Growing up in a graveyard is normal if you don't know anything about the world outside its gates. Nobody Owens, or as his friends and family call him, "Bod" can only remember living in the graveyard, traipsing around tombs, and talking to people whose names are on the crumbling gravestones. What he doesn't remember is climbing out of his crib as a toddler, bumping down the steps to the open front door, and toddling down the road to his graveyard narrowly escaping the dreadful fate of his family. Instead of meeting an untimely death, Bod grows up in the graveyard learning about the world from its dead inhabitants. In addition to learning about reading, writing, and arithmetic, Bod learns about fading, haunting, and dream walking.
Bod slowly comes to learn that outside the graveyard lie danger that his guardians Silas and Ms. Lupescu, his parents the Owens', and his friend and witch Liza Hempstock cannot protect him from. The man in black, "The Man Jack" that was sent to kill he and his family is still looking to finish the job he started many years before.
The story is engaging and quite spooky and the characters are relatable for young readers- Bod goes through some of the same developmental milestones as today's tweens like testing rules and pushing boundaries with some astonishing consequences. If you set down to read this volume, prepare to get comfortable- bring a drink and snack because you won't want to put this down. I would strongly recommend this to fans of Avi and Margaret Peterson Haddix.
Gaiman, Neil. (2008). The Graveyard Book. New York: Harper Collins. 312 pages. ISBN 9-780-060-53092-1.
Ages 9-11
Rating: Outstanding
Winner of the Newberry prize 2009
