Anexis Matos

This was an interesting read. I wish I could have read it years ago, particularly in school. I feel I would have enjoyed it.

Synopsis

Coraline and her family move to a new place, but she’s bored. One day, she finds a door to another world.

Book Information

Genre: Fantasy
Category: Middle grade
Explicit violence: Some
Explicit sex: No
Content warnings I noticed: None
This is a standalone.

Review

The prose is great. It’s poetic, yet accessible and easy to read.

The story is told in third person past. It was, shockingly, not distant as it usually is. For the most part, it’s told in Coraline’s point of view. If I remember correctly, there are two small sections with someone else’s point of view.

This is a fast-paced story. I finished it in one day. The pacing makes sense, considering it’s middle grade. A slow-burn wouldn’t have worked.

The themes are well explored. They’re explored in ways that children can understand while not talking down to them. It reminds me of the way Avatar: The Last Airbender is written. While the stories have nothing in common, they’re both child-friendly, but make sure not to treat children as though they’re stupid.

The characters are great. Coraline is delightful to follow. There are two cases where I found myself relating to her.

The first is that her name is Coraline, but at least one person continuously calls her Caroline. Growing up, I’ve been called Alexis rather than Anexis. I used to correct people, but, at some point, I stopped. It’s easy to mispronounce my name, but that doesn’t make it less annoying. I still get this, but, like I said, I no longer correct people.

The second is when she talks about getting lost in her imagination. It isn’t until someone taps her on the shoulder that she realizes where she is. This feels like me when I write. It was a beautiful moment.

I really appreciate that Gaiman did not portray Coraline’s parents as all bad. The reader sees how difficult it is to keep children entertained, especially when they have no school or other activities. Her parents try to engage her to the best of their ability. The portrayal of the parents is important because it helps with Coraline’s arc.

Coraline doesn’t appreciate what her parents do in the beginning. She complains about her father’s cooking because he adds too many things when she wants something simple. As a very picky eater, I also relate to this. However, the moment Coraline gets everything she wants, she gets bored. There’s no structure. Where’s everything she used to complain about? This is what makes her appreciate her parents as well as the fact that, for a time, they’re gone.

Coraline’s arc is impactful because there’s so much nuance in the book. Being a children’s book doesn’t make it black and white. This is something any author can learn from reading this book.

Conclusion

I read this book as an adult, but I’m looking at it with nostalgia. That sounds strange, I’m sure. However, it’s an experience I’ve had before. When I watched the original Fruits Basket, I was hit with early 2000s anime nostalgia. To a degree, I felt the same with the reboot. There’s something about the story that brings that feeling out of me. The same thing can be said about Naruto, particularly with the first opening.

In this case, the nostalgia comes from the fact that it was published in 2002. In my journey to becoming an avid reader, I began with Ella Enchanted and other fairy tales the author wrote. Eventually, I added YA into the mix.

I started with older YA. These books were published in the early 2000s and have an entirely different feeling than today’s YA. The one series that introduced me to this reading category is Bluford High. I started with the fourth book, unaware that it was a series, but it worked out. They’re mostly standalone. There are a few that connect.

My first intruduction to newer YA was An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir. I read Divergent, but that was my introduction to YA sci-fi. I mostly read YA fantasy, so that’s why I didn’t mention Divergent as my first introduction.

Coraline felt like an early 2000s book. It reminded me so much of my YA beginnings. The writing style helped.

As I said previously, I would have loved to read this in middle school. It still hits as an adult, but I wonder what it would have felt like as a kid. I started reading Edgar Allen Poe at 14 and it was great. Reading it as an adult, I can see the genius in the writing.

Overall, this is a wonderful story. I rate it four stars.