The Graveyard Book: Summary and book reviews of The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman, plus links to an excerpt from The Graveyard Book and a biography of Neil Gaiman.
The Graveyard Book
by Neil Gaiman
Hardcover: Sep 2008,
320 pages.
Paperback: Sep 2010,
320 pages.
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.
Winner of the 2009 Newbery Medal and the 2009 Hugo Award.
In all – despite brief bouts with rather grisly evildoers – this is a most satisfying tale suitable for children ten and older. Gaiman's lyrical prose not only mitigates the book's more unpleasant occurrences it elevates the stature of its warmest and most endearing characters. And his crisp dialogue speaks to the kind of hipness that pre-teens most enjoy. (Reviewed by Donna Chavez).
Publishers Weekly
When the chilling moments do come, they are as genuinely frightening as only Gaiman can make them, and redeem any shortcomings.
VOYA
The conclusion is satisfying, but it leaves room for a sequel.
School Library Journal
Gaiman has created a rich, surprising, and sometimes disturbing tale of dreams, ghouls, murderers, trickery, and family.
VOYA
Gaiman writes with charm and humor, and again he has a real winner...Everyone who reads this book will hope fervently that the very busy author gets around to writing [a sequel] soon.
Kirkus Reviews
Starred Review. Wistful, witty, wise - and creepy. ...Closer in tone to American Gods than to Coraline, but permeated with Bod's innocence, this needs to be read by anyone who is or has ever been a child. Ages 10+.
Laurell K. Hamilton, author of the Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter novels
After finishing The Graveyard Book, I had only one thought - I hope there's more. I want to see more of the adventures of Nobody Owens, and there is no higher praise for a book.
Audrey Niffenegger, author of The Time Traveler's Wife
It takes a graveyard to raise a child. My favorite thing about this book was watching Bod grow up in his fine crumbly graveyard with his dead and living friends. The Graveyard Book is another surprising and terrific book from Neil Gaiman.
Recent Reader Reviews
Rated of 5
by J. A. Thomas More Please.....! I had to read this for a on-line college class. I did not think I was going to enjoy it. When I opened the book to the first page, I was pleasantly, surprised. I read the book in a weekend and I really enjoyed it. I would love to read more about... Read More
Rated of 5
by Anonymous chicken Graveyard book This was a thrilling story of which Bod became an adult. He has had much more adventure in his life than mine. I really do wish I could be like him. Neil Gaiman writes odd books, usually somewhat creepy, but he has some of the only books of this... Read More
Rated of 5
by Madison Kelly Fantasitc It was very suspenseful and kept me on my feet....I very much so recommended this book to anyone who wants to read it.:
Rated of 5
by Kim Charming ghost tale I've been a Gaiman fan for years, with American Gods and Anansi Boy perennially on my ever-shifting "favorite books” list. I thought I’d give The Graveyard Book a try, even though I knew it was a children’s book. I was not disappointed. Although... Read More
America's Most Haunted Cemeteries
Luckily for young Bod he happened upon an abandoned graveyard that was
haunted by benign, some would even say friendly, ghosts. Caspers, one and all.
Apparently, not all cemeteries are so hospitable.
The
Haunted America Tours website chronicles the ten most haunted cemeteries in
the United States. Topping the list is the St. Louis Cemetery #1 in New Orleans,
Louisiana where forever resides the angry ghost of 19th Century
Voodoo Priestess
Marie Laveau.
Laveau's life story is as rife with voodoo lore and legend as is her death and
subsequent ghostly incarnations. But several websites nonetheless feature photos
purportedly taken of her
ghostly apparition in and around her above-ground tomb.
Other haunted cemeteries on this top ten list include two in the Chicago,
Illinois area that boast some incredible photos of truly melancholy or vengeful
apparitions.
Resurrection Cemetery seems particularly populated by young ghosts and it is
said that a woman known variously as...
This hilarious historical spoof, the first in the Eddie Dickens trilogy, has been called "a scrumptious cross between Dickens and Monty Python. Ages 9+.
The Flying Dutchman! The legend of the wind-tattered ghost ship and its mad sea Captain, cursed to sail the seas forever, has been passed down throughout the centuries. But what of the young boy and his dog who were trapped aboard that ship? What became of them?
These are 2 of the 10 readalike suggestions for The Graveyard Book. Members have full access to all readalikes. If you are a member, please login. To find out more about membership, click here.
A bold, mesmerizing novel about the woman known as "Typhoid Mary," the first known healthy carrier of typhoid fever in the burgeoning metropolis of early twentieth century New York.
Two Lives is a memoir written by international best-selling author, Vikram Seth. In this interesting and engaging book, Seth writes about his great...
read more
Z, the novel about the life of Zelda Sayre Fitzgerald is at points charming and; like another reviewer, I kept thinking of the movie, "Midnight...
read more
Although heavy on the scientific details, which slowed down the story for me (OK, I admit, I was one of those liberal arts majors who skipped out on...
read more
Judge rules unused Borders gift cards to be worthless(May 23 2013) Borders owes nothing to holders of roughly $210.5 million of gift cards that had not been used by the time the bookstore chain shut down, a Manhattan federal...
Full Story
BookBrowse
(961 words).
Laurell K. Hamilton, author of the Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter novels
of 5
by J. A. Thomas
of 5
by Madison Kelly
Write your own review!
