Gaiman, Neil. The Graveyard Book.
Plot Summary: The Graveyard Book follows a boy whose family is murdered and somehow ends up tottering into a graveyard. The baby is taken in and protected by the ghosts in the graveyard, which gives him special abilities like fading through solid objects and disappearing. The ghosts give him the name Nobody Owens, but mostly he goes by Bod. Bod's life is chronicled from toddlerhood to young adulthood and the eccentricity of family and love. Nobody is faced with the perils of living among the living and being sought after by a serial killer.
Critical Evaluation: This book is among my favorites. Gaiman's descriptions are so detailed and imaginative. The characters are creative and diverse, especially with many of the characters spanning centuries. The illustrations accent the story nicely by adding to the text not over powering it. The story, a ghostly adaptation of The Jungle Book, will appeal to both children and adults.
Reader's Annotation: Nobody Owens lives under the protection of the town graveyard after the murder of his family.
Author Bio: Neil Gaiman is a British author of many graphic novels, adult fiction, young adult fiction, children's books and even a biography. He has collaborated with many artists on his projects and had major parts in the production of his book to movie projects. He lives just outside of Minneapolis, MN and has three children, Michael, Holly and Maddy.
Genre: Fantasy
Curriculum Ties: A good pick when talking about Newbery award winners.
Booktalking Ideas: Talk about how life would be like if you were raised by ghosts in a graveyard.
Reading Level/Interest Age: Ages 10 and up
Challenges: The fact that the first scene follows "the man Jack" in his murder of Nobody's parents and sister may cause alarm among some parents. Also the fact that Nobody is raised by ghosts in a graveyard could be a concern.
Reason for including: It was an assigned book, but as a previous Gaiman fan I would probably have included it anyway.
Critical Evaluation: This book is among my favorites. Gaiman's descriptions are so detailed and imaginative. The characters are creative and diverse, especially with many of the characters spanning centuries. The illustrations accent the story nicely by adding to the text not over powering it. The story, a ghostly adaptation of The Jungle Book, will appeal to both children and adults.
Reader's Annotation: Nobody Owens lives under the protection of the town graveyard after the murder of his family.
Author Bio: Neil Gaiman is a British author of many graphic novels, adult fiction, young adult fiction, children's books and even a biography. He has collaborated with many artists on his projects and had major parts in the production of his book to movie projects. He lives just outside of Minneapolis, MN and has three children, Michael, Holly and Maddy.
Genre: Fantasy
Curriculum Ties: A good pick when talking about Newbery award winners.
Booktalking Ideas: Talk about how life would be like if you were raised by ghosts in a graveyard.
Reading Level/Interest Age: Ages 10 and up
Challenges: The fact that the first scene follows "the man Jack" in his murder of Nobody's parents and sister may cause alarm among some parents. Also the fact that Nobody is raised by ghosts in a graveyard could be a concern.
Reason for including: It was an assigned book, but as a previous Gaiman fan I would probably have included it anyway.
