It takes a graveyard to raise a child
Author: Neil Gaiman
Genre: Fantasy, Horror, Children
The author Neil Gaiman has acknowledged that Rudyard Kipling’s “The Jungle Book” inspired this book. But, the parallels between these two stories are quite overwhelming. The Graveyard book is about a young boy. When he was a toddler, a mysterious man named “the man Jack” killed his entire family. The boy, entirely unaware of the danger, manages to escape and takes shelter in a grave. Here, the ghosts of an elderly couple, Mr. and Mrs. Owens, adopt him to protect from the man Jack. They name him “Nobody Owens”, or his friends call him “Bod”. Bod also has a guardian, Silas, a mysterious and brooding man/ghost/something. Bod grows in the graveyard, learning the magic of the graveyard, experiencing many adventures and making new friends. But, the man Jack hasn’t forgotten Bod and is biding his time to finish what he has started.
From the summary itself, the similarities between the two stories are quite evident. And, as you will read the book, you will find too many resemblances. Having said that, the apparent inspiration/similarities with The Jungle Book doesn’t make this an inferior book. I like to think this more of a retelling of the favorite story in a different setting ;). The primary target audience of the book is undoubtedly children. The book is written keeping that in mind. Though, even as an adult, you can enjoy the book. Because it was supposed to be a children book, Neil hasn’t tried to develop a very elaborate world with a lot of expositions. The setting and the story is quite simple. The magic itself it quite fascinating and to be honest quite impressive!
Neil uses the setting of graveyard quite wonderfully. He explores many lore and supernatural entities like ghouls, mummies, and witches. Apart from the central plot, as Bod grows in the graveyard, we get to see many of his ventures with them.
There are a lot of characters, but you mostly spend time with Bod. Apart from Bod and Silas, you don’t get to know any other characters. Silas’ characters is an enigma in himself. You don’t learn much about him, and that is a good idea because this adds depth to this simple story. His character is the one I think I’ll remember for a long time. The one aspect which hurts the story is the lack of explanation when it comes to the assassin “Jack” and his organization. That arc seems quite promising and intriguing but hasn’t given any backstory. It’s a little frustrating to think there is a group of people trying to kill a boy, but you never get to know who are these people, what are their motives, what are their abilities? I really wish Neil has spent some more time on them.
The Graveyard Book is a sweet and a little creepy story of love, friendship, and growing up. Bod learned to live his life, while living among the dead. He learns to love, to live with the his mistakes, and to let go. Living his whole life with dead people, Bod learns the value of life and learns to celebrate it.
“You’re alive, Bod. That means you have infinite potential. You can do anything, make anything, dream anything. If you can change the world, the world will change. Potential. Once you’re dead, it’s gone. Over. You’ve made what you’ve made, dreamed your dream, written your name. You may be buried here, you may even walk. But that potential is finished “
“Face your life, its pain, its pleasure, leave no path untaken.”
It is a lovable and sincere story that anyone can enjoy.
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