2009 Newbery Medal winner

What do you think of this prize winner? It has received mixed reaction from the reading community.

Author Neil Gaiman has been awarded the 2009 Newbery Medal for his quirky fantasy novel The Graveyard Book, which was illustrated by Dave McKean and published by HarperCollins Children’s Books.
"A delicious mix of murder, fantasy, humor and human longing, the tale of Nobody Owens is told in magical, haunting prose. A child marked for death by an ancient league of assassins escapes into an abandoned graveyard, where he is reared and protected by its spirit denizens." (ALA media release 1/26/09)

Neil Gaiman has also been in the news lately for another of his children's books. The movie version of his popular (and scary) novel Coraline will be released February 6, 2009.

I haven't read it yet, but definitely want to! I think Gaiman is an excellent writer, and I loved his two children's books, Coraline and The Day I Swapped my Dad for Two Goldfish. I am a little surprised that he won, though, as his stories don't seem the type to earn Newbery awards. That's a good thing, though, right? Changing with the times.

I haven't read it yet either, but I do love his adult work.

Wasn't there a bit of controversy about last year's winner as well? Didn't a bunch of elementary school librarians or elementary school parents try to have it removed from the shelves?

Maybe it is just a sign of the times. Everything is controvertial. Everyone wants to sue someone. Every little thing is over-analyzed and scrutinized.

Since I love Gaiman, I will read it as soon as my ordered copy arrives. I'll let my 15 year old read it next and then my 9 year old. I am not sure that my 7 year old is ready yet. She cringes everytime she sees a commercial for Coraline :) But that is her personal taste, not that she needs to be sheltered from any type of literature.

I read it before it just before it won the Newbery. I loved it and was very excited it one. It's funny but also very moving and definitely made me want to reread The Jungle Book.

Now that I have checked, it was not last year's (2008) that was controversial, it was the year before (2007) The Higher Power of Lucky and there was quite a bit of uproar about the book using the word "scrotum". I guess the point was that children do not need to know these words yet. I am thinking Neil Gaiman will not have the same problem. The scary factor is not going to be an issue because so many kid's books are of the "fright" variety now.

Hey Marcia..
Great to see you here as well as the 75 book challenge group. I haven't read The Graveyard Book Neil Gaiman but plan to do so very soon.

>5 sevedra:, Yes, I remember that "scrotum" controversy now... I don't even think The Graveyard Book is that scary, or much scarier than a lot of other children's books, not even all newer ones. It has ghosts and goblins and all, but it's really more charming than anything else, which sounds so weird when I describe it. The original Jungle Book by Kipling is, IMHO, just as scary, if not more so.

>6 Whisper1:, Good to see you, too, Linda! I hope you do read The Graveyard Book, I think you'll really enjoy it.