Currently Reading: "The Graveyard Book" by Neil Gaiman
Neil Gaiman is by no means a common children's book writer; nor is he a noobie when it comes to weaving together a tale with both innocence and darkness. In some respects, he could be considered a more PG-rated version of Tim Burton.
Most of his books resonate with me the same way the later Harry Potter books did. It feels like a young reader's kind of book but possesses that adult quality that pulls older readers in. I read his other book called, "Coraline" a few years back. The movie and the book were surprisingly similar and I liked the added character of Wyborn (not sure about the spelling.) It helped immensely because the character of Coraline tended to have a lot of internal thoughts and I think it's hard to translate that onto the movie screen in a way that doesn't take too much away from the story. Somehow, Henry Sellick was able to pull such a thing off and I believe he chose a very creative way in which to do it without losing the integrity of the book in the movie.
*MINOR SPOILER ALERT*
In "The Graveyard Book," Gaiman starts off with something that adults don't usually think is okay for children to read about: a murdered family. Already I can feel the tragedy sinking in for the main character caught in the middle of it. However, Gaiman almost always manages to slide in some good humor which makes reading his books even more enjoyable.
I know I always say that I'm excited to read every book I start, but this is one really is up there with my favorites. I haven't even finished chapter one! But Neil Gaiman is quite notorious for keeping me hooked till the very end and I have no doubt that this book will not disappoint.
Give it a read when you can! Since it is considered a children's book, it does have quite a few illustrations but that makes reading it even more enjoyable! Just read the first chapter and I can most likely promise that you will want to keep reading.