REVIEW: The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

When a baby escapes a murderer intent on killing the entire family, who would have thought it would find safety and security in the local graveyard? Brought up by the resident ghosts, ghouls and spectres, Bod has an eccentric childhood learning about life from the dead. But for Bod there is also the danger of the murderer still looking for him - after all, he is the last remaining member of the family. A stunningly original novel deftly constructed over eight chapters, featuring every second year of Bod's life, from babyhood to adolescence. Will Bod survive to be a man?

Oh, how I do love Neil Gaiman. I read The Graveyard Book more than a year ago and adored it then, but I decided to choose this book as my first selection for an online book group that I run. We read it in October and I thought it would make a spooky and fun read as we approached Halloween.

It was such fun to come back to this book. I love the illustrations by Chris Riddell, I found it added a little more atmosphere to the story. I didn't know beforehand that Neil Gaiman took inspiration from The Jungle Books by Rudyard Kipling, but instead of a jungle, he placed his main character in a graveyard raised by ghosts. I think it's an interesting twist, handled very well.

The story is that of a young boy whose family is murdered by a mysterious man in black. The boy is able to escape, and finds refuge in a graveyard. The ghosts in the graveyard decide to let the boy stay and he is adopted by The Owenses and called 'Nobody' - Bod for short. As Mr and Mrs Owens are not able to leave the graveyard, Silas is appointed his guardian. Silas is neither living nor dead, but is able to bring Bod clothes and food and information from outside. Bod grows up, doing his best to learn history and his letters from the ghosts around him. As Bod grows up, he soon realises that he is in danger and must face this man in black if he is ever to stand on his own and become a man.

What I love most about The Graveyard Book are the characters that we meet. Bod has a wonderful enquiring little voice. Brave and curious and quick thinking. But it's Silas who stole the show for me. Never directly named as a vampire but the reader is given small hints. Silas puts himself in harm's way in order to protect young Bod. Then there's Miss Lupescu, a Hound of Hell, who looks after Bod occasionally and teaches and protects him. There's Liza Hempstock, the witch-ghost. Each character teaches Bod what he needs to know in order to stay alive, to survive when the Man in Black arrives to finish the job that he's started.

The bit in the product description is fantastic, about Bod learning about life from the dead. It's an interesting concept and one that Neil Gaiman pulls off wonderfully with this book. The visuals, especially of the woman on the gray horse and that of the Danse Macabre are images that will stay with me for awhile. The Man in Black, and his associates the Jacks are wonderfully sinister villians and this really does make for wonderful reading for anytime of the year.

Spooky books to read for Halloween

I love Halloween. (At least here in the Northern hemisphere) The days are getting shorter and things get darker earlier, colder. With the leaves turning and the wind howling, it's the perfect time to curl up with a blanket and read a really scary book. Here are some spooky suggestions for what to read around Halloween. For me, books about Halloween says ghosts. and monsters. and zombies. There is obviously a big resurgence of paranormal books on the market at the moment involving vampires and werewolves etc, but I think you guys would probably know more/better about that than me!

First up, we have ghost-y books.

The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman - Did I tell you that I'm now running an online book club? This is my first book group selection for October. It's about a boy who's entire family is murdered by a very sinister looking man in black, so the boy seeks refuge in a graveyard and is raised by ghosts. It's the perfect book to read for Halloween AND it's written by Neil Gaiman. Please don't overlook it - join us in the discussion, if you'd like.

The Turn of the Screw by Henry James - Less than 100 pages, this is one that will get to you with it's spookiness. It doesn't use big, obvious ways in which to scare you, but lets you infer things yourself, lets your imagination run away with itself. Set in an old estate house, with two small children and only a young governess to look after them, strange things are going on...

If you're interested in subtle ghost stories told through literary fiction, then possibly try Her Fearful Symmetry by Audrey Niffenegger about two American twins whose inheritance is a flat overlooking Highgate Cemetery in London or The Little Stranger by Sarah Waters which explores Britain after World War II.

Also, have you ever looked into your own city/state/region for ghost stories? I think it's makes it extra-special-ghoulish when the ghost stories are that local. It's worth checking out! I wrote a post a few years ago about the ghostly-goings-on in my neighbourhood :)

And if you are looking for something a bit .. more, here are some vampire/monster offerings:

Dracula by Bram Stoker - Vampires are the new black it seems, but here's the original vampire story. I found it a bit dull, but lots of people rave about it. It's a far, far cry from the transformation of vampires in modern literature. Thus, the appeal, I'd suppose.

The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova - This is an update to Dracula which has seen some very mixed reviews. I've heard it can drag in some parts, but I've also heard that it's filled with lots of historical detail and atmosphere. At over 700 pages though, it isn't for the faint of heart, but I hear it's a vampire story very intelligently written without romanticising vampirism.

I Am Legend by Richard Matheson - I've only seen the movie starring Will Smith, but I hear the book is a lot better in many ways. More psychological and chilling. What would it be like to be the last man alive, surrounded by vampires? I hear the vampire aspect of it eventually become more of a side-story as the main characters works through his own issues. Still sounds like it could give sufficient chills when reading this Halloween.. Come out Neville!


Frankenstein by Mary Shelley - The ultimate horror book. I had this as an assigned book in one of my university courses and I still haven't read it :( Everyone knows the story, right? Mad scientist creates monster then is rejected by its creator and monster goes on a rampage. The film adaptation seem to be a very different creation to the book, so be sure to check it out.

Also, be sure to look out for The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson and The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde for a better glimpse at psychological thrillers investigating the monster within.

And for zombie enthusiasts:

The Enemy/The Dead by Charlie Higson - I absolutely adore this new series by the author of the Young Bond books (amongst others!). The characters, all children aged 14 and under must fight to survive with all the adults gone zombie. They've hidden out in the local Waitrose but decide to go on the move to find more food and allies. Very interestingly written, a new series not to miss!

World War Z by Max Brooks - I haven't actually read this one, but zombies and Max Brooks seems to go hand-in-hand. It seems to be the ultimate book about the zombie apocalypse. Brooks writes about a not-too-distant future in which we are invaded by zombies. He looks at the ways in which different countries and corporations have responded and dealt with this as well as provided witness testimonies.

And for more zombie goodness, there's always The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan and the sequel, Dead-Tossed Waves.

Deliciously creepy:

Edgar Allan Poe - Nothing says Halloween better than Edgar Allan Poe. A fan amongst a lot of nerdfighters that I've spoken to, his stuff is a mixture of horror, mystery and suspense. While I've been writing this blog post I have re-read the poem The Raven and have found it still as creepy fantastic as I remembered. Any favourite Poe poetry/short stories?

We Have Always Lived In the Castle by Shirley Jackson - I think this has to be one of the spookiest covers ever. Gives me goosebumps just looking at it. It's a slim story of two sisters whose family have all died of arsenic poisoning. They live in a crumbling old castle and from the very first page there is a general feeling of uneasiness about the story...

The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins - I just read a review of this book that called it a mixture of Gothic horror and psychological realism. Ooh. That sounds good to me! There's the general feeling that quite a lot is going on in The Woman in White: Collins writes of mental patients escaped from the asylum, differences in class, marriage and other long-standing institutions and a mystery with very sinister characters. I shall definitely be looking out for this one.


For more recent YA choices, I'd suggest either White Crow by Marcus Sedgwick (which I've just finished reading *shudder*) or Dark Matter by Michelle Paver, both of which are recently published.

For nostalgia purposes: Goosebumps or Fear Street by RL Stine. Am I showing my age here? I absolutely adore RL Stine and when I was much younger, I always got very excited every time I saw a new book by him in the library.

What's your favourite book to read at Halloween? What's the scariest book you've ever read?

REVIEW: Paper Towns by John Green

Who is the real Margo? Quentin Jacobsen has spent a lifetime loving the magnificently adventurous Margo Roth Spiegelman from afar. So when she cracks open a window and climbs into his life - dressed like a ninja and summoning him for an ingenious campaign of revenge - he follows. After their all-nighter ends and a new day breaks, Q arrives at school to discover that Margo, always an enigma, has now become a mystery. She has disappeared. Q soon learns that there are clues in her disappearance ...and they are for him. Trailing Margo's disconnected path across the USA, the closer Q gets, the less sure he is of who he is looking for.

It's taken me a long time to work out what I wanted to say about Paper Towns and about John Green. Most of you know I'm a huge fan? So I figured that I really couldn't write a normal review of this book. It just isn't possible without adding 'OMG! How much did I love this book?' all the time and coming over as all fan-girly. So instead, a list, to keep me focused. Of the top 5 ways that I loved this book.

1. The characters - First, there's Q. And because I've watched the video of John Green reading the first chapter of the book on his youtube channel, I picture Q with the voice of John Green in my head. Q is a really likeable and believable teenage boy. He's had a crush on his neighbour Margo Roth Spiegelman since forever and after they spend an adventurous night out and she disappears, Q takes it upon himself to track down the clues and find Margo. He can be a little dense sometimes and he's a little self-centred, but I heart him. I love how Margo comes across as this really larger-than-life character. Q really builds her up and holds her in high esteem and over the course of the novel as he learns more about Margo and himself, he's able to have a more realistic and complex view of her and of himself.

2. The layered narrative - If I didn't already love John Green before this, then I would have done after reading Paper Towns. He really combined so many things in this novel. The idea to imagine other people complexly, this concept of paper towns and paper people, the way in which the poetry of Walt Whitman and music added more to the story. The omnictionary made my inner-nerd smile. Even Margo's name adds to the message that John Green puts across in this book (it meaning 'mirror' in German, I believe). I went to an event to hear John Green speak in London and he talked about one particular scene in which he was trying to convey a message through the use of imagery, specifically mirrors and windows and I was blown away. Where Margo is trying to tell Q something important, and instead of seeing her like through a window, Q is seeing only a reflection of himself. (if that doesn't make sense then perhaps it will once you've read the book!)

3. The friendship - What's also great about Paper Towns is the friendships. I do so love the male bonding experience that most of John Green's characters go through. Paper Towns is no different, with Q's best friends Radar and Ben. They are absolutely hilarious to read about and some of the dialogue between these boys is pure genius. Also, black Santas? I could have died laughing. Whilst the boys' friendship is great, I also really loved the transformation of Lacey, former friend of Margo who goes from being a popular out-of-reach character to a member of the group as they race off on an adventure together.

4. The road trip - Which brings us to the road trip. Guys, I adore road trips in books, especially road trips like the epic one in Paper Towns. Hilarious, hilarious things happen on this road trip. I would kill to go on a road trip like this, playing Metaphorical-I-Spy and eating junk food with some of my best friends while fraught with emergency to get where you need to go by a certain time. I had so much fun reading this book. I feel a re-read coming on.

5. The fact that John Green is so amazing - Seriously, you guys. Read the books. Watch the YouTube channel. Join Nerdfighters. Fan-girl with me.

Needless to say, Paper Towns is one of my favourite books that I've read all year. Possibly ever. John Green is firmly on my list of favourite authors and I highly recommend this book!

REVIEW: An Abundance of Katherines by John Green

Oh how I adore John Green. I'd read Looking For Alaska last year and it was almost life-changing. So I had really high hopes for An Abundance of Katherines, and while I thought it was incredibly funny and nerdy, and I loved Colin and Hassan and their relationship, it wasn't quite as emotional as I'd like. And yet I still loved it.

Colin Singleton is a child-prodigy who's pretty talented at languages and anagramming, but one who hasn't gone on to becoming a genius. Instead, he's been dumped by a whopping 19 girls named Katherine. He's a total Dumpee. So just after his high school graduation, his best friend Hassan decides that the only thing to do is to go on a road trip. And somehow Colin and Hassan end up in Gutshot, Tennessee, home of the grave of the Archduke Franz Ferdinand. There, Colin tries to work on a mathematical theorem that will predict how long a relationship will last. They meet Lindsey and her mother Hollis, who owns a company that produces tampon-strings and while there, Colin and Hassan have some pretty interesting adventures including a hilarious pig-hunting trip.

I really did love the relationship and banter between Colin and Hassan. I think their dialogue was the reason that I loved this book so much. At the start I wasn't really drawn to Colin as a character, but by the end his social-ineptitude was kind of adorable. I thought the anagramming and the footnotes to fun facts were a nice touch. I kind of skimmed over the maths, because maths isn't really my sort of thing. But I did appreciate the graphs and everything in a way. It's all so nerdy. And I do love nerdiness. I also loved how the novel turned into a reflection of sorts on story-telling and the story Colin tells at the end about his relationships with the Katherines really blew me away.

I'm glad that I read this. It was funny and sweet and intelligent. And John Green, you sure didn't forget to be awesome!

What I Want For My Boys

I recently read a book by David Levithan, Are We There Yet? I don't mean for this to be a review or anything, but the book is about brothers. Brothers who were once close and have since drifted apart. Their parents trick them into going on a tour of Italy together and during the course of their holiday, they reminisce about memories of their childhood together, how and why they grew apart, and realise how each admires the other and that though they are different, they are also quite similar at the same time. It's a sweet story. I loved it as I was reading it.

Mostly I was thinking, I hope that my two boys grow up to be close. And stay that way. I was never very close to my own brother. We each went through particular experiences in our childhood, and we reacted to those experiences in very different ways. It would be hard for those things not to have changed us, but I think the biggest change was that a gap grew between us and it was too difficult and too wide to cross that division with everything else going on. I haven't spoken to my brother on a regular basis for more than 10 years. I do not want that for my children.

Reading the Levithan book and thinking about my own relationship with my brother, it got me thinking of famous or historical brothers and the things that they have achieved together or are remembered for. Here are some of the brothers that I have found.

Romulus and Remus are the first brothers that I thought of when I was compiling this list. The twin brothers who were suckled by a she-wolf and later fought each other over who was to be ruler of Rome. I know my boys will end fighting over many things, but hopefully it will not lead to death. Or politics.

Next I thought of the Biblical brothers, Cain and Abel, who also ended badly. They are the sons of Adam and Eve and Cain is so filled with jealousy that he slays his brother Abel. I think sibling rivalry must be something that children everywhere have to deal with. I struggled with it for a long time, but I hope that the boys see that each of them will have his own relationship with other people that has nothing to do with the other brother.

I don't know much about the Marx Brothers, but they seemed pretty cool. A family of brothers who worked together in a comedy act with music, having success in vaudeville, Broadway and Hollywood. Just reading the wikipedia page had me stifling giggles. I'd like my boys to see the funny side of life, to be able to laugh at themselves.

Next up, we have the Brothers Grimm, Jacob and Wilhelm, who famously collected the fairy tales and folk tales. The fairy tales seem to be a by-product of their academic research but either way, the end result is wonderful. I would love it if my boys were able to work together to bring the world something so fascinating as the stories that these two brothers have collected and shared.

I'm enjoying 'researching' for this post as I've read up on the Wright Brothers, Wilbur and Orville. They've been credited (with some controversy) with the first flight of an airplane in 1903 followed by later improvements related to the aviation field. I hope that whatever my boys end up doing, they are able to handle criticism with grace.

And then we have the Coen Brothers, Ethan and Joel, the successful filmmakers responsible for such movies as Raising Arizona, Fargo and O, Brother, Where are Thou (one of my favouritest movies). They are successful and talented and have some wonderful dialogue in their films. I truly hope that my two boys are creative in some way and can have a bit of fun with their talents.


What's that you say? I'm such a dork for including the Mario Brothers in my list of famous brothers? I accept that. But Mario and Luigi are absolute legends. Two plumbers saving the world from the creatures that live in the sewers? I'd love it if my boys fought together against the evil, wouldn't you?



And then there is John and Hank Green, who couldn't be left off my list. A few years ago, when the two brothers were living across the country from each other they started up Brotherhood 2.0 in order to fill each other in on their daily lives by video blogging. They're very entertaining and it's very obvious how proud of each other they are. John is a bestselling YA author and Hank, his younger brother co-founded a record label that promotes Youtube musicians. I sincerely hope my boys grow up to be as smart and funny as these two.

That's not too much to ask, right?
Can you think of any brothers that I've missed?

Stuff on my head Part 7

It's funny the phases that kids go through. For the longest time, Oldest absolutely adored the movie Cars. He wanted to BE Lightning McQueen when he grows up. He knew all the cars names from the movie, he pretended to be a racing car. He even said Lightning McQueen was his best friend. And while some of this awe still lingers, and Oldest' favourite colour is still racing car red, he doesn't have the same enthusiasm for it.

Then came the Thomas the Tank Engine phase. I'm not saying this one has finished, but there seems to be a greater overlap period. He loves Thomas. He loves everything to do with trains. He loves the books, he loves the TV programme. He still tells the story of when we went to SEE Thomas the Tank Engine and how The Fat Controller tipped his hat at him. We took Oldest to see Hero of the Rails at the cinema and Oldest loves talking about it. He knows all about coupling rods and funnels and how a train works. I love that he's inspired to learn by some of his favourite characters.

Now, we're in our Bob the Builder phase. It was one that N and I were trying to resist. That Bob the Builder song is utterly annoying. But Oldest has won out. He's convinced his Nana to buy him the different vehicles from Bob the Builder. He asks for Bob books from the library. There's a show at Legoland about Bob the Builder. Even Littlest gets in on this one. He calls it 'Bob-ob' Oldest and Littlest have matching Bob jumpers. So, we have Lofty. On my head.

I wonder what will be next. Please god, don't let it be the Power Rangers. (I'm not sure how I'd able to balance a Power Ranger on my head.)

Stuff on my head Part 6

Why not, right? Big thank you to Oldest who is the photographer for this series of posts! Since we started all of this, he rushes around the room trying to think of other things to put on my head. If I was able, I tried. Most though were a little extreme:

Him: Mommy, mommy! How about the TV? On your head? And I'll take the photo.
Me: I don't think so, child.
Him: How about the sofa? Or the exercise bike? The footstool! Mommy, the footstool!

Still, it's been fun. A family effort!

Stuff on my head Part 5

Stuff on my head Part 4

Oh I'm having so much fun with this stuff on my head. I even went up to the loft to pull out all of my silly hats that I've collected over the years. Those are still to come!

It's got me thinking of all the other fun things that grown-ups stop doing when they get older. This is a partial list. Feel free to add anything to it. These things just remind me of having fun as a child and I'm on a mission to incorporate a lot of these activities into my daily life.

Flying a kite
Finger painting
Swinging
Twirling until you're dizzy
Jumping on the bed
Water balloon fights
Making (and eating) Rice Krispie treats
Picking blackberries
Making paper chains
Watching Saturday morning cartoons
Running through the sprinkler
Popsicles
Going camping and making s'mores and swimming in the lake
Spend an entire day reading in bed
Family game nights with board/card games
Explore

There are others, but they're more specific to my childhood. My brother and I would wash cars for neighbours to make money or collect cans and return them to grocery stores for the deposit, our family would go on long walks in the country with the dog, we'd go on long road trips and sing along to the radio, I used to write stories.

What reminds you fun in your childhood?

Stuff on my head Part 3

How in awe of me are you right now? A helicopter. On my head. I am so cool. I'm not sure if I've ever flown in a helicopter. I think we were going to once. When we were in Hawaii and wanted to take a helicopter tour around the volcano, but we didn't. N and I were there with my dad, and he has issues with flying anyway. Due to the fact that he was shot down in a helicopter three times during Vietnam. I can imagine that giving anyone flight issues, don't you? Still, it's something I'd like to do sometime. Also? Ride a motorcycle. Just FYI.

My Guilt Free Three

I blogged a few weeks ago about a guilt free list. And then even though a few of your posted your lists in comments, I still didn't share mine. Mostly because I forgot, and a little bit because I'm so not in the habit of sharing my crushes. It feels kind of intimate. But I think I'm ready now. Here we go.



First off, we have Enrique Iglesias. I've had a mad crush on him since 8th grade when I went around to a friend's house after school and we watched the opening credits to some silly Spanish soap opera so she could show me this hot singer. I fell in love. I swear I did better in my Spanish classes after that. I totally had a reason to learn my vocab from then on! My friend and I were supposed to go see him in concert, but it never happened after she moved away. Of course then I moved here to England. But a few years ago, N surprised me with tickets to a concert Enrique was doing in London. A dream fulfilled! Sorry the photo is kind of moody looking, moody was all I could find.



Speaking of 'moody,' David Duchovny plays Hank Moody in Californication. I love him in this role as much as, and possibly even more than I loved him as Fox Mulder in The X-Files. It's just so funny. And I can't help it, funny men are so incredibly sexy. Bring on the third series of Californication...



Some would say that I named my child after Joshua Jackson. I do not agree, though it is possible that something was going on subconsciously. Had a major crush on him since those Duck films, it grew during his Dawson's Creek days and now it's just gotten worse seeing him all grown up in Fringe.

Feel free to share your own lists or pass judgement on mine! Either is fine with me :)

Helen Hunt

I've seen this video so often in the last few weeks that I feel like I'm developing feelings for Helen Hunt myself. Bits of this song circlulate in my head and I can't seem to switch it off and it seems like it will forever be lodged in my head. Especially the chorus. '..You make my heart do acrobatic stunts, you stand and face the brunt of the twister of my burning want, Helen Hunt you know I'm mad about you..' Genius.

This is what I've been consumed with occupied with over the few months or so, catching up on the video blogs of John and Hank Green (who are both utterly adorable). Why did nobody tell me about these before? I hate when I'm late to a party, especially a cool, nerdy party (not a oxymoron in my book!). Expect lots of Green brothers posts coming soon. Stuff on my head photos. In my pants book titles, etc. Should be fun.

Also, the Helen Hunt video? In case you're not one who watches videos on blogs, it's the ever-lovely Hank Green singing about his crush on Helen Hunt. Ignoring the creepiness of the video, Hank just seems like such a likeable person. It also mentions a 'guilt-free' list. It sparked a conversation with N this week about N's and my own guilt-free lists (we chose five people to be on our lists instead of three) and I've considered said list, but I'm feeling shy and would like someone else to go first. Please?

Who would make your guilt-free list?