Harper Collins Review--Halloween edition (Part 2)

How exactly did I miss reading and seeing Coraline before now? Seriously. Luckily for me, HarperCollins sent me the 10th anniversary edition to Gaiman's book.

Gaiman's prose is poetic, even while describing some pretty horrific scenes. While not exactly "Halloween" themed, this story is creepy, both physically and psychologically (mostly the latter). Coraline finds herself trapped in an "other" world--other mother, other father, other room, other flat. An adventurer by nature, she sets off on a challenging quest to get herself--and her parents--home. Coraline is a great character--scared but brave, mature but a child, stubborn but willing to accept help. I liked her relationship with the cat. (Of course.) The supporting characters also living in the divided-up house are interesting, and add some British quirk to the novel.

This is short but exciting, written well even if a bit simplistically at times, and a sort of horror version of the home-away-from-home tale. Gaiman taps into one of childhood's most common secret desires: "why can't I just have different parents--then my life would be so much better!" and spins it on its ugly head.

It was also interesting reading the interviews at the end of the book. The original Q&A is included along with one for this edition. It's neat to read Gaiman's response before and after the success of Coraline.

Harper Collins Review--Halloween Edition (Part 1)

Invisible Inkling: Dangerous Pumpkins by Emily Jenkins and Henry Bliss is a cute, fun read about a fourth grade boy with an invisible friend. Unlike the typical invisible friendship, however, Hank's companion is a bandapat, a strange creature that hails from the redwood forests of Cameroon. (No, really, they exist!) Bandapats like Inkling--I have an inkling, get it? This joke is likely lost on the target audience, but no matter--needs a particular food for sustenance. One that is in abundance around Halloween, but that often serves as decoration and artwork. What happens to Hank when his furry friend starts in on all of the gorgeous jack o' laterns in the neighborhood?

Hank's situation is pretty unusual, but Jenkins does a great job of not making the fantastic seem too ridiculous. Amidst all the drama with Inkling, Hank is just a regular fourth grade boy trying to handle life's complications--fights with friends, a bossy older sister, parents who don't seem to understand him, if they pay attention at all. A lot of Hank's narration is quite funny (his teacher has "complicated hair" and is "not [his] favorite person"), but he's also sincere without being too mature. Kids will identify with Hank's reliance on his invisible pal, even when he's stirring up trouble that Hank has to deal with himself.

This is the first book in a series, and so far, Hank has not revealed Inkling's existence to anyone. Fantasy frequently involves a confidant or two that accepts the truth of the situation without question. Stay tuned to find out whether Hank lets people in on his secret.