- Hardcover: 320 pages
- Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing PLC; Adult ed edition (20 Oct 2008)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0747596832
- ISBN-13: 978-0747596837
- Product Dimensions: 22 x 13.6 x 3 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (108 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 184,230 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
The Graveyard Book
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Review
`It is wise and exciting'
--Sunday Herald (Glasgow)
`Hooks the reader in such a way that it's hard to stop thinking about it'
--The Darkside
'You cannot fault the sheer inventiveness in this brilliantly paced and plotted fantasy novel'
--Books for Keeps
`Funny, touching and haunting'
--SciFi Now, January 2009
`If asked to put The Graveyard Book into a genre, I'd have to say: this is a Neil Gaiman book. It's in the Genre of Excellence'
--Fortean Times
`It is probably the best children's book published in 2008'
--Learning Support
`The highly skilled craftsmanship of Neil Gaiman's expertly joined plotting is constantly fascinating. With The Graveyard Book he appears to have exceeded even his own exacting standards, seeming to revel in creating the improbable and layering on impossible convolutions. The impossible he deals with through mind-twistingly clever links and attention to the most minute of details, the improbable becomes totally convincing through the sheer brilliance of the writing' --The School Librarian
`Few novels about the dead have entranced me as much as Neil Gaiman's The Graveyard Book'
--Amanda Craig, The Times
--Sunday Herald (Glasgow)
`Hooks the reader in such a way that it's hard to stop thinking about it'
--The Darkside
'You cannot fault the sheer inventiveness in this brilliantly paced and plotted fantasy novel'
--Books for Keeps
`Funny, touching and haunting'
--SciFi Now, January 2009
`If asked to put The Graveyard Book into a genre, I'd have to say: this is a Neil Gaiman book. It's in the Genre of Excellence'
--Fortean Times
`It is probably the best children's book published in 2008'
--Learning Support
`The highly skilled craftsmanship of Neil Gaiman's expertly joined plotting is constantly fascinating. With The Graveyard Book he appears to have exceeded even his own exacting standards, seeming to revel in creating the improbable and layering on impossible convolutions. The impossible he deals with through mind-twistingly clever links and attention to the most minute of details, the improbable becomes totally convincing through the sheer brilliance of the writing' --The School Librarian
`Few novels about the dead have entranced me as much as Neil Gaiman's The Graveyard Book'
--Amanda Craig, The Times
Review
'One of the joys of reading Gaiman is how he subverts our expectations of magic, horror, fantasy and the mundane' The Times 'Suspenseful, well-told and touching' The Sunday Times 'A captivating piece of work, light as fresh grave dirt, haunting as the inscription on a tombstone' Financial Times 'This is the most beautiful book about the people of the graveyard If asked to put The Graveyard Book into a genre, I'd have to say: this is a Neil Gaiman book. It's in the Genre of Excellence' The Fortean Times
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
186 of 192 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Imagine Rudyard Kipling's "Jungle Book"... but replace the animals with ghosts, ghouls, werewolves and other such supernatural creatures.
Such is the concept of "The Graveyard Book," which cleverly turns Kipling's classic story into an exquisitely-written, darkly witty fantasy. While it starts as the assorted supernatural adventures of a young boy raised by ghosts, the story slowly evolves into a beautifully ghastly confrontation between Nobody Owens and the people who want to do him harm.
"There was a hand in the darkness, and it held a knife." A man named Jack kills an innocent family at night -- except for a baby boy, who toddles out to the graveyard.
With the approval of the Lady on the Grey, the Owens ghosts adopt the boy, whom they name Nobody (or "Bod" for short), and the mysterious not-dead-or-alive Silas is appointed his guardian. Bod slowly grows up, but his upbringing is hardly ordinary -- he is taught by a Hound of God, wanders into the horrific realm of Ghulheim, watches a danse macabre, and befriends a witch's spirit from the Potter's Field.
But the man named Jack is still out there, and for some reason he (and the organization he works for) still wants to kill Bod. And though Silas and the ghosts are trying to keep him safe, Bod is becoming curious about the world of living humans -- and about the man who murdered his family. And when they come for him, he'll be ready.
The world of Neil Gaiman is never a safe place -- it's always painted in shadows and shades of grey, and something horrible may be lurking around the corner. And the world of "The Graveyard Book" is no exception to this -- it's filled with strange supernatural creatures, hellish red cities with decayed moons overhead, and midnight parades where ghosts dance with the living.
The world of the graveyard is an intriguing one -- moonlight, crumbly headstones, a little stone church, and a creepy barrow where the Sleer lurk. From a lesser author this would be kind of boring, but Gaiman's beautiful prose brings it to life ("There was a silent implosion, a flutter of velvet darkness, and Silas was gone").
And Gaiman explores Bod's childhood with dark humour ("Can you imagine how fine a drink the black ichor that collects in leaden coffins can be?") and adventure. But the tone changes as Bod grows older, especially with the creepily professional Jack and his cohorts slowly closing in on him. It's a coming-of-age tale, and a bittersweet, sometimes terrifying one.
Bod himself is a lovable kid, who slowly explores first the world of the graveyard and then the world of the living. He's both ruthless and kind, sweet and strong. The mysterious Silas -- whose true nature is only revealed late in the book -- serves as a kindly but stern mentor, who pretty clearly loves young Bod like a father.
And there's a pretty wide supporting cast -- Bod's childhood friend Scarlett is rather bratty, but the ghosts make up for that. The snappy, witty witch Eliza, the kindly Owenses, Mother Slaughter, the fussy Mr. Pennyworth, and the schoolteacherish substitute guardian Miss Lupescu all round out the cast. And with only a few lines, Gaiman makes them seem practically real.
"The Graveyard Book" is a beautifully written, bittersweet coming-of-age tale with some moments of pure creepiness. A magnificent fantasy story, which is not to be missed.
Such is the concept of "The Graveyard Book," which cleverly turns Kipling's classic story into an exquisitely-written, darkly witty fantasy. While it starts as the assorted supernatural adventures of a young boy raised by ghosts, the story slowly evolves into a beautifully ghastly confrontation between Nobody Owens and the people who want to do him harm.
"There was a hand in the darkness, and it held a knife." A man named Jack kills an innocent family at night -- except for a baby boy, who toddles out to the graveyard.
With the approval of the Lady on the Grey, the Owens ghosts adopt the boy, whom they name Nobody (or "Bod" for short), and the mysterious not-dead-or-alive Silas is appointed his guardian. Bod slowly grows up, but his upbringing is hardly ordinary -- he is taught by a Hound of God, wanders into the horrific realm of Ghulheim, watches a danse macabre, and befriends a witch's spirit from the Potter's Field.
But the man named Jack is still out there, and for some reason he (and the organization he works for) still wants to kill Bod. And though Silas and the ghosts are trying to keep him safe, Bod is becoming curious about the world of living humans -- and about the man who murdered his family. And when they come for him, he'll be ready.
The world of Neil Gaiman is never a safe place -- it's always painted in shadows and shades of grey, and something horrible may be lurking around the corner. And the world of "The Graveyard Book" is no exception to this -- it's filled with strange supernatural creatures, hellish red cities with decayed moons overhead, and midnight parades where ghosts dance with the living.
The world of the graveyard is an intriguing one -- moonlight, crumbly headstones, a little stone church, and a creepy barrow where the Sleer lurk. From a lesser author this would be kind of boring, but Gaiman's beautiful prose brings it to life ("There was a silent implosion, a flutter of velvet darkness, and Silas was gone").
And Gaiman explores Bod's childhood with dark humour ("Can you imagine how fine a drink the black ichor that collects in leaden coffins can be?") and adventure. But the tone changes as Bod grows older, especially with the creepily professional Jack and his cohorts slowly closing in on him. It's a coming-of-age tale, and a bittersweet, sometimes terrifying one.
Bod himself is a lovable kid, who slowly explores first the world of the graveyard and then the world of the living. He's both ruthless and kind, sweet and strong. The mysterious Silas -- whose true nature is only revealed late in the book -- serves as a kindly but stern mentor, who pretty clearly loves young Bod like a father.
And there's a pretty wide supporting cast -- Bod's childhood friend Scarlett is rather bratty, but the ghosts make up for that. The snappy, witty witch Eliza, the kindly Owenses, Mother Slaughter, the fussy Mr. Pennyworth, and the schoolteacherish substitute guardian Miss Lupescu all round out the cast. And with only a few lines, Gaiman makes them seem practically real.
"The Graveyard Book" is a beautifully written, bittersweet coming-of-age tale with some moments of pure creepiness. A magnificent fantasy story, which is not to be missed.
51 of 53 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
What one word best describes this tale of an infant whose whole family are murdered, and who toddles to the safety of a local graveyard, where he's raised and educated by the resident dead? That word, surprisingly, would be "charming".
And it is, in every sense of the word. It's eloquent without being condescending, comforting without being soft, sharp without being bitter, and it captivates your attention throughout its entirety, leaving you perfectly satisfied by the end.
The cast of characters are written to perfection. The dead maintain an eerie timelessness, whilst the other supernatural creatures are subtle yet distinct, ("Silas ate only one food, and it was not bananas"); the villains pull off the trick of being both evil *and* credible; the living have a refreshing mundane quality, and Bod the protagonist is left with the uneasy struggle of being neither fish nor fowl (nor dead).
A delight to read and a joy to think about.
And it is, in every sense of the word. It's eloquent without being condescending, comforting without being soft, sharp without being bitter, and it captivates your attention throughout its entirety, leaving you perfectly satisfied by the end.
The cast of characters are written to perfection. The dead maintain an eerie timelessness, whilst the other supernatural creatures are subtle yet distinct, ("Silas ate only one food, and it was not bananas"); the villains pull off the trick of being both evil *and* credible; the living have a refreshing mundane quality, and Bod the protagonist is left with the uneasy struggle of being neither fish nor fowl (nor dead).
A delight to read and a joy to think about.
66 of 70 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Brilliant - sinister, lyrical and poignant all at the same time. Like 'The Jungle Book', it's a great evocation of growing up as an outsider, and the world is vivid and perfectly imagined; and, like 'The Jungle Book', the narrative voice is faultless. But it has more narrative tension than 'The Jungle Book', and a grimmer edge - the gothic elements (ghosts, werewolves, vampires) are picturesque without being cliched, and occasionally funny, but at the heart of the book there's a real engagement with fear, time, and loss. There were a couple of moments towards the end where I thought the structure was weaker, but that's just a quibble - on the whole I thought this was wonderful: an intelligent, elegant, and - in spite of the pervading sense of graveyard cold - warm book. And Chris Riddell's illustrations are beautiful - ethereal-looking line drawings that are witty and unsettling. I haven't seen the other edition but I can't imagine Riddell's drawings being bettered.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
another wonderful book by Neil Gaiman
This is a wonderful plot for all ages, Neil Gaiman's fans will not be disappointed! we will wait for the movie!
Published 9 days ago by Maïté Ramos
Top Notch
A young toddler escapes a killer to the strange safety of a nearby graveyard. He's adopted by the local ghosts and named Nobody - or Bod for short. Read more
Published 12 days ago by CallumP
Beautifully dark and oozing with imagination
The man, Jack, is a professional killer with an expert sense of smell, and he's on the trail of a toddler, who unlike the rest of his family has evaded the fatal edge of Jack's... Read more
Published 13 days ago by TomDHarris
The Graveyard Book
Neil Gaiman writes two types of books - books for adults and books for everyone - meaning that actually though this might be considered to be a children's book it can be enjoyed by... Read more
Published 1 month ago by Green Book Addict Librarian
graveyard rave
I loved this book that I read on my Kindle, so much so I bought the book for my wife, she loved it also.
Published 2 months ago by I. Raine
Genius
Neil Gaiman always manages to choose the absolutely perfect word, and always seems to have the reader exactly where he wants him/her. Read more
Published 2 months ago by MR
fantastic book
This is a must read. If you know Gaiman already this book will surprise you, if it is the first time you read this author, you will become a fan. Read more
Published 2 months ago by Laura
Brilliant read.
This is the first Neil Gaiman book I have read and it won't be the last.
I really, really enjoyed this. Read more
I really, really enjoyed this. Read more
Published 2 months ago by Shar
New to Neil Gaiman...
Had never heard of Neil Gaiman until a friend recoomended daily deals on kindle and I tried this book - so very glad I did. Read more
Published 2 months ago by Whisky
Fantastic.
My only other experience of Neil Gaiman is through his collaboration with Terry Pratchett on Good Omens so I didn't know what to expect from this book. What an original story! Read more
Published 3 months ago by squirrel_pigeon
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