Content levels
Trigger warnings
Protagonist archetypes
Tropes
Themes
Synopsis
Bod is an unusual boy who inhabits an unusual place—he's the only living resident of a graveyard. Raised from infancy by the ghosts, werewolves, and other cemetery denizens, Bod has learned the antiquated customs of his guardians' time as well as their ghostly teachings—such as the ability to Fade so mere mortals cannot see him. Can a boy raised by ghosts face the wonders and terrors of the worlds of both the living and the dead? The Graveyard Book is the winner of the Newbery Medal, the Carnegie Medal, the Hugo Award for best novel, the Locus Award for Young Adult novel, the American Bookseller Association’s “Best Indie Young Adult Buzz Book,” a Horn Book Honor, and Audio Book of the Year.
Is The Graveyard Book appropriate for my child?
Suitable for most readers 9 and up.
A boy is raised by ghosts in a graveyard after his family is murdered. Contains some frightening supernatural elements and themes of death, but handled with warmth and age-appropriate sensitivity.
What to know going in
This book has moderate violence, no sexual content, and clean language. Content notes include child harm, murder, death of parent, death, and grief.
Who'll love this
Kids will love following Bod as he learns ghostly powers, explores his strange home, and discovers what it means to grow up in a world where he doesn't quite belong.