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riverofhorton's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
This book was unexpected. I went into it knowing nothing, apart from that it was written by Neil Gaiman, only assuming that a significant in some way. My only concrete expectation was that it would enjoy it, as I have almost all of Neil Gaiman's other books. That expectation was definitely met, and I will be re-reading this in the future. I am a little surprised that this is considered a children's book, it handles some very difficult topics, opening with a description of a man murdering two parents and a child. Thankfully, the murders themselves aren't described, just the moments after the final one. That said, it was an incredibly enjoyable book, following the childhood of a boy growing up in a graveyard with an adoptive family who are all either dead, or on the border between (I took that to mean a vampire). Ironically, I found the ghosts to be more fleshed out than the living characters of various other books by different authors, truly a testament to Gaiman's writing.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny, Murder, Genocide, Blood, Body horror, Child abuse, Death, Drug use, Infertility, Injury/Injury detail, Stalking, Confinement, Child death, Colonisation, Gore, Grief, Gun violence, Kidnapping, Physical abuse, Alcohol, Death of parent, Bullying, Gaslighting, Fire/Fire injury, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, and Violence
julieyael's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
Another fantastic read from Neil Gaiman.
The characters are well written, the prose is impeccable, and the rythm is steady then it increases in the last chapter.
It’s a lovely story of coming of age, a little sweet and sour (I shed some tears but I may be a bit sensitive).
I am not giving 5 only because I wish there was a little bit more to the plot in the end. Some informations are not all revealed. Well, that leaves some imagination for the reader, bit it’s also a tiny bit frustrating.
Loved it, though. Gaiman is always on top of my favorites writters each year.
The characters are well written, the prose is impeccable, and the rythm is steady then it increases in the last chapter.
It’s a lovely story of coming of age, a little sweet and sour (I shed some tears but I may be a bit sensitive).
I am not giving 5 only because I wish there was a little bit more to the plot in the end. Some informations are not all revealed. Well, that leaves some imagination for the reader, bit it’s also a tiny bit frustrating.
Loved it, though. Gaiman is always on top of my favorites writters each year.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Bullying, Murder, and Blood
Minor: Suicide and Police brutality
mreequalsmc2's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
hopeful
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I want a whole series about my guy Silas
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Violence, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Bullying, and Death of parent
Minor: Blood and Child abuse
sterlingreads's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Murder
Moderate: Blood
galexy_brain's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
Content Warnings
Moderate: Bullying
Minor: Child death, Injury/Injury detail, Death, Death of parent, Murder, Violence, and Blood
xosirenox's review
adventurous
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Blood, Child death, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Grief, Violence, Death, and Death of parent
billyjepma's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
I can’t believe I’ve gone this long in life not knowing that Neil Gaiman wrote a retelling of Rudyard Kipling's The Jungle Book with ghosts. If that’s not a book tailor-made for me, then I don’t know what is. And now that I've read it and loved every page, it's my contractual obligation to force everyone I know to read it and experience the emotions it gave me when I finished the final chapter in bed last night. An instant, all-time favorite that I might have to start revisiting every October.
Gaiman describes the book as a novel made up of short stories, and the approach works beautifully. Each chapter captures a pivotal experience in the protagonist's childhood, allowing us to watch him grow up without needing to spend 16 years with him. Gaiman's writing is as lovely as ever and expertly balances melancholy with tenders and adventure with scares. It's spooky without being scary, nostalgic without being trite, and is yet another example I can use in my argument that Gaiman's YA-leaning novels are his best works. This is a treasure of a novel. ❤️
Gaiman describes the book as a novel made up of short stories, and the approach works beautifully. Each chapter captures a pivotal experience in the protagonist's childhood, allowing us to watch him grow up without needing to spend 16 years with him. Gaiman's writing is as lovely as ever and expertly balances melancholy with tenders and adventure with scares. It's spooky without being scary, nostalgic without being trite, and is yet another example I can use in my argument that Gaiman's YA-leaning novels are his best works. This is a treasure of a novel. ❤️
Content Warnings
Moderate: Bullying, Child death, Death, Violence, and Murder
Minor: Blood, Death of parent, and Car accident
ozreus's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child death, Death, Death of parent, Murder, and Blood
Minor: Bullying
optimisms's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
This book is lovely. It's dark but witty, heavy but charming. The prose of this story is so beautiful, never unnecessarily flowery or complex but you can tell that each word was chosen with care. The structure of the book is almost an anthology of short stories, but all with the same chronology, setting, and main characters. Without spoiling anything, I'll say that the ending does a great job of tying in most of the previous stories in surprising and entertaining ways. The only things I would change are I wish we had more information about Silas and what he is. I've seen a lot of people say he is clearly a vampire and maybe I'm just oblivious but that was not at all obvious to me and the Danse Macabre. Every other chapter somehow tied into the ending, but nothing from Danse Macabre ever came back or had any impact on the ending . Other than that, it was pretty much perfect. I would highly recommend anyone who's interested in this book to check out the audiobook, read by the author himself. Gaiman gives a fantastic performance, bringing the story to life in a truly remarkable fashion. It's difficult to decide whether he's a better author or voice actor.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Death of parent, Child death, and Murder
Moderate: Bullying
Minor: Blood, Injury/Injury detail, and Kidnapping
booksandmo's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Blood, Death, and Murder
Minor: Bullying, Child death, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, and Suicide