Coraline by Neil Gaiman

I have never seen this cover before, but it is creepy awesome, amirite?

I usually love scary stories. Picking out books for the R.I.P. challenge is something I look forward to each year. However, for some reason -- whether it be the fact that I am now a mother, or the fact that I care for kids every day for whom death is no joke -- I have had a hard time this year. I started The Diviners and Bellman and Black and could not get through them due to the dark, creep factor. However, Coraline, despite being satisfyingly scary, was just the right level to give me a good scare without disturbing me too much.

Coraline is about a little girl who has a pretty decent life that is pretty boring. She goes off in search of adventure and finds it -- but it leads to a lot of terror and responsibility to go through that terror to save lives. There is a big focus in the book on being brave -- on doing things you don't want to do that are necessary. I think that is part of the reason I loved Coraline -- I don't like books that are written purely to disturb. I like that there is a positive message at the bottom of the scary story.

I also loved the exquisite combination of beautiful writing and creepy, creepy pictures. This is the first Neil Gaiman I have read (I know, I know) and thus far, the hype is all warranted -- in fact, the next book I plan to pick up is also Neil Gaiman. The illustrations are also excellent for portraying the vivid images Gaiman creates with his words. I felt submersed in Coraline's creepy adventure, surrounded by the things that were haunting and frightening her.

Coraline was an excellent read for this Halloween, and I am glad that I finally picked up a Neil Gaiman novel. I may not be able to handle as much fright as I used to be, but it is good to know that there are some great ghost stories out there that aren't overly gory or dark.

4 stars

Warnings: Scary

Short Story Spotlight: "Snow, Glass, Apples" by Neil Gaiman

I'll tell you up front that "Snow, Glass, Apples" is the only thing by Neil Gaiman that I have ever read (shame on me). I actually read it a while ago and never posted anything about it. When the short story I read for this month's post left me completely cold, I found myself thinking of this creepy little story again, and decided it was more deserving of mention than the book I read.

"Snow, Glass, Apples" is a retelling of Snow White from the "evil" queen's point of view. For some reason, the princess holds a strange fixation for people, particularly for men, but her young stepmother sees beyond the princess's strange allure to a lurking darkness within.

I know that I will enjoy Gaiman's other works just from the beauty of the language he uses in "Snow, Glass, Apples." The words evoke images that are descriptive not in the sugary, sentimental way but with a sharp, diamond-cut cleanness. The story is not beautiful and romantic like a traditional fairy tale; it is disturbing but poignant, and the images do not fade quickly.

The creativity of the story is also powerful. I don't want to give away the crux of it, what Snow White really is, because figuring that out was part of the fun of reading the story, but I will say that I was amazed by how Neil Gaiman took the elements of the fairy tale and twisted them neatly so that they told a completely different story without being corrupted at all.

Don't read this story when you are alone at night -- it is very creepy. Also bear in mind that with that creepiness, there are some mature themes in the story. However, it is a brilliant and well-written retelling of Snow White, and one that is worth reading.