The Graveyard Book

The Graveyard Book

by Neil Gaiman

Neil Gaiman's latest -- a current Hugo Award nominee for best novel -- is ostensibly a "young adult" title, but can be appreciated by readers of most ages. As usual with Gaiman, this is a modern-fantasy work, set in our traditional world, but with elements of the fantastic woven throughout the fabric of the novel. The novel begins some time ago, as a mysterious killer attempts to assassinate the members of a small British family. Unbeknownst to the killer, a toddler has escape from his crib and wandered out of the house...into a graveyard down the street. The ghosts inhabiting the graveyard recognize the threat to the child and, knowing his parents are dead, adopt the lab -- naming him Nobody Owens, or "Bod" for short. Bod grows up in the graveyard, receiving his life lessons from the dead, and guarded by the mysterious Silas, a man who is neither living nor dead. As Bod grows up, the threats to him from the outside world continue, and the wonders he experiences in his odd world continue to amaze the reader...with both elements culminating in a dark confrontation before the book concludes. Overall, I found this Newbery Award winning book to be an interesting read, though not quite as enjoyable as Gaiman's previous youth book -- Coraline. But, still definitely worth reading to keep up with one of today's master fantasists. -- recommended by Scott C. - Bennett Martin Public Library

[ official Graveyard Book web site ] [ official Neil Gaiman web site ]

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