Neil Gaiman
HarperCollins (2008)
ISBN 9780060530921
Reviewed by Neha N. Kashmiri (age 14) for Reader Views (11/08)
Nobody Owens, or as his friends call him, Bod, was raised by ghosts. When he was a toddler a man named Jack killed his parents and sister. He was found by a kindly ghost named Mrs. Owens. Ever since then, Bod has grown up with the Freedom of the Graveyard, though he doesn’t grow up like most children. He is easy to miss, and learns the way of ghosts rather than living people. He has his guardian Silas, who is not quite a ghost but not living either, taking care of him.
“The Graveyard Book” follows Bod as he has a variety of adventures, including making a living friend whose parents think he’s imaginary, getting into trouble with ghouls, and getting a headstone for a witch — and a lot more. He goes to regular school for a while, forgetting to stay in the background and ruining a bully’s schemes. He attends a dance where the dead and living dance together, and finds an ancient grave inhabited by the Sleeth.
All the while, the man Jack is looking for Nobody. When they do find him, will Bod and his friends protect him from becoming one of them?
“The Graveyard Book” isn’t one you come across often. Nobody is easy to relate to but you can see how differently he is raised when he states that he isn’t afraid of dying because all his friends are dead. Neil Gaiman is one of my favorite authors and “The Graveyard Book” was really up to my expectations. It is definitely one of my favorite books from now on.
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