This week
we read Chapters 1 - 3
For links
to everybody else’s thoughts, you can visit Carl’s post at Stainless SteelDroppings.
Previously,
I have read Neil Gaiman’s Neverwhere,
which was my introduction to his books, and I have to say that I am quickly
coming to understand why they have been suggested for Read Alongs. Within a
single page of The Graveyard Book, I was hooked and very aware that Mr Gaiman
is an amazingly good writer. There is twelve years between the publication
dates of these two books, and I can tell that Mr Gaiman has spent that time
honing his craft, because this book drew me in so much more quickly than
Neverwhere. I would have to say that I am enjoying The Graveyard Book far more
than Neverwhere at the moment and even the disparity between English and
American vocabulary, which always threatens to bump me out of an American
Edition, has not irked me as much as it could. However, I did find the American
terms a little disorientating until Caius Pompeius appeared and I knew that we
definitely had to be in England.
The book
begins in the blackest way possible, with an entire family being assassinated
by a dispassionate hired killer. We do not know why they have to die, but the
killer himself is something not entirely human because he can smell the path
that the adventurous baby has taken out of the house. This is the first
suggestion that we are not in the ‘normal’ world. As with Neverwhere, Mr Gaiman
paints a slightly skewed version of our world, where things are mostly the same
but where we find that fairy tales, mythology and folklore are likely to come
true. In fact the opening reminded me very much of Neverwhere, which opens with
Door’s family being killed because of their ability to open any door. Their
killers, the Messers, were also contract killers with a distinctly otherworldly
set of skills.
Fortunately,
the wandering baby finds protection in the graveyard. I love the way in which
Mr Gaiman makes a sanctuary out of a location that would normally be the very
worst place to be in a horror story. The ghosts are hospitable and feel a moral
responsibility towards the child, while the enigmatic Silas actually takes
action to protect him from the killer. I like the fact that we are not told
everything about everyone at once, mainly because it makes such a nice change.
We know that Silas is not a ghost and that he sleeps all day. We also know that
his presence terrified the killer and that he can alter the thoughts of the
living, so I suspect that he is a vampire, but that might just be what Mr
Gaiman wants me to think at this point. I learnt in Neverwhere that we will be
manipulated and mislead during the story, so I am reserving my judgment for
now. We are also introduced to the Lady in Grey, who could be any of a
multitude of mythological figures. I do love books that make me ask questions
and want to know more!
In the
second chapter we are introduced to Scarlett, who is a very clever device that
allows us to be shown Bod’s world and his understanding of it. She also gives
him his first taste of the world beyond the graveyard, and asks questions that
cause him to investigate more about his world. She opens Bod’s eyes to many aspects
of his home and how it differs from the outside world. One thing that I find a
little hard to understand is Bod’s disinterest in what lies beyond the
graveyard. As a child who was a constant escape artist, as we are told in
Chapter One, I had expected him to make more of an effort to explore beyond the
wall. However, his journey into the barrow under the hill shows that he is
certainly not scared of going beyond his normal boundaries. I was amazed that
Scarlett would follow him in to such total blackness, but it added to the
unsettling impression of danger and risk taking. I am not sure just how much
danger they are in, but there were all the ingredients for real terror and I
did feel my skin creeping as the snake-like noises rustled around the two of them.
However, in the tradition of a good fairy tale, the perceived danger is quickly
revealed to be harmless. Of course, this story plan has become such a favorite
over the millennia because it provides the requisite amount of ‘pleasant’
terror before allowing us to feel the comfort of overcoming our fears and
returning to safety.
We see a
similar pattern in Chapter Three, although this time there is a much greater
sense of real danger as Bod is carried off by the ghouls. Although they are
very funny and entertaining, we are placed in a situation where we know that he
is danger before Bod does. It is that “Don’t go into that scary haunted house
by yourself at night!” moment. However, the world that we are transported to is
almost worth the terror. I am amazed that this book has not been made into a
film yet – perhaps Tim Burton should consider it for his next animated outing,
as I can imagine how spectacular it would look in his capable hands. The red
world that the ghouls inhabit is terrible, but not overtly terrifying, although
their city has a ‘wrongness’ that makes Bod realize just how much trouble he is
in. We also have the unexpected pleasure of a teacher who insists on children
knowing things that are really useful, and who is revealed to be a true hero,
even if she does make him eat bizarre food.
Carl
asked us to comment on whether or not we enjoy being scared. I was read to a
great deal as a child and I loved that feeling of safe and scared combined. I
also remember spending many happy hours hiding behind the sofa while Doctor Who
was on the television. Although it is basically a children’s show, it always
involved scary creatures and dangerous situations, although we always knew that
the Doctor would find a way to survive. As an adult, I still l like a good
horror film, although I prefer genuinely disturbing films rather than the more
recent ‘gore porn’ and I hate films that make me jump out of my seat all the
time.
