Prize-winning Neil Gaiman tells a witty and touching story about gods and magic in Viking times. Having run away from home, Odd finds shelter in a little hut in the forest. Here, he meets a bear, a fox and an eagle all of whom seems determined to befriend him. Soon, Odd discovers these are no ordinary animals and that they badly need his help to save the City of Asgard from the Frost Giants who have invaded it. With his cheerful temperament and quick thinking, Odd is just the kind of imaginative hero they need and a wonderful battle for power unfolds. ~ Julia Eccleshare
The two stories in this exciting novella follow the adventures of the intrepid young Viking Odd. As a brave and solitary twelve-year-old, in the first tale, he endeavours to free three Norse Gods trapped in the bodies of an eagle, a bear and a fox; then, in the second, a few years older, taller and stronger he sets off on a testing and epic journey to the Holy City of Jerusalem. But of course with Neil Gaiman's wit and style the stories transcend the normal and become humorous, rich and layered tales of a life lived courageously.
'One of the joys of reading Gaiman is how he subverts our expectations of magic, horror, fantasy and the mundane - The Times
'Gaiman's ear is acute ... There is much more. There is the tender and beautifully judged ending ... ladies and gentleman, boys and girls, rise to your feet and applaud: Coraline is the real thing' - Guardian
Praise for 'The Graveyard Book':
'An extraordinary novel by a very gifted storyteller. Adults find it terrifying; children lap it up. It's utterly original, and written with elegance and power' Observer, Books of the Year
'The best book Neil Gaiman has ever written' Diana Wynne Jones
Author
About Neil Gaiman
Bestselling author Neil Gaiman has long been one of the top writers in modern comics, as well as writing books for readers of all ages. He is listed in the Dictionary of Literary Biography as one of the top ten living post-modern writers, and is a prolific creator of works of prose, poetry, film, journalism, comics, song lyrics, and drama.
Gaiman was the creator/writer of monthly cult DC Comics horror-weird series, Sandman, which won nine Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards. Norman Mailer said of Sandman: "Along with all else, Sandman is a comic strip for intellectuals, and I say it's about time."
A self-confessed “feral kid who was raised in libraries”, Author of the Month Neil Gaiman, spent much of his childhood devouring the books of J.R.R. Tolkein, Edgar Allan Poe, C.S. Lewis, Michael Morcock and a host of others. Once the biographer of Douglas Adams and Duran Duran, he has achieved cult status in the world of Science Fiction with his award winning, unpatronising writing for young people.
Born and raised in England, Neil Gaiman now lives near Minneapolis, Minnesota. He has somehow reached his forties and still tends to need a haircut.
See Neil speaking about his new novel, Fortunately, the Milk, a time-travelling adventure for young readers featuring aliens, dinosaurs, volcano gods and a pint of milk that saves the universe!
To download a teachers' guide to the Fortunately, the Milk... - of interest to parents too! - click here!
