Coraline

Neil Gaiman

‘The message is this. Don’t go through the door.’ He paused.
‘Does this mean anything to you?’
‘No,’ said Coraline.
The old man shrugged.
‘They are funny, the mice. They get things wrong. They got your name wrong, you know. They kept saying Coraline. Not Caroline. Not Caroline at all.’

But just as the mice did not get Coraline's name wrong their warning message was also correct and soon the words do mean something to her. Coraline finds that there is a secret corridor behind a locked door, a corridor that takes her into another house – a terrifying house very similar to her own, but with counterfeit parents and a terrible quest on which her survival, and so much more, depends.

In this wickedly scary and brilliantly crafted story, best-selling author Neil Gaiman has created a compelling novel that fascinates, frightens and surprises all at once.

‘This book will send a shiver down your spine, out through your shoes and into a taxi to the airport. It has the delicate horror of the finest fairy tales, and it is a masterpiece. And you will never think about buttons in quite the same way again.'

Review by Ray (301103) Rating (8/10)

Review by Ray
Coraline finds a secret corridor to a mirror world in her parents flat. And so starts a journey where kids never listen to their parents because they're silly and parents don't listen to their children because they think they're making things up. In this case the kid got it right. A mysterious door, a dark corridor, familiar things and faces with scary eyes.

This book has got the lot, an evil mum, a talking cat, ghosts and mad old ladies. A recipe for an amusing, yet chilling story where the good guys, in this case a little girl, win but not without making you think that it’s not going to be all that easy. Coraline as a central character is a well-rounded individual and has a matter of fact view on life. If I was her parent and I had a little window into how she interpreted the world around her I'd be very scared…

It's a short book and even I read it in one sitting. Kids will love this book. It has got the right kind of scary things and the old good vs. evil angle that kids like. They can identify with Coraline and adults reading this book (like me... honest) would appreciate the finer points of the story.

As Pratchett himself writes on the back cover, you'll never think of buttons in the same way again...
Ray (30th November 2003)