Coraline

Coraline
Neil Gaiman

If I'm going to do this, thought Coraline, I'm not going to do it in her clothes.  She changed back into her pajamas and her dressing gown and her slippers, leaving the gray sweater and the black jeans neatly folded up on the bed, the orange boots on the floor by the toy box.

I don't know why I'm just now reading Coraline.  But it was worth the wait.  It's dark and creepy and delious. 

It's that terrible part of the summer, right before school starts.  Coraline is bored and her parents aren't paying much attention to her.  In her boredom, Coraline makes a discovery that will liven things up.

Coraline finds an other world full of parodies of the world she knows.  Dark parodies.  Coraline sets out on an adventure that will seriously impact her world.  If she is successful, things will return to normal. If not, it's the button eyes for Coraline.

I really enjoyed being with Coraline on her adventure.  I love the changes the adventure brought to Coraline's life. Gaiman's writing is dark and creepy.  You are really right there with Coraline.  But, as a writer, I have to say that my favorite part of the book were the 'extra features' at the end.  Gaiman tells about how and why he wrote Coraline.  There are extra drawings and he tells the story of working with the illustrator.  

Recommendation: grade 6 and up
Pages: 162 pages
Rating: Love it!