The Graveyard Book Readalong Ch. 5 & 6

Aww man, it’s the second-to-last week of Jenn’s readalong! Kinda sad that we’ll be done next week.

So, what happened this week in the land of Bod?

Well, there was that weird creepy dance that I honestly did not understand. I didn’t really like that chapter… It was a bunch of dead people being all mysterious about this big dance coming up and the alive people in town acting like dancing-zombies and it was weird. Then came the interlude, in which we see Stabby Jack again and apparently some colleagues of his masquerading as philanthropists are pissed that it’s been a decade and he still hasn’t finished off the boy. And Stabby Jack makes a reference to “that trouble we had in San Francisco” which it seems means that Silas went and caused some trouble there when he left for a while. Odd. And then next chapter Bod gets up the nerve to say that he wants to go to school and learn how to be around living people and read all the books (yay!) and so he does, but then he makes himself a big damn hero (Firefly, anyone?) and starts trying to help out the kids being bullied by these big jerks named Nick and Mo, but that draws attention to himself and Mo just does not learn to fall the eff back, and she ends up getting him arrested. And then Silas is told that Bod is in trouble, so he runs in front of the cop car and Bod psyches the cops out about that, and they escape. Luckily, this wasn’t all for nothing, since Silas and Bod agree that while he shouldn’t be restricted from the real world any longer, maybe school wasn’t the best idea and he still needs to keep a low profile.

So, questions!

1. Would you dance the Macabre?

…No? I don’t know. If I was dead would I have the choice? I really don’t get what that was all about.

2. Why do you think that Silas and the others are so secretive about it?

Maybe they’re just as confused as I am, but pretending to be secretive and mysterious about it. Silas did seem slightly bummed cause he couldn’t join, so maybe the weird dance is a good thing.

3. Why do you think the flowers haven’t bloomed in decades?

Seriously, I have no clue. This is probably why I didn’t take literature in college, because I’m not always very good at symbolism and stuff like that.

4. Who do you think the men were with the Man Jack?

They seemed like fellow assassins, and that one guy seemed like one of his bosses maybe? They were clearly at some sort of benefit / charity thingy, which honestly seems like the perfect cover for a group of assassins, if that’s what they are.

5. Why do you think he’s running out of time?

Maybe because Bod is growing older? Although how do they know that he’s still alive and hasn’t died through some other random means? Can they sense him? There’s probably a supernatural reason here that I’m missing.

6. What do you think of Bod’s being in school? His classmates? The “arrest”?

I loved that he went to school! And that he basically wanted to read all the time! And I even liked him playing the hero, even though I usually don’t particularly like heroic personas. He’s just such a good kid, and I like that he encouraged the smaller kids to think and act for themselves, and to stand up to Nick and Mo for themselves, rather than just fighting their battle for them. That’s EXACTLY what kids who feel they’re being bullied need to do!

The arrest was such crap! Mo is a little bitch.

7. What are your thoughts on Silas’ rescue?

Awwww, Silas. He does really feel fond for Bod. It’s sweet. It was a perfectly executed rescue too, even if he did get a little banged up in the process. I also love that Bod came back to the school one last time to scare the crap out of Mo. She had it coming.

8. Do you think that there is a connection between Silas and the Man Jack?

Yes. Not in a sketchy way, I just think that Silas was on to Stabby Jack somehow in San Fran and even if they didn’t interact directly, he clearly caused some trouble for Stabby Jack and his crew while he was there. Yay Silas! I am curious as to how he knew to go to San Fran to try to find out more about Stabby Jack, or if he was there for another reason and it was just something he stumbled upon.

So yeah, good stuff! Like I said, I didn’t really like the dance chapter but I liked the rest. And even though I’m sad next week is the last post, I am really looking forward to seeing how the book ends and how Bod’s story is wrapped up!

~Sarah