Book review

Good, but a little weird 🙂 The writing style of this book was a little weird but still quite easy to read. The way some characters spoke was challenging to understand  because they spoke “old English”.

Mind map

Silas

Character analysis

The Graveyard Book is a new novel by the best-selling author Neil Gaiman who has wrote many famous novels such as Coraline and Stardust. The illustrations are by award-winning Chris Ridell.

Nobody “Bod” Owens is not a normal boy. He lives in the graveyard and is raised by the ghosts. There are many exciting adventures in the graveyard, but the real danger is in the world of the living. The man Jack, who has already killed Bod’s family, can’t wait to finish his job – which means killing Bod!

Silas is Bod’s guardian and teacher. He brings food and clothes to Bod and gives him advices. He and Bod have the Freedom of the Graveyard, which allows them to leave and move in the graveyard as they wish. It also gives some special abilities that the dead (ghosts) have. Silas is a minor character, but I think he has the strongest influence on Bod. Silas is quiet, smart and gloomy. He is very protective towards Bod. His behavior towards others is cold and he keeps his distance. His actions are wise and he makes just choises even if sometimes Bod find them hard to accept. The book doesn’t give much clues about his past except that he has been fighting a long time against the evil organization the Jacks of All Trades. Silas is a “flat” character because he doesn’t change or grow from the beginning to the end of the book at all.

It’s not said straight in the book, but I think Silas is a vampire. He sleeps at day in the coffin and lives at night. It’s often said in the book that he is neither alive nor dead. His skin is pale and he has lived a very long time already. Even the illustrations portrays him as a very vampire-looking man. I think  he is kind of fascinating. He resembles a lot Darren Shan’s Crepsley, particularly by his nature. They both want to protect the world from the evil. I think in the future Silas will find some other evil organization and fight against it next 300 years. Silas and Bod will probably meet again and Silas will start to protect Bod from the shadows.

Challenging words

slither= luisua

inscription= kaiverrus

damp= kostea,kosteus, kostuttaa, laimentaa

translucent= läpikuultava

hut= mökki, parakki

ivy= muratti

abide=viipyä, sietää, pysyä, ~by= pitää kiinni jstk

debate= väitellä, väittely

brooch= rintaneula

dusk= hämärä

dismal=synkkä, surkea, kurja

perpetual= alituinen

acquire= hankkia, saavuttaa, oppia

puzzle= pulma, arvoitus, saattaa ymmälleen,~over=  vaivata päätänsä