The Graveyard Book

1.    BIBLIOGRAPHY:  Gaiman, Neil. 2008. THE GRAVEYARD BOOK.  McKean, Dave. New York, NY: HarperCollins Publishers. ISBN 9780060530938.

2. PLOT SUMMARY
A family is hunted and killed by a man, except for a baby.  The baby manages to crawl out and make its way to the nearby graveyard.  The dead Mrs. Owens finds him and brings the baby back to the community for the graveyard people to adopt.  They finally agree as long as Mr. and Mrs. Owens are the parents and Silas is the guardian.  The baby becomes named Nobody Owens or Bod for short.  He grows up under the protection of the graveyard, meaning he can do some magical things, like shrink through a crypt and talk to the dead.  Bod receives lessons from Silas about life until Silas has to go away for a bit.  Miss Lupescu teaches him about other creatures while Silas is away and ends up having to save Bod’s life when he meets ghouls.  While he is in the graveyard, he makes a couple of friends.  Bod makes friends with a witch in the Unsacred Grounds by acquiring a tombstone for her to be remembered by.  She ends up saving him from a shop clerk who wanted to turn Bod into Jack, his family members’ assassin.  Scarlett, his other friend, is a little girl that comes and plays games with him when they are five.  She moves away much to her dismay; however, her parents later divorce which forces a move back to near the graveyard with her mom.  She is with Bod when they stop Bod’s family’s killer once and for all; however, she calls him a monster and her memory of Bod is erased for good.  Bod ends up discovering who his family’s assassins were.  They are part of a group called the Jack of All Trades.  Bod takes care of them by opening the Ghoul Gate and letting them be the master of Seer, which caused him to be eaten.  He is considered grown-up at the age of fifteen and sent off into the world to enjoy the land of the living.  Bod is excited to travel and explore the entire world that he has heard so much about. 

3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS
This book deals with issues that young adults can relate to.  There is the desire for independence that Bod wants from the graveyard and having to always do what he is told.  There is Scarlett’s desire for things like a cell phone.  There is Bod’s desire to explore and learn.  There is the desire to fit in and not be invisible; for example, Bod’s school experience was where he was told to be invisible, but he sought out revenge on those that were bullying him.  He wanted to know more than what the basic things were that people were telling him, even if it was safer for him not to know.  These themes are very relatable to young adults and deal with the coming of age.  Bod is a character that they are rooting for more than just for mere survival.  His is the classic underdog story of one that survives against all obstacles, then he gets the magic of the graveyard, even if in the end all of that has to be let go and he starts fresh.  Bod shows compassion to others and knows true loss, such as friends leaving, family dying, and family leaving for long periods of time.  Bod’s adventures keep you guessing about the dangers that he will face in a life outside the graveyard.  His adventures all lead us to him figuring out his own history.  The graveyard is an ideal setting for the mystical story, since it really emphasizes the dark tone of the book.  The styles that the author used helped to keep the reader’s hope strong through the dark tone and all the loss.  This was also mirrored by the illustrations that were all done in black and white.    

4. REVIEW EXCERPT(S)
#1 New York Times Bestseller

John Newberry Medal

Starred review in HORN BOOK: “Lucid, evocative prose and dark fairy-tale motifs imbue the story with a dreamlike quality. …this ghost-story-cum-coming-of-age-novel as readable as it is accomplished.”

Starred review in BOOKLIST: “This is an utterly captivating tale that is cleverly told through an entertaining cast of ghostly characters. There is plenty of darkness, but the novel’s ultimate message is strong and life affirming….this is a rich story with broad appeal.”

Starred review in KIRKUS: “Wistful, witty, wise—and creepy. This needs to be read by anyone who is or has ever been a child.”

5. CONNECTIONS
*It is great to use in an author study.

Other books by Neil Gaiman:

Gaiman, Neil.  CORALINE.  McKean, Dave. ISBN 0380807343.

Gaiman, Neil.  M IS FOR MAGIC. Kristiansen, Teddy. ISBN 0061186473.

Gaiman, Neil.  STARDUST.  ISBN 0061689246.

Gaiman, Neil.  ODD AND THE FROST GIANTS.  Helquist, Brett. ISBN 9780061671739.