Newbery Books discussion

I actually really liked this book. I would give it an almost-4 stars. I think most of my enjoyment of the book came from the fact I've never ready ANYTHING like it. So the novelty worked for me. But other than that it wasn't AMAZING or anything. Just a really well-written, creative, dark, and interesting book. I can see how and why it was chosen for the NM and I can also see why it was quite the controversial pick :-)

There are some scary/creepy aspects of the book - I for one hate being scared or creeped out in any sense at all - and I was ok with it. There are kids like me who cannot handle being scared, and then there are kids that process it better and don't get nightmares, just have fun with it. Those are the kids this book is for. So if your kid is 10+ and can handle RL Stine, I would say this would be up his alley.

That’s what I think about the Graveyard book. I did like the novelty and idea, it felt very new to me. My favorites were the epitaphs throughout the book. To me I did think there were a couple pretty creepy events. For me the ghouls and their craziness were the creepiest. Anyway, it's worth reading.

I read this book a few months ago, but I just haven't had time to do much with goodreads lately--sorry. Anyway, my initial reaction to The Graveyard Book was negative. I personally found it interesting, but I really didn't like it as a choice for kids. I have to keep reminding myself that the Newbery Award can include kids up to age 14. Well the only "kids" I'd recommend it to are some 14 year olds, so that leaves a lot of other kids out. I think a Newbery Award should have a more general appeal to more children. I'm disappointed in the way it seems that the selection committee placed novelty above other criteria. I think I would've voted for Savvy instead.

My original review is below. I feel a bit more positive toward the book after some reflection, but most of my criticisms still stand. I do agree that it is worth reading for teens or adults. I'd welcome any more discussion or feedback! :)

My original review:
This book is a creepy, edgy, sometimes downright scary coming-of-age story. I think it is technically quite good--well written, unusual premise, strong atmosphere, lots of tension and a riveting ending. The protagonist is generally appealing and I found some of the supporting characters very interesting. I'd like to know more about Silas and Miss Lupescu, for instance. Fascinating tidbit about the "hounds of God"--I'd never heard that before. I liked the witch girl. The Grey Lady and the Danse Macabre are really good.

That said, I don't think this book deserved the Newbery Medal. It may be a "creepy contribution" to children's lit, but I don't believe it made a "significant contribution" to children's lit. I don't even think it is children's lit. It is definitely more appropriate for a YA classification. Come on, the first page has a picture of a hand grasping a big knife, and the first chapter describes the murder of a family where only the toddler barely escapes being slaughtered! The Indigo Man is pretty scary, and the Jacks are absolutely evil (secret combination anyone?). It was okay for me as an adult, but I would never recommend it to kids, including my twelve year old son. Nightmare inducing. Wasn't there anything better written last year to win the Newbery? I give it three stars for me, but only one star for kids, so that averages out to a two.

p.s. I think the human evil bothered me much more than the supernatural creepiness. That is probably an adult viewpoint, however. I would imagine that it would be the reverse for many kids.

Has anyone read other books by Gaiman, and what do you think of them in comparison to Graveyard? I know his book Coraline is popular right now.

Growing up in a cemetery could be a scary thing, but for Nobody Owens it is a safe and educational place with teachers from several centuries and many walks of life...and death. I usually like stories of good and evil but I didn't particularly like the way the book began with the unexplained murder of a family. The explanation later on was not very satisfying either. I don't think I'm a good judge of whether Newbery's are good books or right for children, but now that I've started I want to read them all.

Some have claimed that it was Harry Potter retold. You know, prophecy says evil will parish by one child. So evil sets out to kill child and family. Child escapes, family dies. Child grows with power, and destroys evil as prophecy says. In all actuality it isn't really a new theme. Even Harry Potter didn't start it, it's very common in Mythology, but it's an interesting idea all the same.

I just discovered the Goodreads videos under "explore." There is one of Neil Gaiman talking about The Graveyard Book: where he got the idea for the book and about his 9 city video tour where he would read a chapter of the book in each city. You can listen to the book here: http://www.mousecircus.com/videotour....
Has anyone read The Jungle Books? If so, which did you prefer?
Also, does anyone know of a sharing database for movies like goodreads is for books?

I liked the Jungle Books better.