![]() ![]() ![]() She found it creepy and enjoyed exploring the idea of suspense in the story. This book is well written and my student loved it, finishing it in one sitting. ![]() The story explores themes around family and 'the grass is always greener,' whilst ultimately having the message that although everything has flaws, it is not always safe to just jump to a new situation to fix them. The fact that it evokes this response is a credit to his writing - he really captures the monster well. Gaiman explores themes around control and abuse in this book, whilst on the surface it can also just be seen as a scary story. Due to this, the 'other mother' and life through the corridor did trigger some rather close to home feelings, even with it being told in an appropriate child-friendly way. ![]() Now, I come from a slightly different POV than most children reading this book as I experienced an upbringing from a narcissistic mother. The plot is fairly simple, the writing is good and set firmly at a middle grade level and the book explores a variety of themes you normally see in a scary story, but often with a bit of a take-away children can use as teachings in their own life - especially the idea that being given everything you want often comes with a catch (think Hansel and Gretel). I had seen the movie, which is eerie and dark, but somehow this affected me more. My student (I am a tutor) is studying this book at school and asked me to help her with it. ![]()
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