The Graveyard Book

A multi award winning novel with a grim and gripping opening as the man Jack murders a family, leaving only the baby who crawls away and is brought up as Nobody (‘Bod’) Owens by the community of ghosts who inhabit the nearby graveyard. Bod’s upbringing by a crowd of crepuscular characters bears some resemblance to that of Mowgli in The Jungle Book, an influence the author acknowledges. Through the agency of his friend Scarlett, he eventually comes face to face with the man Jack. Will this prove to be his nemesis?

See also: Rudyard Kipling: The Jungle Book, illustrated by Nicola Bayley (9781406356397), Walker £14.99/Vintage Children’s Classics £5.99 (9780099573029)