a ghoulish tale

My only experience with the genius that is Neil Gaiman was the movie "Coraline," based on his book, which I didn't really enjoy. In my Newbery quest I read The Graveyard Book last week, and found the experience to be much like a snowball rolling down hill--as it gained momentum and grew I got swallowed up by it.

Nobody Owens, known as Bod, grew up in a graveyard. Educated by the ghosts in both the traditional and non-traditional sense of the word--fading from view, for example--Bod yearns for the company of other living persons, but is warned of dangers to him in the outside world.

As the book unwinds we see how the lessons Bod has learned from his guardian, Silas, and teacher, Miss Lupescu, help him in his quest to learn who he is, and about the crime that took his family and led him to his life in the graveyard.

I really enjoyed this book. I WOULD recommend it. It also would be creepy to read around Halloween.

Age: Amazon lists 5th grade, I would say 4th grade would be fine.

Also, it looks like the book/movie rights have been purchased by Disney, so expect to see it in the theater one of these days. I was bummed it's going to be stop-animation, I think this book would be cool with live actors.