3rd Quarter Book Report

Coraline

A Book Report

Coraline is a book written by a New York Times best-selling author; Neil Gaiman.

The book’s foundation revolves around the normal boring life of a little girl named Coraline and a mysterious door that changed all of that.

Theme

Coraline is the kind of child who easily gets uninterested or tired of the things she sees no meaning in. During the first part of the book her character regarded the new flat she moved in to as a new location she could explore.  She would walk and investigate the building’s garden, the play ground, the forests, the rooms where the other residents lived, and all of the other places that enclosed the apartment itself. Being an only child with two very busy parents, one would understand why Coraline’s attention-span was limited. She would easily get tired of the things she’d already seen and she would immediately lose interest in everything that seemed predictable and normal.

It all started with the rain. Since it was raining, Coraline couldn’t explore much of the place anymore. So she was forced to stay inside and entertain herself with the new house she was living in. At first she was just asking for permission from her dad to go outside, but since it was raining, her father didn’t encourage the idea. He told her to explore the flat instead. He told her to count all the doors, all the windows, list everything that was blue, and asked her to just leave him alone to work. It’s a little unfortunate that even though both of Coraline’s parents both worked inside their house they still didn’t have time for her. Nevertheless, Coraline did as she was told. She explored, swept her eyes through every corner and ran a hand against every wall and creaking door. She did everything to keep herself from suffering from boredom.

All of the doors she found opened and closed all the same. All except one. This intrigued Coraline. The door at their mysterious Drawing room led to nothing but the wall. Or so she thought.

One night, as Coraline wearily waited for her mother to come home, she fumbled for the key to the mysterious door. And to her surprise, she found herself able to go through it. The door led her to another Drawing room, quite similar to the one that she was from before. But as she observed the room more, the Drawing room seemed more vibrant, more fun, and more… interesting. And this was the start of her journey to a magical world. Coraline found herself in a place very much like the flat she was from only it was much more suited to her liking. The food served was better, her room was more colorful, her toys moved, and there was so much she could explore. It was a perfect world where she could never get bored in.  It was a magical place completely opposite to the dull and uninteresting life she had left behind the other side of the mysterious door.

Her parents there were different as well. They claimed to be her other mother and other father. They looked almost exactly as what her parents usually do, but their eyes were different. Her other mother and other father had deep black buttons for eyes. But, one would ignore that at first when everything seems so perfect, right? Even if their jet black button eyes looked… hungry?

Coraline would have much preferred the perfect world she was given until her other mother said they needed to sew buttons to her eyes. Slowly and surely, Coraline realized the trap she was lured in to and the world that didn’t seem too perfect anymore. She began to find out what was behind her other mother’s hungry button eyes.

“Fairy tales are more than true; not because they tell us that dragons exist, but because they tell us that dragons can be beaten.”
-G.K. Chesterton

I think that quote was the basis of the whole scheme of the story. Coraline was faced with a dragon, and a very cunning one at that. The book’s insights tackled mostly on Coraline’s bravery and eagerness to defend what she knew was right. From a timid and easily bored little girl, Coraline became a courageous and persistent young woman almost immediately. She was pushed to the edge of her limits, her fears, and her weaknesses. She was forced to battle her dragon alone.

She was also forced to choose between her magical world and normal one.  The message from that idea itself portrays that what people usually want in their lives, aren’t always what they truly need.

Coraline’s character development was inspiring and realistic. The readers could actually feel Coraline’s pain as she realized that all hope was lost and she was alone. The book itself could bring the inner child of every reader no matter what age they are in. Neil Gaiman had carefully and perfectly laid down his inner thoughts in life regarding the dragons, the mysterious doors, and the perfect illusions people conjure up in this world. The book was entertaining, insightful, substantial, full of morals, and would leave every reader full of thoughts about certain personal things they have related with when getting to know Coraline’s character and situation.

Setting

Although there wasn’t a specified location of the events in the book, I firmly believe that the setting took place somewhere in England. The way the characters spoke and the description of the weather would immediately give you the gist of the people and the lifestyle found in England.

The conversations and the language was modern and simple enough to be understood by people of this generation, therefore it can be a classic. 

Tone

In my opinion, the tone of the book can be described as intriguingly mysterious. The elements included in the book were the following genres: a slice of life, suspense, mystery, intrigue, espionage, and adventure.
The mood set for the book wasn't light or fuzzy, instead it as realistic and fascinatingly scary. It was a little dark and dreary even as it reached the ending because the author put a little creepy twist at the last part of the novel. Although it was a little dark, it can still be suitable for young readers.

Mood

Granted during the first few chapters of the book it was a bit dragging and slow. But as I advanced and dug into the pages more thoroughly I found myself riding an emotional roller coaster.  It’s remarkable that Neil Gaiman can be emotional as well as realistic enough that readers would actually feel Coraline’s struggles, fears, and pain and the book progressed. At the end of the book I was still left with the uneasiness that I’ve felt the first time Coraline stared into the other mother’s button eyes. Neil Gaiman’s imagination and way of setting the atmosphere is impressive and plausible.

Point of View

The point of view that Neil Gaiman used was third-person limited. The narrative of the story included pronouns such as: he-she-they-them as the narrator told the story. It was limited for only Coraline’s point of view was shown.

Characters

Coraline- The protagonist of the story. A little girl whose only goal was to find and explore places that are interesting to entertain herself. Yet she later found herself fighting for her life and the lives of her real parents.

Other Mother- The antagonist of the story. Clearly hungers for Coraline’s life. She would stop at nothing to attain her.

Conclusion

In general, the book was remarkably entertaining and amazing in its simplicity. I loved how the characters were made, how solid Coraline’s personality and character development was. And I also loved the fact that she was so strong and firm in her own beliefs that she mustered up the courage to face what she feared the most.

Neil Gaiman used the concept of having the perfect world and the other mother to portray his message as the book reached its ending.

I would gladly share this book to my friends and my family. I firmly believe that they will learn and have a new way of seeing things after they finish this short novel.