Coraline by Neil Gaiman

I  will be brave, thought Coraline. No, I am brave.

Neil Gaiman will soon be going on his "Last US Book Tour" and one of his stops will be at the Dallas Museum of Art. (Which means I get to see him in person!) I was really excited when I found out about this and immediately set out to read as many of his books as I could manage. After all, I have a tendency to wait until the week before to read books by the authors I'm going to see at a convention, so I figured I would head that bad habit off by starting now.

As you may or may not know, I've already read Stardust and am happily exposed to Neil Gaiman via his involvement with my favorite sci-fi, Doctor Who. I adore him and deeply admire his creativity. I was more than eager to read this work and I wasn't disappointed. (A little creeped out, though? Definitely.)

When Coraline and her parents move into their new home, Coraline finds a new place to explore and discover. She loves to explore. It eases the boredom of being an only child in a new and unfamiliar place. In her explorations in and around the house, Coraline meets some strange women next door, an odd old man, a black cat, and discovers a door in her home that leads to nowhere.

This last fact is only slightly true. It isn't long before Coraline is left alone in the house and finds that the door does, in fact, lead somewhere; somewhere that is also nowhere. And through that door, she discovers a world that is very much like her own, at first glance, though slightly twisted. Her mother and father are there, only they have button eyes. The man upstairs owns singing rats instead of musical mice, and the women next door perform in productions for the many dogs they still own.

When Coraline realizes this place is very dark and unhappy, she tries to escape back to her own home, but her Other Mother has captured her real parents. Now it's up to Coraline to face her and win them back.

Coraline is a beautifully constructed novel about a girl learning that she can conquer any obstacle she faces. Coraline is a strong character who is restless and adventurous, like many young girls, and though she is scared of the challenge ahead of her, is willing to face it if it will save the parents she loves so dearly. It takes all of her willpower and ingenuity to conquer her foe, but Coraline is willing to take the risk.

I really enjoyed this book. It was just as creative as I was expecting (something I greatly admire, as stated before) and inspirational. It's definitely creepy and will make you want to keep a night light on for the next few nights, but a novel that's absolutely worth reading.

Rating: ★★★★☆

Coraline sighed. "You really don't understand, do you?" she said. "I don't want whatever I want. Nobody does. Not really. What kind of fun would it be if I just got everything I ever wanted? Just like that, and it didn't mean anything. What then?"