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From Cooperative Children's Book Center (CCBC)

On the night his parents and sister were murdered in their beds, a young boy toddled out of his crib and home, and thereby avoided a similar fate. He wanders into the nearby cemetery, where long-dead Mr. and Mrs. Owens vow to adopt and raise him, although the other cemetery spirits are unsure about this plan. In a community meeting, Silas—the child’s soon-to-be mentor and guardian—states: “For good or for evil—and I firmly believe that it is for good—Mrs. Owens and her husband have taken this child under their protection. It is going to take more than just a couple of good-hearted souls to raise this child. It will . . . take a graveyard.” Given the name Nobody (or “Bod”) and the“Freedom of the Graveyard” (an existential travel pass to live among the dead), the child flourishes in this caring community. Smart dialogue is dashed with bits of humor—the residents’ tombstone epitaphs and memories from their living years provide ongoing comedy—and elements of eeriness abound. Bod visits the land of ghouls and speaks with ancient spirits in his graveyard wanderings. He’s also protected by many: Silas ensures that he’s fed and clothed, Mr. and Mrs. Owens are strict with his bedtime and education, and other souls instruct him through their life experiences. Ethereal illustrations in tones of black provide ghostly visuals—although not often necessary or fitting. As Bod grows older, he grows more curious about his origins and life outside the graveyard fence. In the meantime, the murderer hired to kill his family is intent on finishing the job. A dramatic climax will likely catch readers off guard, but it provides a satisfying conclusion to an exceptional story. (Ages 10–14)

CCBC Choices 2009 © Cooperative Children's Book Center, Univ. of Wisconsin - Madison, 2009. Used with permission.

From School Library Journal

Starred review from December 1, 2014

Gr 5 Up-Gaiman's beloved novel gets the full-cast treatment in this new audio edition. Due to ghastly circumstances, the ghosts of a graveyard take in a young toddler whom they name Nobody, or Bod for short. The enigmatic Silas becomes Bod's guardian and makes it his duty to protect the boy from those who intend harm. Bod grows up in the graveyard, and although he is still alive, the Freedom of the Graveyard allows him to see in darkness, fade from view, and slide through walls. As he matures, Bod encounters ghouls, a werewolf, and a witch, but none as terrifying as the man who killed his family and now wishes him dead-Jack. For the first time, listeners can hear the music of the Danse Macabre, the slithering echo of the Sleer, and the transformation of Bod from inquisitive child to self-assured young man. The full cast, including Gaiman, skillfully depicts each character's unique traits and idiosyncrasies. Listeners will also hear some background on the book, read by the author himself, and music by Bela Fleck. A must-have for fans of the original novel and anyone who enjoys engaging fantasy.-Amanda Spino, Ocean County Library, NJ

Copyright 2014 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

From School Library Journal

October 1, 2014

Gr 5 Up-Starting off where the first volume (2014) of Russell's graphic novel adaptation of Gaiman's The Graveyard Book (2008, both HarperCollins) ended, this title covers the second half of the original book. Orphan Nobody "Bod" Owens continues his education with the help of the ghostly graveyard residents, but soon experiences growing pains as he interacts more and more with the outside world of the living. His guardian Silas enrolls Bod in a human school, where the boy's sense of right and wrong battles against his instincts to remain forgettable to his classmates and teachers. In the following segment-the most action-packed and thought-provoking-Bod is reunited not only with his childhood friend Scarlett but also with the murderous Jack, responsible for his family's deaths. Now a teen, the protagonist grapples with feelings of revenge, honor, and even puppy love, all leading up to the work's climax. A bittersweet and hopeful conclusion will tug at the hearts of readers and followers of Gaiman and Russell's work. This volume's art style and pacing is more cohesive and even than the first, perhaps due to the longer chapters and the variety in settings. Underlying messianic themes and the striking juxtaposition of the evil clan of human assassins and the benevolent band of noble monsters begs classroom discussion. Essential reading for fans of Gaiman's original and those who enjoyed the first entry.-Shelley Diaz, School Library Journal

Copyright 2014 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

From School Library Journal

July 1, 2014

Gr 5 Up-The award-winning tale about an orphaned boy raised in a graveyard by ghosts is successfully adapted for the graphic novel format by Russell and his cadre of artists. The arresting opening image of a bloody knife sets the tone for this sometimes gory, but often playful, illustrated version. A toddler's family is murdered by a mysterious stranger, and the denizens of the neighboring cemetery (ie. ghosts, vampires, and even a werewolf-type creature) take on the responsibility of being his caretakers. Renamed Nobody "Bod" Owens, the inquisitive boy grows up among the specters, making friends with a human girl, and escaping from several brushes with death. The panel's dark blues, grays, and purples are punctuated with vibrant greens, yellows, and crimson red. Each chapter is illustrated by an artist or two, who in turn infuse the entry with their own technique, while reflecting the story's original heart and atmosphere. Especially successful is the "The Hounds of God" section, illustrated by Tony Harris and Scott Hampton, which observant readers will note undergoes subtle shifts between the graveyard and the Ghoul kingdom. While some of the original's subtlety is lost, this adaptation still celebrates friendship, loyalty, and family with similar humor and aplomb. The concluding interlude segues eerily into the next volume, for which middle graders will anxiously be waiting.-Shelley Diaz, School Library Journal

Copyright 2014 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

From Publisher's Weekly

Starred review from May 19, 2014
As he did with Coraline, Russell makes the recasting of Gaiman's Newbery-winning novel into graphic form look easy with this vastly entertaining adaptation, first in a two-book set (the second volume is due in late September). Russell conceives the look and layout of the graveyard world inhabited by Bod (short for "Nobody"), the infant who has escaped his family's murderer; six artists, including Kevin Nowlan, Stephen B. Scott, Galen Showman, and Jill Thompson, contribute a chapter apiece. The overall effect is remarkably unified, and the thread of the narrative is always
crystal-clear. Bod's devoted adoptive parents, the ghosts Mr. and Mrs.
Owens, and the other graveyard inhabitants are dressed in evocative period costumes and drawn in ethereal blue, while Bod's teacher and mentor Silas, about whose status the book was coy, is revealed as a vampire, with a splendid cape and a chiseled jawline. The artwork sets out to entertain rather than to horrify; even the initial murder scene has a certain tranquility. It's a treasure worth having even if the novel is already on the shelf. Ages 8—12.

From Booklist

Starred review from May 15, 2014
Grades 6-10 *Starred Review* Gaiman's frequent collaborator Russell brings his decades of comics know-how to this lovely, lyrical adaptation of the author's well-loved, Newbery Medalwinning book. Not content to rely exclusively on his own distinctive talents, Russell has enlisted some of the industry's greatest contemporary illustrators as contributors, who fill the panels with appropriately gothic tones. In order to give ample room to the novel's twists and turns, the adaptation has been divided into two parts (the second will be released this fall). Running through the first five chapters and interlude of Gaiman's original, this volume weaves the inviting magical story of toddler Nobody Owens, who escapes the brutal murder of his family and is adopted by the supernatural denizens of a graveyard. The well-paced narrative follows Bod as his new graveyard family raises him with care and attentiveness and he begins to explore both the ghostly world he inhabits and the outside world that is his heritage. Each illustrator brings a unique aesthetic, blending together seamlessly to enrich the tale and suggest the subtle shifts of clever Bod's growth and burgeoning sense of adventure. Fans of Gaiman's delightfully macabre sensibilities will be elated. HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: Gaiman's fans are loyal and plentiful. Add a Newbery Medal to the mix and this will be a barn burner.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2014, American Library Association.)

From Kirkus

April 15, 2014
Russell is a brave man. He was willing to cut the very first sentence of Gaiman's Newbery-winning novel, even though it's one of the most memorable lines in children's literature: "There was a hand in the darkness, and it held a knife." By cutting out most of the descriptive text in this first of a two-part adaptation, Russell calls attention to the drama and wit of the language in each sentence. His graphic storytelling is faster-paced than the original book, but it's always faithful, and a few readers may even prefer this version. Though he shares illustration duties with a team of graphic-novel luminaries--every artist gets a favorite monster or creature to draw--Russell's fans will recognize his elegant, distinctive layouts even in the chapters he didn't illustrate himself. The pictures also clarify one plot point. The original book was amusingly coy about whether a character named Silas was a vampire, but here he's given the full Bela Lugosi treatment, and it's beautiful. In Kevin Nowlan's drawings, he has impossibly high cheekbones and a face like pale stone. One scene has even more impact than in the original: Ghosts join hands with the living and begin to dance, and readers see every dancer in the square. The real achievement of this adaptation is that readers will want to jump back to the novel and then leap back again, time after time. (Graphic adaptation. 8-12)

COPYRIGHT(2014) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

From Horn Book

January 1, 2009
After fortuitously escaping the murder of his family, a toddler is taken in by the ghostly denizens of a local graveyard. Growing up in this strange setting entails many adventures, leading to a final showdown with the murderer. Occasional art enhances the otherworldly atmosphere with a flowing line and deep grays and blacks. This ghost-story-cum-coming-of-age novel is both bittersweet and action-filled.

(Copyright 2009 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

From Library Journal

December 9, 2008
A baby survives the killing of his family by a mysterious assassin. He crawls to a nearby graveyard and is adopted by the assortment of spooks who occupy the place, soon to include his own recently murdered parents. There he is christened with a new name: Nobody, or Bod for short. Under the watchful tutelage of the dead, Bod learns reading, writing, history, and a few other useful skills-haunting and "disapparating" [disappearing from a location and reappearing in another]. Why It Is a Best: An elegant combination of Gaiman's masterly storytelling and McKean's lovely drawings, this book also works as a series of independent but connected short stories set two years apart, following Bod from age two to 16. Why It Is for Us: In interviews, Gaiman has said that this book took him years to write, and it was worth the wait. Imagine Kipling's The Jungle Book set among a forest of graves. A complete recording of Gaiman reading the book is available on his web site; see also LJ's video with the author fromBEA 2008.-Angelina Benedetti, King Cty. Lib. Syst., WA

Copyright 2008 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

From Horn Book

Starred review from November 1, 2008
When a toddler fortuitously escapes the murder of his family by "the man Jack," he is taken in by the ghostly denizens of a local graveyard, renamed Nobody Owens, and ushered through childhood by the kindly Mr. and Mrs. Owens and the enigmatic Silas. (As "Bod" soon learns, there are more kinds of people than just the living and the dead, and Silas falls outside those categories.) Growing up in this strange setting entails many adventures, from getting kidnapped by ghouls, to procuring a headstone for a shunned young woman who was "drownded and burnded" as a witch, to, most dangerous of all, attending school with other living children -- all of which prepare Bod for a final showdown with the man Jack, who has never stopped hunting him. Lucid, evocative prose ("'Look at him smile!' said Mrs. Owens...and with one insubstantial hand she stroked the child's sparse blond hair") and dark fairy-tale motifs imbue the story with a dreamlike quality. Warmly rendered by the author, Bod's ghostly extended family is lovably anachronistic; their mundane, old-fashioned quirks add cheerful color to a genuinely creepy backdrop. McKean's occasional pages and spots of art enhance the otherworldly atmosphere with a flowing line, slightly skewed figures, and plenty of deep grays and blacks. Gaiman's assured plotting is as bittersweet as it is action-filled -- the ending, which is also a beginning, is an unexpected tearjerker -- and makes this ghost-story-cum-coming-of-age-novel as readable as it is accomplished.

(Copyright 2008 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

From School Library Journal

October 1, 2008
Gr 5-8-Somewhere in contemporary Britain, "the man Jack" uses his razor-sharp knife to murder a family, but the youngest, a toddler, slips away. The boy ends up in a graveyard, where the ghostly inhabitants adopt him to keep him safe. Nobody Owens, so named because he "looks like nobody but himself," grows up among a multigenerational cast of characters from different historical periods that includes matronly Mistress Owens; ancient Roman Caius Pompeius; an opinionated young witch; a melodramatic hack poet; and Bod's beloved mentor and guardian, Silas, who is neither living nor dead and has secrets of his own. As he grows up, Bod has a series of adventures, both in and out of the graveyard, and the threat of the man Jack who continues to hunt for him is ever present. Bod's love for his graveyard family and vice versa provide the emotional center, amid suspense, spot-on humor, and delightful scene-setting. The child Bod's behavior is occasionally too precocious to be believed, and a series of puns on the name Jack render the villain a bit less frightening than he should be, though only momentarily. Aside from these small flaws, however, Gaiman has created a rich, surprising, and sometimes disturbing tale of dreams, ghouls, murderers, trickery, and family."Megan Honig, New York Public Library"

Copyright 2008 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

From Publisher's Weekly

Starred review from September 29, 2008
A lavish middle-grade novel, Gaiman's first since Coraline
, this gothic fantasy almost lives up to its extravagant advance billing. The opening is enthralling: “There was a hand in the darkness, and it held a knife.” Evading the murderer who kills the rest of his family, a child roughly 18 months old climbs out of his crib, bumps his bottom down a steep stairway, walks out the open door and crosses the street into the cemetery opposite, where ghosts take him in. What mystery/horror/suspense reader could stop here, especially with Gaiman's talent for storytelling? The author riffs on the Jungle Book
, folklore, nursery rhymes and history; he tosses in werewolves and hints at vampires—and he makes these figures seem like metaphors for transitions in childhood and youth. As the boy, called Nobody or Bod, grows up, the killer still stalking him, there are slack moments and some repetition—not enough to spoil a reader's pleasure, but noticeable all the same. When the chilling moments do come, they are as genuinely frightening as only Gaiman can make them, and redeem any shortcomings. Ages 10–up.

From Booklist

Starred review from September 15, 2008
While a highly motivated killer murders his family, a baby, ignorant of the horrific goings-on but bent on independence, pulls himself out of his crib and toddles out of the house and into the night. This is most unfortunate for the killer, since the baby was his prime target. Finding his way through the barred fence of an ancient graveyard, the baby is discovered by Mr. and Mrs. Owens, a stable and caring couple with no children of their ownand who just happen to be dead. After much debate with the graveyards rather opinionated denizens, it is decided that the Owenses will take in the child. Under their care and the sponsorship of the mysterious Silas, the baby is named Nobody and raised among the dead to protect him from the killer, who relentlessly pursues him. This is an utterly captivating tale that is cleverly told through an entertaining cast of ghostly characters. There is plenty of darkness, but the novels ultimate message is strong and life affirming. Although marketed to the younger YA set, this is a rich story with broad appeal and is highly recommended for teens of all ages.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2008, American Library Association.)

From AudioFile Magazine

Neil Gaiman is one of the true gems in the audio industry. He's a great writer who not only reads his own work well, but makes the listener reject any thought of having another narrator in his stead. Gaiman communicates his understanding of his own stories and characters from beginning to end. In this latest of Gaiman's clever, dark fantasies, an orphaned boy is raised by ghosts in the local graveyard. Gaiman gives each specter a different--and wholly appropriate--voice, but he doesn't stop there. He even goes so far as to change a character's accent ever so slightly after she comes back from years and years abroad. Best of all, Gaiman performs a shift of character voice that is an absolute showstopper when he reveals the villain. Really--it made this listener stop dead on her walk home in dreadful anticipation. A.A. Winner of AudioFIle Earphones Award (c) AudioFile 2008, Portland, Maine