Fiction Review: Coraline, by Neil Gaiman

Bibliographic Information:
Gaiman, Neil. Coraline. New York: HarperCollins, 2002.  Illustrated by Dave McKean.

ISBN-13: 978-0380807345

Summary:

Coraline's family has just moved to a new flat a few weeks before school starts.  It's an unusually cold summer and she's bored out of her mind when rain traps her inside.  She goes exploring and finds a door that goes nowhere in a little-used room - until she opens it a second time and it leads her to a mirror version of her home, with an other-mother and other-father that want nothing more than to play with her all day long.  There's something not right in this other-world, however, and it will take all of Coraline's bravery and resourcefulness to save herself and her family from what she's found.

Audience:

Ages 8-12

 

Strengths:
Excellently written
Very atmospheric
Great themes about bravery, the power of imagination and the importance of family

Weaknesses:

May be too scary for some children

Characters other than Coraline are a bit thinly characterized

Uses:

There are several possible uses for this book.  It would serve as an excellent introduction to the horror genre and/or "other world" speculative fiction books.  It would also be a good jumping-off point for readers to practice discussing books.  As they read, children can try and guess what will happen next from the clues given in the story - such as what object Coraline has that will protect her, or where her parents might be hidden.  It could also be used as part of a unit on families and how parents and children relate to one another.

Read-alikes:

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, Lewis Carroll
Through the Looking Glass, and What Alice Found There, Lewis Carroll
The Wolves in the Walls, Neil Gaiman
Down The Rabbit Hole,  Peter Abrahams

And a bonus Watch-alike:

Spirited Away, dir. Hayao Miyazaki

Awards:

Bram Stoker Award for Best Work for Young Readers, 2002.
American Booksellers Book Sense Book of the Year (ABBY) Award, 2003 Finalist Children's Literature
Elizabeth Burr/Worzalla Award, 2003 Winner
Locus Award, 2003 Winner Best Young Adult Book
Louisiana Young Readers' Choice Award, 2005 Winner Grades 6-8
Mythopoeic Fantasy Award for Children's Literature, 2003 Finalist
Thumbs Up! Award, 2003 Nominee

(award info from the Children's Literature Comprehensive Database)