SuitabookThe Graveyard Book
Neil Gaiman
- Reading
- The chapters move through selected years rather than every year of Bod’s life. Try pausing at chapter breaks to notice what has changed in his relationships and understanding.
- Themes
- Growing up in the graveyard: Bod is raised from infancy by the graveyard’s supernatural residents and learns from their customs and teachings. The novel makes Bod’s unusual community the setting for his growth, presenting its customs and teachings as part of his upbringing.
- A story told in selected years: The novel has eight chapters that follow selected years from Bod’s babyhood to adolescence. This structure gives attention to chosen stages of Bod’s life rather than recounting every year.
- Worth knowing
- The story begins with a murderer intent on killing a family, and that threat continues as Bod grows up; its opening image includes a hand holding a knife.