"Remember that part in The Graveyard Book..." Two people in my family read The Graveyard Book earlier this month, and the third person quickly learned that a reference to "Jack" meant a Very Bad Man. We've been talking about The Graveyard Book. In serious terms--"The Graveyard Book brings up my worst nightmare as a mother--the parents murdered and their child in danger," I shuddered. In wistful terms-- "I wish I could have that knife that stayed sharp for 10,000 years," Matthew sighed as he chopped an onion. In playful terms--"Jack Frost is going to get you!" threatened Iris.
The Graveyard Book is a book that readers will think about, and talk about. I have read only one other book by Neil Gaiman, Coraline, and years later I still think about it. Last Sunday, the day before The Graveyard Book won the Newbery Award, a friend of mine pressed her copy of Stardust into my hand. She had read it months before and was still thinking about it. That's one of Gaiman's gifts, and why adults, teenagers, and children will be reading and thinking about The Graveyard Book for many years to come.
Where you can listen to The Graveyard Book: Neil Gaiman Reads
My favorite character in The Graveyard Book: Silas
Who HAS to read The Graveyard Book: fans of Buffy the Vampire Slayer
What I will read next: The Jungle Book
3 comments:
I hate Neil Gaiman. He is sure-footed with the English language in a way that few non-English people are and I will never be. He writes well without showing off. He is a journeyman and I am a guy in the basement about to cut off his finger on a bandsaw. (Not Neil Gaiman's finger. My finger. Probably.)
I loved Gaiman's American Gods, and most of the Sandman books. And Coraline. And Neverwhere. I agree that he sticks with one- haunting, almost. I am saving The Graveyard Book for later, though, because The Jungle Book (actually, All The Mowgli Stories) is one of my favorite books and is probably the one I would take with me to that mythical desert island. So I'm a little nervous about Gaiman's take on it.
Nice review by Monica Edinger:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/15/books/review/Edinger-t.html
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