Caragh Reviews - The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

Published - 30th September 2008
Publisher - Harper Collins
Format -  Hardback
Synopsis - After the grisly murder of his entire family, a toddler wanders into a graveyard where the ghosts and other supernatural residents agree to raise him as one of their own. Nobody Owens, known to his friends as Bod, is a normal boy. He would be completely normal if he didn't live in a sprawling graveyard, being raised and educated by ghosts, with a solitary guardian who belongs to neither the world of the living nor of the dead. There are dangers and adventures in the graveyard for a boy. But if Bod leaves the graveyard, then he will come under attack from the man Jack—who has already killed Bod's family . . .  Beloved master storyteller Neil Gaiman returns with a luminous new novel for the audience that embraced his New York Times bestselling modern classic Coraline. Magical, terrifying, and filled with breathtaking adventures, The Graveyard Book is sure to enthrall readers of all ages.

The Graveyard Book is my 3rd Neil Gaiman book and I was expecting great things as his writing is astounding and beautiful. Unfortunately I didn't experience that 'wow factor' that I previously had and i'm left feeling a little quizzical as to why this is said to be one of his best works. Part of me knows that I just didn't really fully understand what he was trying to say.

The Graveyard Book tells the story of Nobody Owens, aka Bod and how after a traumatic encounter with Jack as a baby, he was raised in a loving & homely environment; a Graveyard full of ghosts. I must admit, the concept of it drew me in and was really intriguing but in my opinion it was just a little flat. There were peaks and troughs throughout but the high points just didn't seemed to hit the spot.

There were a lot of 'meaningful references' (for want of a better explanation) about life and how sometimes you just need to let go and fully experience real life. These made the book interesting and the occasional mind blowing realisation was what urged me on to continue reading. One of Gaiman's greatest qualities is that he is able to write brilliant and funny Children's books that are equally loved and adored by adults everywhere. For me though, The Graveyard Book was a little too much on the Children's side of the scale for me to truly enjoy it.

The book was still enjoyable but it wasn't what I was looking or hoping for which is a shame. I still love Gaiman's books though and I definitely will be reading more!