Coraline

Coraline, the graphic novel by Neil Gaiman, is a spooky tale of a young girl, Coraline, who moves to an apartment flat with her parents. After feeling neglected by her parents always working, Coraline explores the flat and finds a small door that leads to another world. This twisted story touches on quite a few themes such as appreciating and respecting your parents. Gaiman

does a good job of incorporating the themes throughout the entire story, having a resolving ending that gives students the perspective of the benefits of being brave and hopeful.

Author Neil Gaiman portrays his love for adventure in this novel through the scenes Coraline has exploring in and outside of the house. A review by Matt Berman from commonsensemedia.org states “Not everything will make sense to young readers, nor will they find the emotional heart that makes children’s classics – but they will find Coraline to be a brave character who uses her smarts to not only save herself, but also others…” Depending on what age this is read at, younger students will get different things out of this book compared to older students; and that’s okay. Reading this book multiple times and at different points in one’s life can be beneficial for a student so they can discover these different themes on their own. Therefore, while this book can be creepy and not for everyone, it can still be enjoyed at any age.