Title: The Graveyard Book
Author: Neil Gaiman
Narrator: Full cast recording (Derek Jacobi, Neil Gaiman, Julian Rhind-Tutt et al)
Length: 7h 47m
Format: Full length story
Age Group: 10+
This is a superb, full-cast reading that brings to life a luminous book by Neil Gaiman. It is not for the faint-of-heart though. The book starts with a murder. While the murder scene is swift and more implied than described, it is quite scary. The lone survivor, a toddler, wanders into a nearby graveyard, where he is adopted by its otherworldly inhabitants and given the name Nobody Owens, or Bod for short. And from there the tale turns into a spooky, but absolutely enthralling, coming-of-age tale.
Much like Mowgli in The Jungle Book, little Bod roams free amongst the tombstones, stumbling into adventures, getting an unusual education, and growing up, all the while watched over by his enigmatic guardian, Silas. Bod soon learns that despite some of the terrors underground, it is in the graveyard that he is safest and among friends: The real dangers await outside, and one day he must face them. Every character in this audio book is vividly voiced. The Danse Macabre chapter which features music from Bela Fleck is a particular treat in the audio version.
This is a magical and menacing tale, about a heartbreakingly courageous protagonist who has you rooting for him every step of the way. While definitely spooky, it is doable for a generation of kids raised on the orphaned and imperiled Harry Potter.
Access: The link above is through Audible at Amazon.com. Depending upon where you live in the world, you can likely also access this audiobook for free through your public library and other resources that I am blogging about, like Hoopla.
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