The Erie Reader Book Club: October 2024

Erin Phillips

Join the Erie Reader Book Club that last Sunday in October as they discuss their Halloween Issue selection, The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman.

SUNDAY, OCT. 27

"There was a hand in the darkness and it held a knife."

The October meeting of the Erie Reader book club will be a discussion of The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman in correspondence with the latest Halloween Issue of the Erie Reader.

While technically written as a young adult novel, after its publication in 2008, it was widely received and revered – and truly for readers of any age. One critic noted that "this (book) needs to be read by anyone who is or has ever been a child." The book puts Gaiman's rich, imaginative universe and original storytelling structures on display. The book has received the British Carnegie Medal and the American Newbery Medal, the Hugo Award for Best Novel, the World Fantasy Award for Best Novel, and the Locus Award for Best Young Adult Book.

The plotline, described by Gaiman as "The Jungle Book but in a graveyard," follows a young boy named Nobody who grows up in a graveyard, raised by the ghosts within – as he picks up supernatural qualities from the spirits around him. In a series of eight short stories, each set two years after the last, the boy grows up, faces challenges, builds relationships, and eventually comes of age.

Within the discussion at Werner Books and Coffee on Sunday, Oct. 27 at 1 p.m., we will talk about the novel, the merit of young adult fiction when read by adults, the themes of friendship and memory, the structure of the book, and the metaphors of invisibility and anger as related to trauma. Anyone is welcome to read the book and join in the discussion – new members are always welcome.

1 p.m. // Werner Books and Coffee, 3608 Liberty St. // Free, cost of book not included // For more info: wernerbooks.com