place utterly unfamiliar and perilous to him? Bod is warned that the murderer of his family is still at large, maybe waiting to get him. Bod isn't afraid, but maybe he should be. Because, even after all these years, the man Jack, the knife-wielding assassin, is still looking to finish his gristly business.
About the book's author, Neil Gaiman: In the past quarter century, you'd be hard put to come up with a more important comic book writer than Neil Gaiman, excepting, of course, Alan Moore and Frank Miller. Gaiman's Sandman series elevated comics to a wondrous, thought-provoking artform! Gaiman also happens to be one of the very few comic book talents to successfully transition from comic books to novels. If you haven't yet stayed up long, late hours to Neverwhere: A Novel, STARDUST (Roca Editorial Novela), American Gods: A Novel, or Good Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch (Discworld) (with Terry Pratchett), then you are missing out on some awesome and peculiar stuff. THE GRAVEYARD BOOK is his latest and, in my opinion, his most engaging novel yet.
The story is graced with Gaiman's trademark touches, a bit of the morbid, a dash of the macabre, and peppered with wit and humor and with dark imagination. He reminds me some of Tim Powers in his ability to render the reader off-balanced, so lushly steeped are his stories in oddities and gothic sensibilities. Reading both Gaiman and Powers, your grasp on reality may become juuust a tad tenuous. Yet, I say, go on and sip from them strange brews! Theirs is an irresistibly offbeat brand of fantasy.
But one minor point of grievance: I do wish that more fleshing out were done with the characters of Bod's grim, enigmatic guardian Silas (who only consumes one food), Bod's spectral surrogate parents, and that man Jack. Come to think of it, that shadowy cabal to which Jack belongs could've done with more detailing, as well. As it were, I was never quite sure what that group was all about, other than something underhanded.
There's a good dollop of pathos. One thing (among many things) which Gaiman does very well is make Bod likable and relatable, in spite of the weird childhood. The one relationship I didn't think would go anywhere turns out to have an impact, this being the one between Bod and the strict and prim substitute guardian/teacher, Miss Lupescu. She starts out real prickly and cold, but, at the end, you'll end up liking her quite a bit, even though she's not much in the book. One early scene between Miss Lupescu and Bod which made me laugh (and keep in mind that Bod has had a most unconventional upbringing):
"Name the different kinds of people," said Miss Lupescu. "Now."
Bod thought for a moment. "The living," he said. "Er. The dead." He stopped. Then, "...Cats?" he offered, uncertainly.
This one paragraph qualifies as SPOILERS... as I mention that THE GRAVEYARD BOOK is a coming-of-age fantasy, and that it ends with Bod still very young, at 15 years of age. The last page will leave him wiser, sadder, and yet eager to fully experience the outside world. It's a good and fitting ending, but the true enjoyment stems from reading about how Bod arrives at that stage. Bod, as he lives his very odd life, learns several useful graveyard tricks, such as Fading and seeing in the dark. You'll read about his jaunts into the human world and how, in that environment, he doesn't really fit in too well. You'll meet interesting dead people and also Bod's one human friend. You'll learn about the Hounds of God and of dancing the Macabray, and of ghoul gates and night gaunts. There's a buried chamber in this book, which houses ancient treasures guarded by a sinister entity. And, somewhere down the road, you'll bump into the man Jack, with his uncanny sense of smell and his knife. Can Bod be resourceful enough, and clever enough to get around this particular boogyman?
Unexpected and moving. And what a wonderful and warped bedtime fable. Much of the essence, the dark enchantment, that is in Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas (2-Disc Collector's Edition + Digital Copy) is felt in this book, so if you liked that cheerfully bent holiday movie, then THE GRAVEYARD BOOK will suit you just fine. I'm crossing my fingers, hoping and hoping that Neil Gaiman writes some more about Bod Owens. After all, at his young age, kid's bound to have more adventures, right?
Book Review: The Graveyard Book
Summary: 5 Stars
I am currently in my fourth year of teaching fifth grade. I take a lot of pride in my effort of instilling a love for literature in my students. I try and read a lot of current children's literature myself and while maintaining a respect for the "classics", I work very hard at not becoming one of those teachers who reads the same thing over and over and over, year after year after year as my "read aloud". I want my students to know that great children's literature is being released each and every year by some incredibly fresh and relative authors.
This is why I've taken offense to some of the more recent Newbery Medal selections. In fact, I think they've done a disservice to kids everywhere. I'm not asking for the committees to cheapen the award due to popularity. That's not it at all. I know their decision is based on literary merit. I just wish the committee would understand that like it or not, children DO pay attention to the award. Children DO tend to gravitate toward Newbery Medal selections. This is not just an award for librarians to nitpick prose. This is a medal awarding great literature for children. You want to talk about cheapening an award . . . how about a kid picking up a Newbery Medal book and year after year abandoning it out of boredom or frustration. This award is beginning to mean nothing to children, the very audience these winning authors are writing their books for. No one will ever convince me that some of the more "popular" works by kidlit authors fail to stand up to the same literary standards the committee bases the award on.
But there I go . . . and this review was not supposed to be about the Newbery Medal (or even how the committee finally got it RIGHT). This review is supposed to be about Neil Gaiman's beautiful The Graveyard Book. So I will casually step down from my soap box now and try to keep the rest of this review, short and sweet and to the point.
After his parents and sister are brutally murdered by "the man Jack", Nobody Owens as a toddler, escapes from his crib and crawls to a nearby graveyard for safety. The ghosts that inhabit this graveyard claim him in order to protect him. They grant him "The Freedom of the Graveyard" (allowing him to Fade and Scare with the best of them) and they raise him as one of their own, the best any ghost can. As Nobody, or Bod for short, comes of age, he gradually understands what happened to his family, learns about "the man Jack" and his desire to finish what he started, and becomes curious about the world beyond the graveyard's metal gates.
I loved Neil Gaiman's Coraline. I thought it was a great, quickly paced, fun read. Having read Coraline and having appreciated it for what it was, I was pleasantly shocked by the epic-sized depth of knowledge and creativity Gaiman brings to The Graveyard Book. Coraline was short, a novella. Coraline was creepy, original, and fun. The Graveyard Book is HUGE in scope! The Graveyard Book is about growing up and maturing and figuring out the world around you. It's about making mistakes and learning from those mistakes and living with the consequences, good or bad. In that sense, I do see some similarities in his two popular works for children, in his prose and style of storytelling and obviously in subject matter and genre. But in The Graveyard Book, Gaiman really shows off his chops as a storyteller, in a way that Coraline never fully allowed him to. After reading The Graveyard Book, Coraline seems to have been nothing more than practice.
I love the way this story unfolds through a series of episodes (chapters), each serving as its own short story of sorts, following Bod through particular stages of his growth and understanding. Chapter one is incredible. You'll be hard pressed to find a piece of children's literature packed with more suspense than this novel's opening pages. As a matter of fact, you'll be hard pressed to find a piece of children's literature written as well as this opening chapter. The way Gaiman's prose softly tiptoes its way through Bod's home, following "the man Jack" and his search for the surviving baby is beautifully thrilling. The middle of the novel slows to a steady pace as Bod begins to grow and mature, while the novel's closing is a return to the suspenseful action that opened the book up. From the beginning of Chapter seven, the reader knows that something is brewing. And in this novel's extremely intense final pages, we see Bod materialize into a clever and witty hero, one who has learned from his past mistakes and listened carefully during the lessons taught to him throughout his life. It's been a long time since I've read an ending quite as intelligent and satisfying as this.
I applaud you Newbery Committee, for pumping some life into this award once again. For finding a balance between child-friendly popularity and strict literary standards. I admit that Gaiman may have made this easy for you, but am nonetheless grateful as an elementary teacher and a follower of children's literature. I'm "proud as punch" for Neil Gaiman and equally as excited for the children that will choose this book based on its merit, and who will finally find an excitingly original Newbery Medal winner, unlike anything they've probably ever read before.
Book Review: The Graveyard Book - A Middle-School Oriented Review
Summary: 5 Stars
The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman and illustrated by Dave McKean was released by the publisher, HarperCollins, on September 30, 2008. A paranormal fantasy of 337 pages, most young readers would regard this excellent and entertaining novel as a ghost story. The publisher indicates on the back cover that it is intended for Grades 5 and up or Ages 10 and up. The Fry Readability Formula indicates that it is appropriate for readers at the 6th Grade level.
This book begins with the horrifying murder of an entire family in their home - or almost the entire family, as the toddler manages to slip away into the night and away from the danger lurking in his home. The reader, like the toddler, is spared witnessing the violence of the murder. Following his escape, the toddler is rescued by the neighbors, to begin the adventure of a very unconventional life. The neighbors live in a graveyard, and they protect and care for the toddler in only the best fashion that the dead can provide!
Adopted by Mr. and Mrs. Owens, who married 250 years ago and remained childless, the toddler was named Nobody Owens, because he looked like nobody but himself. He became known as Bod, (the shortened version of Nobody), and was given the "Freedom of the Graveyard". Also bestowed with the Freedom of the Graveyard is Silas, the resident of the graveyard who is capable of traveling between the graveyard and the rest of the world. Silas accepts responsibility for procuring food for the living child and eventually becomes his tutor. Bod, who knows no other life, discovers a balance between the living and the dead.
While Bod attempts to learn history from the graveyard denizens, or perhaps the ghostly art of "Fading", the reader learns about the continued threat of the man who murdered Bod's original family and why Bod's existence continues to threaten the murderer. As this coming of age tale unfolds, we also learn the truth about those plotting against Bod and the mysterious origins of some of Bod's tutors. As supernatural as all of his surroundings may be, Bod is still like other boys in that he has family, discovers love, makes friends, and develops toward adulthood. All these things prepare him for the day when he must leave the graveyard and return to live the life for which he was born.
To some analysts concerned with the trend in paranormal juvenile and young adult literature, it is understandable why there would be some apprehension toward recommending this book to young readers, and perhaps this could be the only negative aspect of the book. After all, books concerning murder and violence are universally considered unsuitable for young readers. However, once the true nature of the book is revealed, it should dispel any apprehension of the paranormal, horror, or violence and see that this is really a story of caring, presented in a way that is suitable for young readers.
This book engages the reader from the first sentence in which we immediately want to know who holds the murder weapon, and why. The characters are believable in their reactions and emotions although they are wholly imaginary. The graveyard represents a place of safety in which Bod is able to rely upon when threatened by the murderer or by other unworldly perils. In a place that should be ultimately foreboding, Bod instead learns what it means to live life to the fullest.
The writing is excellent and the storyline is compelling. This book was selected to receive the 2008 Newbery Award. The author says that it was unlikely to be selected because the award is generally bestowed upon works of more serious intent, and not one intended to be a fun read. And fun it is. Although consistent with the current trend in paranormal subject matter in juvenile books, this work would be enjoyed by readers who don't normally read horror or ghost stories. Even though the paranormal aspect is an intrinsic component of the story, it is not the key message of the book.
I found this book to keep my interest through all the adventures and experiences of Bod Owens. The pace would not allow me to set the book down. The tempo of the story combined with the excellent storyline will certainly appeal to young readers. It is the perfect vehicle for escapism. It is one that easily takes the reader away from reality and returns the reader again, in a quite fun and touching manner.
MS
EDU570