Odd and the Frost Giants- Neil Gaiman

Fresh of his Newbery Award winning performance in The Graveyard Book, Neil Gaiman returns with the delightful and slightly more suitable for my current reading audience Odd and the Frost Giants.

Playing to one of his many and considerable strengths, Gaiman sets this story within the world of Norse mythology. Odd is a young boy living in a Viking village in Norway. His father perished on a raiding expedition, and his mother (a captive from Scotland) has remarried Fat Elfred, the village oaf. To make matters worse, a tree fell on his leg when he was younger, crushing his bones, and leaving him with a debilitating limp. To Vikings, a boy who can not handle himself physically, does not have much worth at all.

One day, Odd decides to run away from home. (Given his home life, we can imagine how he might long for something different.) While walking in the woods, Odd encounters three very special animals: an eagle, a bear, and a fox. He comes to recognize that they are in fact Odin, Thor, and Loki, three of the mightiest gods from the Norse Pantheon.

They have been banished from Asgard, the city of the gods, by a particularly surly Frost Giant thanks to the arrogance of Loki. In being banished, they have lost their human forms and been trapped as considerably less powerful (although not powerless) animals. Their banishment has lead to an extra long and brutal winter in Midgard, the realm of humans.

It seems that only Odd can help the gods regain their rightful place, and end the horrible winter. Although physically impaired, Odd is cheerful, clever, and, perhaps most importantly of all, infuriating. Will he have what it takes to defeat the mightiest of all the Frost Giants? Will he succeed where the the steely will of Odin, the unfathomable might of Thor, and the devious machinations of Loki have all failed? What does he possibly have to offer that these gods do not?

Odd and the Frost Giants is a slim volume, coming in at just over 100 pages including wonderful illustrations by award-winning artist Brett Helquist, and it's over almost before it's begun. I guess Gaiman is abiding by the old show business maxim: always leave your audience wanting more. In his author biography, Gaiman says that there are more Odd stories he'd like to tell, and I for one would be happy to read them.

Neil Gaiman's most excellent website for young people:

Mr. Bobo's Remarkable Mouse Circus

But Did You Read It First?- Coraline

Today I'm excited to introduce a new feature to Anbaric Lights. I know that the tagline is a book review for (and occasionally by) kids, but we're looking to spread a wings a bit here. But Did You Read It First? is going to address movie adaptations of popular children's books.

Literary adaptations are such tricky things, as we all have our own preconceived notions about the characters looks, accents, wardrobe etc... and rarely do they conform to what eventually makes it to the screen. However, if we see the the movie first, we can't help but picture the actors in our heads as we read. I'm a huge fan of personal and unique interpretations of stories, so I advocate (some would argue to the point of militancy) that reading precede viewing in every literary adaptation.

Like the publishing industry, the fantastic success of the Harry Potter films lead to an inordinate amount of adaptation rights purchased and rushed into production. Visions of enormous paydays and franchise potential lead to disappointing versions of Eragon, Series of Unfortunate Events, The Golden Compass, City of Ember, Bridge to Terebithia, City of Ember, Inkheart (perhaps soon to be tackled by our own Melody Houser soon, assuming her Inkheart book review ever gets finished) and many others soon followed.

I personally lost my taste for the movies after a so-so and defanged film version of The Golden Compass. However, I did have high hopes for Coraline, and thus it is the subject of this inaugural post.

It's no secret that I'm a huge fan of Neil Gaiman, and when I heard that he was adapting his delightfully creepy fairytale Coraline with stop motion animation genius Henry Selick of Nightmare Before Christmas and James and the Giant Peach fame my appetite was considerably whetted.

First and foremost, the story: Coraline Jones moves with her family to the Pink Paradise Apartment complex (a converted Victorian mansion) presumably so her garden catalog author/editor parents can get some work done. Coraline has left her friends behind, and is clearly unhappy in her new environment. While wondering in the hills behind her new home she encounters Wybegone, who goes by Wybie, someone who seems very wanting in regard to the friends she's left behind.

The Pink Paradise is also inhabited by Mr. Bobinsky, a washed-up Russian acrobat who is training a mouse circus, and Ms. Forcible and Ms. Spink, two decidedly over the hill former stage actresses who spend their days with their with wads of taffy and innumerable schnauzers. As Coraline mopes about (everyone calls her Caroline) her parents are too consumed with their work to pay her any mind. They won't even let her play outside in the rain for fear of tracking mud into the house. Gardening author/editors indeed. Her father, in a fit of absent-minded, ill-advised and work-obsessed parenting skills gives Coraline a notebook and tells her to count all of the doors and windows in the house.

It is during one such accounting task that she finds a mysterious and tiny door hidden behind the wallpaper of their living room. Her mother, just to shut Coraline up, produces the key and opens it. The open the door only to find it bricked over. However, later that night Coraline returns to the door and finds a mysterious tunnel waiting for her. Upon traversing it she encounters a world very similar to her own.

Her parents are there but different. One, they have buttons for eyes, and two everything is better. The food is delicious, her parents are loving and attentive, her father has grown the garden to resemble her face, and the neighbors are considerably sprier and more entertaining than they were back in Coraline's world. No one calls her "Caroline," but did I mention that everyone has "BUTTONS FOR EYES!!!?"

At first everything is wonderful, but when the buttons, needle and thread are pulled out for Coraline herself, she realizes that things were better at her (real) home. What follows is her struggle to return home and defeat the evil and frankly terrifying machinations of her "other Mother."

Now, the look. Selnick has truly outdone himself with this one. The look of the whole film is gorgeous, but the other world is especially breathtaking. Bobinsky's mouse circus, the stage show performed by Forcible and Spink, the Garden, the horribly elongated and arachnid true form of the other mother, all rendered in gorgeous stop-motion animation and 3-D (be prepared to pay a little extra for the privilege).

Does it do the book justice? Most definitely. Fans of the book and neophytes alike will delight in Selnick's achievement in Coraline. To my devoted audience of readers (all almost several of you) I put forth the following request: let's look at forthcoming or recently released children's literature adaptations. Who wants to be the first guest blogger for But Did You Read It First?? Inkheart is still in theaters, and City of Ember just came out on DVD. Let me know what you are thinking, and there might be a trip to the movies on my dime in it for you...

Congratulations Neil Gaiman!

Wow, I never thought I'd see the day, but one of my all-time favorite authors, Neil Gaiman, a man that I regard as visionary, but not particularly mainstream, has been honored with the Newberry award for his recently published The Graveyard Book, reviewed here. It's always a pleasure to see some of my favorite authors make good. Congratulations Neil. I can't wait to see Coraline. a full list of award winners for 2009: (from the ALA website. Check the links on the homepage.)

2009 Medal Winner

The 2009 Newbery Medal winner is The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman, 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.

"A child named Nobody, an assassin, a graveyard and the dead are the perfect combination in this deliciously creepy tale, which is sometimes humorous, sometimes haunting and sometimes surprising," said Newbery Committee Chair Rose V. Treviño.

2009 Honor Books

The Underneath by Kathi Appelt, illustrated by David Small (Atheneum Books for Young Readers, an imprint of Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing)

Underneath the canopy of the loblolly pines, amid the pulsating sounds of the swamp, there lies a tale. Intertwining stories of an embittered man, a loyal hound, an abandoned cat and a vengeful lamia sing of love, loss, loneliness and hope. Appelt's lyrical storytelling heightens the distinguished characteristics of this work.

The Surrender Tree: Poems of Cuba's Struggle for Freedom by Margarita Engle (Henry Holt & Comapny)

The Surrender Tree utilizes compelling free verse in alternating voices to lyrically tell the story of Cuba's three wars for independence from Spain. Combining real-life characters (such as legendary healer Rosa La Bayamesa) with imagined individuals, Engle focuses on Rosa's struggle to save everyone--black, white, Cuban, Spanish, friend or enemy.

Savvy by Ingrid Law (Dial Books for Young Readers, a division of Penguin Young Readers Group in partnership with Walden Media, LLC

This rich first-person narrative draws readers into a wild bus ride, winding through the countryside on a journey of self-discovery for Mibs Beaumont and her companions. Newcomer Law weaves a magical tall tale, using vivid language and lively personalities, all bouncing their way to a warm, satisfying conclusion.

After Tupac & D Foster by Jacqueline Woodson (G.P. Putnam's Sons, a division of Penguin Books for Young Readers)

This tightly woven novel looks back on two years in a New York City neighborhood, where life changes for two 11-year-olds when a new girl joins their game of double Dutch. Bonded by Tupac's music, the three girls explore the lure of freedom and build a friendship that redefines their own identities.

The Graveyard Book- Neil Gaiman

I'm always a happy guy when a new piece of fiction from Neil Gaiman comes out, but I'm downright delighted when he publishes a new work aimed at young readers. He has written two picture books (with David McCean) Wolves in the Walls, and The Day I traded My Dad for Two Goldfish. He has also published a book of short stories M is for Magic, but he is probably best known for the deliciously creepy Coraline.

Now, just in time for Halloween, Gaiman has returned to the world of children's literature with The Graveyard Book. TGB tells the story of Bod (short for Nobody) Owens, a young boy who is raised by ghosts in a graveyard after his family meets a particularly gruesome end within the book's opening chapter. This initial scene is fairly intense and terrifying, but the book settles down after that. The fate of Bod's family is no less unsettling than what happened to Lilly and James Potter in the Harry Potter books.

Bod enters the care of the ghosts after escaping his parent's fate as a toddler. Here he enters into a particularly loving and unique childhood. Raised by four hundred year's worth of ghosts, Bod has the benefit of wisdom from several different ages of British gentility. The oldest resident of the yard is a former Roman Centurian who never made it home from Caesar's campaigns. The most recent (or youngest) ghosts are Victorian dandies, the graveyard having been filled to capacity one hundred years ago. In the intervening years the graveyard is protected as a nature preserve, and thus explains how Bod is able to grow up without interference from pesky Child Protective Services or other well-meaning, but poorly informed dogooders.

Gaiman deftly weaves a growing confrontation between Bod and the shadowy cabal (really, is there any other type of cabal worth worrying about?) responsible for the deaths of Bod's family. These men, known as the Jacks of All Trades (needless to say, their trades are hardly carpentry or coopering) are magic users who crave power through the control and domination of others.

Along the way, Bod meets werewolves (his teacher, who refers to herself as a Hound of God), ghouls (particularly terrifying), witches, and death her(!)self. He also learns the ways of the dead: he can see in the dark, fade into invisibility, walk within the dreams of others, haunt, and induce fear from vague uneasiness to outright terror.

Throughout, Gaiman keeps the readers guessing as to the reasons for the death of Bod's family, and maintains tension along the way the climactic confrontation between Bod and the Jacks of All Trades. In addition, Gaiman sprinkles the story with liberal doses of his dry British humor. For example, each new ghost the reader meets is introduced by the inscription on their headstone: Traveler, Put Down Thy Staff, Deeply Regretted by All Who Knew Him, or my personal favorite Who Did No Harm To No Man all the Dais of Her Life. Reader, Can You Say Lykewise?

All in all, TGB is the welcome return of a master storyteller to the world of children's fiction. Here's hoping that it won't be so long next time. P.S. Readers, when your older, check out Gaiman's work on the Sandman graphic novels. Epic storytelling plain and simple.