The Graveyard Book

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Product Description

Nobody Owens, known to his friends as Bod, is a normal boy.

He would be completely normal if he didn't live in a sprawling graveyard, being raised and educated by ghosts, with a solitary guardian who belongs to neither the world of the living nor of the dead.

There are dangers and adventures in the graveyard for a boy-an ancient Indigo Man beneath the hill, a gateway to a desert leading to an abandoned city of ghouls, the strange and terrible menace of the Sleer.

But if Bod leaves the graveyard, then he will come under attack from the man Jack—who has already killed Bod's family. . . .

Beloved master storyteller Neil Gaiman returns with a luminous new novel for the audience that embraced his New York Times bestselling modern classic Coraline. Magical, terrifying, and filled with breathtaking adventures, the graveyard book is sure to enthrall readers of all ages.

Amazon.com Review

In The Graveyard Book, Neil Gaiman has created a charming allegory of childhood. Although the book opens with a scary scene--a family is stabbed to death by "a man named Jack” --the story quickly moves into more child-friendly storytelling. The sole survivor of the attack--an 18-month-old baby--escapes his crib and his house, and toddles to a nearby graveyard. Quickly recognizing that the baby is orphaned, the graveyard's ghostly residents adopt him, name him Nobody ("Bod"), and allow him to live in their tomb. Taking inspiration from Kipling’s The Jungle Book, Gaiman describes how the toddler navigates among the headstones, asking a lot of questions and picking up the tricks of the living and the dead. In serial-like episodes, the story follows Bod's progress as he grows from baby to teen, learning life’s lessons amid a cadre of the long-dead, ghouls, witches, intermittent human interlopers. A pallid, nocturnal guardian named Silas ensures that Bod receives food, books, and anything else he might need from the human world. Whenever the boy strays from his usual play among the headstones, he finds new dangers, learns his limitations and strengths, and acquires the skills he needs to survive within the confines of the graveyard and in wider world beyond. (ages 10 and up) -–Heidi Broadhead

Amazon - offers:

The Graveyard Book: $9.90 (New)

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Amazon Customer Reviews:

Jake Hocker: Wow. Boring.
I read this book cover to cover. Not terrible, just really uninspired.

I really could've put this book down at any moment, because it failed to draw me in. I was really expecting it to get interesting since I found it in "Award Winning Fantasy".

It's a very inoffensive and easy read. You could keep this in a classroom as a loaner, or burn through it in a couple of hours.

Grey Gyrl: not for me
I had heard from lots of folks that I needed to check this one out. I'm a book nerd and read a lot. However i really struggled with this one. It really couldn't keep my interest. The strange thing is I love paranormal style books but this one just wasn't my style. I found the writing to drag a bit and in some cases i was drifting thinking of other things. I was easily distracted with this one. Perhaps it is just me but i felt this wasn't one of his better novels.
Tomebear (Thomas E. Smith): Pretty good
I finished this the other night, and I did enjoy it very much. It was a bit like, as other reviews said, Neverwhere for kids. I did feel the end was a bit rushed. It read a bit like a movie to me. A movie which I would go see.All and all a good read for Gaiman fans.
Nara (Narayan Kavach): The Graveyard Book: Dead on Arrival
The Graveyard Book is apropos of nothing. The plot is like sand falling through your fingers and considering the basic idea, Gaiman reveals a shocking lack of creativity. Neil Gaiman is a vain writer who relies on little tricks of speech and labored "wit" rather than building memorable characters. You'd think ghosts in a graveyard would be exciting but the reader is confronted with an array of helpless and unmemorable stock characters. Gaiman's writing is soulless, just cold manipulation. Gaiman's cynicism shows in the awful way his protagonist seeks revenge and betrays his only friend. J.K. Rowling and even Stephanie Meyer have a lot of heart compared to Gaiman's morbid and miserable stories. I wouldn't foist this piece of misery on any kid. Although Gaiman has adapted a serviceable prose style, his writing is ultimately childish and well... goofy. Over and over, Gaiman's characters are victims, paralyzed emotionally, unable to conclude anything, detached observers who speak ambiguously as if ambiguity was depth, which it is not. Gaiman uses the same stock characters; all powerful gods who will smite you, mean villains who chase you down, woman as props or witches. There is no complexity in Gaiman's characters, and therefore his plots are derivative and plod along, eventually dissolving in a wave of ennui. No wonder he appeals to depressed teen goths. Gaiman has also made a study of throwing together a manuscript with the least amount of effort or thought, every novel reads as if he can't be bothered to do a rewrite, they are disappointing with lame plots and forgettable characters.
Bookphile: A wonderful, nuanced work
The Graveyard Book is my first Neil Gaiman book, and I'm definitely planning on reading more. I'd heard a lot of praise of this book, but it still didn't prepare me for the elegance of his style.

Though I liked the drawings, the real charm of this book is the writing. Gaiman has woven a really beautiful coming-of-age tale in which Nobody Owens, the main character, learns some harsh lessons about the nature of life and love. As most people are probably aware by now, there is some violence in the book and it may not be for the younger audience. However, I am not one of those parents who thinks that children need to be protected from everything scary in life. In fact, I'm willing to wager that the average Wii game has more graphic violence than what is portrayed in this book. Some of it is quite scary, that is true, but children need to learn how to control fear and how to recognize when fear is real and important and when it's something they just need to overlook.

One of the things I liked best about the book is that Gaiman never really comes out and tells the reader exactly what the other characters are, leaving you to piece together the clues he drops and figure this out for yourself. This is particularly true of Silas, and I was probably around a third of the way into the book before I realized what his character was. I really admire this as it demands that the reader pay attention to what he or she is reading. It's also a perfect example of an author showing rather than telling. Lastly, it lends to the idea of the book that what people are on the outside isn't really as important on the inside. Is it really that vital that the reader know what Silas is, or is it more significant that the reader sees just how Silas helps Bod learn and grow, and how seriously Silas takes his role as guardian and protector of Bod.

As for Bod, I found him to be an excellent character. He is a very typical boy, with a boy's characteristic curiosity. He occasionally acts out of sheer pettiness and must suffer the consequences. Through Bod, Gaiman also teaches children some important lessons. Sometimes, even though we do what is right, it does not earn us the admiration of those about whose opinions we care the most. This is a painful lesson, but a very valuable lesson--especially in a society such as ours, that emphasizes instant gratification. Bod is a very moral character, but the things he does don't always end well for him and sometimes cause him more trouble than anticipated. Isn't this true of life in general? Sometimes our actions do set many unintended consequences into motion.

Another strong aspect of the book is the unconventional relationships within it. While they are certainly fantastical, this book has a lot to say about the true meaning of the word "family", and how families can form amongst the unlikeliest groups of people. As The Graveyard Book shows, families take responsibility for one another, and care for one another without asking for something in return. Just as his guardian does, Bod learns that he ultimately must make sacrifices for his family, that he must place their needs above those of his own at times. It is a responsibility that he does not shirk, and I think that's an excellent message for anyone.

I highly recommend this book. It is a subtle, sometimes funny, and sometimes sad read. It is a book that will make children think, just as all great literature makes a reader think.