Coraline (the audiobook)

Coraline (the audiobook)
by Neil Gaiman

Coraline is a great read. But I find myself recommending the audiobook more than the actual book. Why? First, because the audiobook is narrated by the author. Gaiman's voice can somehow be both childlike and creepy while still sounding like a perfectly normal English adult. I don't know how he does it. The second reason is that this audiobook is a whopping 3 hours long. If you need a road trip book for kids, this one is great. The whole story is contained in a short enough time period that younger ones can actually keep a handle on what's going on.

A note about the actual story: Coraline is spooky and fast-paced, but sweet. Gaiman manages to create a child character that is actually childlike while writing an intriguing tale. Too many middle-grade readers feature 11-year-olds that act 25. So way to go Neil!

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