Coraline [Paperback]

Despite being mostly known for his fantastical graphic novels and adult fiction, Neil Gaiman's first book for children is everything that you would expect from such a massive imagination as his. It's special and wonderful and very weird indeed. Described by some as the new Alice in Wonderland, Coraline is actually more bizarre than that, much more frightening and its modest length definitely adds to the book's undiluted potency.

Shortly after moving into an old house with strange tenants above and below, Coraline discovers a big, carved, brown wooden door at the far corner of the drawing room. And it is locked. Curiosity runs riot in Coraline's mind and she unlocks the door to see what lies behind it. Disappointingly, it opens onto a brick wall. Days later, after exploring the rest of the house and garden, Coraline returns to the same mysterious door and opens it again. This time, however, there is a dark hallway in front of her. Stepping inside, the place beyond has an eerie familiarity about it. The carpet and wallpaper are the same as in her flat. The picture hanging on the wall is the same. Almost. Strangest of all, her mum and dad are there too. Only they have buttons for eyes and seem more possessive than normal. It's a twisted version of her world that is familiar, and yet sinister. And matters get even more surreal for Coraline when her "other" parents seem reluctant to let her leave.

Her attempted escape from this nightmare alternative reality sees Coraline experience a chilling series of ever more bizarre encounters. Some are plainly odd, others disturbingly spooky and together they combine to form an immensely readable story. It's like all the best bits of the Goosebumps books condensed into 160 pages. A unique reading experience guaranteed. (Ages 10 and over)--John McLay --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

`Beautiful and haunting ... A master modern fable'
--Waterstone's Guide to Kid's Books, February 2009

'I was looking forward to Coraline, and I wasn't disappointed. In fact, I was enthralled. This is a marvellously strange and scary book' Philip Pullman, Guardian 'Sometimes funny, always creepy, genuinely moving, this marvellous spine-chiller will appeal to readers from nine to ninety' Books for Keeps 'If any writer can get the guys to read about the girls, it should be Neil Gaiman. His new novel Coraline is a dreamlike adventure' Daily Telegraph 'This book will send a shiver down your spine, out through your shoes and into a taxi to the airport. It has the delicate horror of the finest fairy tales, and it is a masterpiece. And you will never think about buttons in quite the same way again' Terry Pratchett

"this is a marvellously strange and scary book. ...Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, rise to your feet and applaud: 'Coraline' is the real thing." --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

When a young girl ventures through a hidden door, she finds another life with shocking similarities to her own. Coraline has moved to a new house with her parents and she is fascinated by the fact that their 'house' is in fact only half a house! Divided into flats years before, there is a brick wall behind a door where once there was a corridor. One day it is a corridor again and the intrepid Coraline wanders down it. And so a nightmare-ish mystery begins that takes Coraline into the arms of counterfeit parents and a life that isn't quite right. Can Coraline get out? Can she find her real parents? Will life ever be the same again?

"I think this book will nudge ‘Alice in Wonderland’ out of its niche at last. It is the most splendidly original, weird, and frightening book I have read, and yet full of things children will love."
Diana Wynne Jones

"It has the delicate horror of the finest fairy tales, and it is a masterpiece."
Terry Pratchett

"This book tells a fascinating and disturbing story that frightened me nearly to death."
Lemony Snicket --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

"It's the strangest book I've written, and, I like to think, the one of which I am most proud." --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Neil Gaiman is the multi-award-winning and bestselling author of Stardust, also a major motion film. Coraline was Neil's first novel for young adults. Neil is British and lives in the USA.