Book Club Guide

The Graveyard Book

by Neil Gaiman · 2008 · Young Adult

Key themes

The graveyard as a safe place to grow up — and what that says about the world outside
Found family among the dead
Growing up means leaving — even the people who saved you

About this book

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 antiqu

Published in 2008, The Graveyard Book won the Hugo Award, the Newbery Medal and the Carnegie Medal — making it one of the most-awarded books in recent history. Gaiman has said the idea came from watching his young son ride his tricycle around a graveyard.

Discussion questions

Nobody Owens is raised by ghosts after his family is murdered. How does Gaiman develop this premise — and what does the graveyard provide that the living world denied him?
The novel is loosely structured as a series of episodic adventures, similar to The Jungle Book. How does this structure work — and what does each episode teach Bod?
Silas, Bod's guardian, is morally ambiguous — clearly not entirely good, but devoted to Bod. How does Gaiman develop this relationship?
The novel ends with Bod having to leave the graveyard — the price of growing up is leaving the place that protected you. How does Gaiman handle this loss?
The Graveyard Book won the Hugo, the Newbery and the Carnegie Medal — a rare triple. What does it do that earns recognition across children's, fantasy and general literary awards simultaneously?