The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

Date Published: 2008, HarperCollins Children.
ISBN: 978-0-06-0530945
# of Pages: 312

I had never read anything by Neil Gaiman before I picked up this book. I know, I know. Sue me. I have this tendency to want to read things people tell me to read and then shirk those suggestions as though fighting some evil demon that is seeking to influence my mind. I have my OWN wants and desires, I say. Well, I got around it this time by picking this book up in a small, well-decorated and horrendously under-stocked and over-priced bookstore in Miami when I was visiting my family last year. I then proceeded to put it off AGAIN for nearly a year before finally reading it, and I feel like an enormous asshat for doing so.

This book is amazing. Seriously, there are almost no words. It is an achievement in children's literature -- and despite the themes of death, some violence, and a lot of scary, scary stuff I do think this belongs in the hands of middle-schoolers, at least. Though that's really just the start. Everyone should be reading this book.

The story follows Nobody Owens, a baby whose family is murdered before the opening chapter of the book. He manages to crawl his way into a cemetery before his would-be murderer manages to realize he's missing. From there, he is raised within the safe walls of the graveyard by the ghosts that reside there, and his mysterious caretaker, Silas, who alone has the power to enter and leave the graveyard at will and so can provide Nobody with clothing, food, etc. His adoptive ghost family -- the Owenses, of course -- provide him with the affection and support he needs to grow up to be an intelligent, inquisitive and empathetic young man.

Yet his murderer is still out there, and as the reader learns more about the group that this killer is apart of, he or she becomes more wrapped up in Nobody's world -- which is, at times, incredibly, surprisingly frightening, but is more often new and exciting and beautifully macabre.

The character development was wonderful. I loved Nobody, his family, the witch he meets (don't want to spoil!) and most of all, his caretaker, Silas, whose self-conscious, uncomfortable concern for Nobody is painfully sweet.

""'We can put the food here,' said Silas. 'It's cool, and the food will keep longer.' He reached into a box, pulled out a banana.
'And what would that be when it was at home?' asked Mrs. Owens, eyeing the yellow and brown object suspiciously.
'It's a banana. A fruit, from the tropics. I believe you peel off the outer covering,' said Silas, 'like so.'
The child -- Nobody -- wriggled in Mrs. Owens's arms, and she let it down to the flagstones. It toddled rapidly to Silas, grasped his trouser-leg and held on.
Silas passed it the banana.
Mrs. Owens watched the body eat. 'Ba-na-na,' she said, dubiously. 'Never heard of them. Never. What's it taste like?'
'I've absolutely no idea,' said Silas, who consumed only one food, and it was not bananas."

Honestly, purchase this book now and read it immediately (do as I say, not as I do!) I was left feeling emotions I haven't felt in a long time from a book, and I am honestly still really upset that it's over. Superb writing, excellent story-telling, great characters and original and imaginative world and plot. There's nothing missing here.

Great Ghosts by Daniel Cohen

Date Published: 1990, Scholastic Inc.
ISBN: 0-590-45108-1
# of Pages: 48

I used to love reading these little ghost/horror books when I was a child, so I couldn't help but throw this one in the bag when I was at a used book sale at the mall recently. It was one of those "fill a bag for $1" sales, which are impossible to resist when you like books and might have a slight hording issue when it comes to them, SO. Here it is.

Anyway, I was overall not too disappointed with this collection, given the age/grade level this was geared towards (and especially considering the time this was published -- oh early 90s juvenile paperbacks!) Having said that, the only story in the collection that I got even the slightest thrill from was the last one, but I will get to that in a moment.

The first story in the collection is An Ancient Ghost, which is pretty much about exactly what it sounds like. It supposedly takes place in ancient Greece -- you know this because it says so and because the main character is "a scholar" and he reads. Not to analyze these four double-spaced pages too deeply or anything, but I was especially tickled by the "learn-ed people are idiots and never pay attention to the supernatural" subtext.

The Man in Grey is your basic "theatre ghost" story. There isn't much else to say about that.

The Berkeley Square "Horror" was perplexing to me before I even began reading, but mostly because of the unnecessary quotation marks in the title. There was very little to get worked up about in this tale - some people go into a haunted room and get themselves killed. No one knows how it happened. No one knows why it happened. No one cares. No one also bothered to edit. Favorite line: "His face wore a look of utter terror." Mr. Cohen, come on now.

The Screaming Skull is interesting if only because it would be fucking awesome if some dead guy's skull screamed every time you picked it up, which is pretty much all that happens in this story. It also purportedly brings "bad luck", as it is the skull of a West Indian slave who was pissed about being taken out of his native land. Things are struck by lightening, which is obviously supernatural.

The Flying Dutchman is omg the Flying Dutchman.

The Bell Ringer's Ghost is about a monk who fails to protect his abbey by falling asleep on the job of bell-ringing when a flood comes and kills a bunch of people. His ghost feels guilty so he protects people that come to visit the abbey and stuff. It's alright.

I'm looking again at The Brown Lady but it must have been unimpressive because I don't remember anything.

Bentham's Headless Ghost is barely about a ghost at all. Not completely sure why this was included, except that it's sort of icky. "Bentham's ghost has been reported in the halls of the University. The spectre carries his skull under his arm. Sometimes, it is said, he rolls his skull down the corridors, like a bowling ball." That's pretty much it.

I did enjoy Winterton's Spirit because it was kind of what the fuck. Some guy is supposedly dead, another guy sees his ghost which tells him that he is in fact NOT dead, he goes to warn the coroner that he isn't dead and his body is gone.

?????

So that is sort of confusing. But neat. More of a zombie story than a ghost story, perhaps? "Winterton was never found, dead or alive. His spirit did not appear to Hassan again." DUDE.