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4.16 AVERAGE
4.16 AVERAGE
As his parents are being murdered, by a nasty character called Jack, Nobody Owen slips out of the house, and toddles off, ending up in the graveyard. Silas who finds him realises what has happened, and starts to look after him, accepting him into the netherworld somewhere between the living and the dead.
Each chapter is about Bod's experiences with the people long gone who inhabit the graveyard. They are not at all scary, and between them and Silas they try to teach him about their world, an the world at large.
Bod makes friends with a little girl who visits the graveyard. She goes missing, when he takes her to one of the oldest mausoleums, but when she is returned safe, she is told that she is not allowed to return there anymore. His adventures get more bold, evening leaving the safety of the graveyard, something he is forbidden to do.
Scarlett's parents have split, she ends up back in the graveyard again. Hoping to meet Bod. She is a fair way from home, and after she meets and accepts a lift home with a man called Mr Frost; who is still after Bod after all these years.
The first part of the book is slow, each chapter taking an ascpect of Bod's learning and growing. When Mr Frost appears on the scene, the pace lifts and takes you breathlessly to the conclusion of the book.
I am not sure how he does it, but Gaiman manages to write with an intensity that few other authors can match.
Each chapter is about Bod's experiences with the people long gone who inhabit the graveyard. They are not at all scary, and between them and Silas they try to teach him about their world, an the world at large.
Bod makes friends with a little girl who visits the graveyard. She goes missing, when he takes her to one of the oldest mausoleums, but when she is returned safe, she is told that she is not allowed to return there anymore. His adventures get more bold, evening leaving the safety of the graveyard, something he is forbidden to do.
Scarlett's parents have split, she ends up back in the graveyard again. Hoping to meet Bod. She is a fair way from home, and after she meets and accepts a lift home with a man called Mr Frost; who is still after Bod after all these years.
The first part of the book is slow, each chapter taking an ascpect of Bod's learning and growing. When Mr Frost appears on the scene, the pace lifts and takes you breathlessly to the conclusion of the book.
I am not sure how he does it, but Gaiman manages to write with an intensity that few other authors can match.
I hope when they make it into a movie, they give it to Tim Burton, because this reminded me of old-school Tim Burton, really awesome Tim Burton--the Tim Burton of Beetlejuice, not Planet of the Apes and that monstrosity he called Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. (Sorry if you liked it--I am fiercely loyal to the original, the one where Willy Wonka didn't seem insane and creepy--at least, not the ENTIRE TIME.)
Anyway.
The Graveyard Book is about Nobody "Bod" Owens, a young boy who grows up in a graveyard (and is raised by said graveyard's inhabitants) after an assassin kills his parents and older sister. He doesn't entirely fit in (seeing as how he isn't dead) but he has friends and family. If he leaves the graveyard, he risks the assassin finding him and killing him.
Really, really fun book.
Anyway.
The Graveyard Book is about Nobody "Bod" Owens, a young boy who grows up in a graveyard (and is raised by said graveyard's inhabitants) after an assassin kills his parents and older sister. He doesn't entirely fit in (seeing as how he isn't dead) but he has friends and family. If he leaves the graveyard, he risks the assassin finding him and killing him.
Really, really fun book.
[a:Neil Gaiman|1221698|Neil Gaiman|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1234150163p2/1221698.jpg]'s [b:The Graveyard Book|2213661|The Graveyard Book|Neil Gaiman|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1303859949s/2213661.jpg|2219449] is something truly unique. Told in masterful style by Gaiman, it has all the elements of a horror story, the grisly murder of our protagonist's family, a graveyard full of ghosts, an innocent babe caught up in a fight to the death, a truly scary group of mysterious scoundrels, werewolves, vampires and ghouls.
But these elements are brought together in a truly wonderful way that could have been pure horror but ends up being a beautiful story about love and how the traditional scary monsters of the night can also be loving and caring. Bod's adventures are gentle for the most part, he handles the fact that he cannot leave the graveyard with great aplomb, which makes the climax that much scarier as he is in real danger and his enemies are truly menacing.
I must say that I picked the villain as soon as he appeared but younger audiences may not. I listened to the audio version, read by Neil, and I truly enjoyed it. Sometime the audio doesn't do the book justice but I think in this instance, that I would have enjoyed this book less if I had read it myself. Loved the narration, and the cute little pieces of music at the start of each CD.
I heartily recommend this book for lovers of YA fiction.
But these elements are brought together in a truly wonderful way that could have been pure horror but ends up being a beautiful story about love and how the traditional scary monsters of the night can also be loving and caring. Bod's adventures are gentle for the most part, he handles the fact that he cannot leave the graveyard with great aplomb, which makes the climax that much scarier as he is in real danger and his enemies are truly menacing.
I must say that I picked the villain as soon as he appeared but younger audiences may not. I listened to the audio version, read by Neil, and I truly enjoyed it. Sometime the audio doesn't do the book justice but I think in this instance, that I would have enjoyed this book less if I had read it myself. Loved the narration, and the cute little pieces of music at the start of each CD.
I heartily recommend this book for lovers of YA fiction.
This book makes me wish that I had children to whom I could read it out loud, even as I loved reading it on my own. The chapters function as self-contained stories that nevertheless fit seamlessly into the broader narrative. There's also an incredible optimism about the book, and a strong affirmation of life and its infinite possibilities that plays very well with the concurrent thread of loss and the recognition that there are no easy answers.
I was already a fan of children's literature before I read this book, but for those who don't usually care for it, I'd contend that this book transcends its genre. (Not to mention that now I know what the younger members of my extended family will be receiving from me for their birthday presents this year.)
I was already a fan of children's literature before I read this book, but for those who don't usually care for it, I'd contend that this book transcends its genre. (Not to mention that now I know what the younger members of my extended family will be receiving from me for their birthday presents this year.)
A magical coming of age story, one of Gaiman's best imo.
There was a long hold list for this at the library, so I got it after the book club read it, but I'm glad I went ahead anyway because I really liked it. I liked the premise and the mystery surrounding some of the characters and events and wished it were longer and really want to know what happens to the main character next.
“There was a hand in the darkness, and it held a knife,” (Gaiman, p. 1). The page is all black, the text stark white in contrast. The next page shows a distorted figure, a trench coat draped on his shoulders as he climbs the stairs. The illustrations are all black and white. It is not very often a children’s book starts with murder, but Gaiman executes it perfectly. It is not overly sentimental, nor is it robotic. It just is. The man Jack had a job to do. He failed. While he did kill the parents and the older sibling, the youngest child escapes from the man and crawls himself into a graveyard where he meets the nighttime crowd that lives there. The undead. However, they are not sinister. Not all of them. Ms. Owens and Mr. Owens adopt the young boy, rescuing him from Jack’s pursuit and throwing him off the trail. They name him Nobody. He lives in a limo between the dead and the living and his story begins here, in this graveyard.
While the tone is dark, no doubt about that, Gaiman tells a heartwarming story of a young boy finding himself and facing the enemies of his past while navigating his weird life of in betweens. He lives in the graveyard, but his friend Scarlet is human. He goes to school both with other children and with the ghostly mentors that reside in the graveyard. As one part of himself starts to fade, approaching his adulthood, he has to learn how to exist on his own. Through ghouls, wizards, and ghosts, Nobody is taught many lessons in his young life, all of which prepare him to face his family’s murderer head on. He has to come to terms with the fact that he is not normal, not average in any way, but that doesn’t mean he cannot succeed in the human world. He must find a balance.
The characters are stunning. The Lady in Grey rules the graveyard from horseback, cloaked in white. Salias, a part human, brings food and wise advice to Nobody, as well as constant friendship throughout his life. Miss Lupescu, part werewolf, brings Bod disgustingly healthy food and frowns constantly. It is a diverse cast to say the least. Each character gets their own quirks, different personality traits that make them feel so human and so real. Their speech patterns, their actions, even their laughter is varied and personal to only that character. The black and white illustrations, swirling and wispy, paint the graveyard and the characters into life. They appear at the corner of the pages, the margins, anywhere they fit in order to further the story. Page 29 shows the entrance to the graveyard, its gate slung open, and shrubbery visible in the distance, one the same page the Lady in Grey rides through on her horse to give her verdict. She lets Nobody stay. The illustrations further the tone, the dark themes cloaked in whimsical and awe-inspiring characters, locations, and events.
This book awoke a love for Neil Gaiman’s style. He is smart and whimsical, inventive and unique. His characters are all diverse and real. All flawed and hilarious and touching. “I don’t believe there are good or evil people, not cleanly, not like that. But there are people who do good, and people who do evil, and people who, like most of us, just muddle along,” Gaiman says in an interview. It is exactly the thing he brings to his characters, that complexity and that humanness of making mistakes and bad choices and coming out the other side less certain of themselves. It is relatable in so many ways. While this book may be too dark for some people, those that do not mind are in for a captivating read.
While the tone is dark, no doubt about that, Gaiman tells a heartwarming story of a young boy finding himself and facing the enemies of his past while navigating his weird life of in betweens. He lives in the graveyard, but his friend Scarlet is human. He goes to school both with other children and with the ghostly mentors that reside in the graveyard. As one part of himself starts to fade, approaching his adulthood, he has to learn how to exist on his own. Through ghouls, wizards, and ghosts, Nobody is taught many lessons in his young life, all of which prepare him to face his family’s murderer head on. He has to come to terms with the fact that he is not normal, not average in any way, but that doesn’t mean he cannot succeed in the human world. He must find a balance.
The characters are stunning. The Lady in Grey rules the graveyard from horseback, cloaked in white. Salias, a part human, brings food and wise advice to Nobody, as well as constant friendship throughout his life. Miss Lupescu, part werewolf, brings Bod disgustingly healthy food and frowns constantly. It is a diverse cast to say the least. Each character gets their own quirks, different personality traits that make them feel so human and so real. Their speech patterns, their actions, even their laughter is varied and personal to only that character. The black and white illustrations, swirling and wispy, paint the graveyard and the characters into life. They appear at the corner of the pages, the margins, anywhere they fit in order to further the story. Page 29 shows the entrance to the graveyard, its gate slung open, and shrubbery visible in the distance, one the same page the Lady in Grey rides through on her horse to give her verdict. She lets Nobody stay. The illustrations further the tone, the dark themes cloaked in whimsical and awe-inspiring characters, locations, and events.
This book awoke a love for Neil Gaiman’s style. He is smart and whimsical, inventive and unique. His characters are all diverse and real. All flawed and hilarious and touching. “I don’t believe there are good or evil people, not cleanly, not like that. But there are people who do good, and people who do evil, and people who, like most of us, just muddle along,” Gaiman says in an interview. It is exactly the thing he brings to his characters, that complexity and that humanness of making mistakes and bad choices and coming out the other side less certain of themselves. It is relatable in so many ways. While this book may be too dark for some people, those that do not mind are in for a captivating read.
THE GRAVEYARD BOOK BY NEIL GAIMAN, ILLUSTRATIONS BY DAVE MCKEAN: It seems inevitable in some ways that Neil Gaiman would one day write a book about a graveyard; and furthermore would make it a children’s book; and even furthermore write a wonderful tale about growing up, learning from your mistakes, and appreciating life to it’s fullest. Welcome to The Graveyard Book.
Nobody Owens is doomed to begin with. After his family is tragically killed by a determined and terrifying murderer who is now after him to finish the job, Bod finds himself in a graveyard adopted by some very strange ghosts and a father figure, Silas, who is neither dead nor alive, but somewhere in between. His growing up and education is not one filled with arithmetic and grammar, but abilities of the dead like Fading and Dreamwalking.
It is no surprise that the book Gaiman was destined to write – and has spent many years working on and putting the pieces slowly together – features some of the strongest characters he has ever written. First off there is Bod Owens, a wonderful young boy you can’t help falling in love with as you grow up with him and experience his many adventures. Silas, the strong, paternal caretaker who is shrouded in mystery as to his origins and what it means being one of the “Honor Guard.” Miss Lupescu, an Eastern European lady who looks after Bod for a summer, teaching him, and forcing him to eat her unusual foods. It is a relationship that begins with hate, but ends in love and respect. Liza Hempstock, a witch buried in potter’s field, shunned by most in the graveyard, but becomes an unusual acquaintance for Bod. Scarlett, a living girl who considers Bod an imaginary friend at first, and then something more later. There is even an appearance from the Lady on the Grey for the Danse Macabre.
At the end of The Graveyard Book, the reader is moved to sadness, as all things must come to end. Gaiman has said that many readers told him they cried at the end, which is no surprise when we feel a little part of Bod in all of us. It is the innocent, adventurous spirit within that harkens back to stories like Peter Pan and The Jungle Book, which Gaiman references in his acknowledgements. The Graveyard Book doesn’t end with a bang or a whimper, but with a moving expression of hope: “But between now and then, there was Life; and Bod walked into it with his heart and his eyes wide open.”
For more book reviews and exclusive author interviews, go to BookBanter.
Nobody Owens is doomed to begin with. After his family is tragically killed by a determined and terrifying murderer who is now after him to finish the job, Bod finds himself in a graveyard adopted by some very strange ghosts and a father figure, Silas, who is neither dead nor alive, but somewhere in between. His growing up and education is not one filled with arithmetic and grammar, but abilities of the dead like Fading and Dreamwalking.
It is no surprise that the book Gaiman was destined to write – and has spent many years working on and putting the pieces slowly together – features some of the strongest characters he has ever written. First off there is Bod Owens, a wonderful young boy you can’t help falling in love with as you grow up with him and experience his many adventures. Silas, the strong, paternal caretaker who is shrouded in mystery as to his origins and what it means being one of the “Honor Guard.” Miss Lupescu, an Eastern European lady who looks after Bod for a summer, teaching him, and forcing him to eat her unusual foods. It is a relationship that begins with hate, but ends in love and respect. Liza Hempstock, a witch buried in potter’s field, shunned by most in the graveyard, but becomes an unusual acquaintance for Bod. Scarlett, a living girl who considers Bod an imaginary friend at first, and then something more later. There is even an appearance from the Lady on the Grey for the Danse Macabre.
At the end of The Graveyard Book, the reader is moved to sadness, as all things must come to end. Gaiman has said that many readers told him they cried at the end, which is no surprise when we feel a little part of Bod in all of us. It is the innocent, adventurous spirit within that harkens back to stories like Peter Pan and The Jungle Book, which Gaiman references in his acknowledgements. The Graveyard Book doesn’t end with a bang or a whimper, but with a moving expression of hope: “But between now and then, there was Life; and Bod walked into it with his heart and his eyes wide open.”
For more book reviews and exclusive author interviews, go to BookBanter.