"The Gravedigger's Son"

“The Gravedigger’s Son”

Written by Patrick Moody

Review written by Diana Iozzia

“The Gravedigger’s Son” is very reminiscent of the scary stories by R.L. Stine mixed with “A Nightmare Before Christmas”. Reading this the day of Halloween and the week after, I felt very in the holiday spirit, nice and spooky. I was very lucky and very grateful to receive the hardcover copy from Mr. Moody himself. His book is great, but the illustrations that coincide work so well together to tell the story of little Ian Fosser.

Ian is a descendant of a long line of Diggers, who dig the graves of corpses, but then actually help the spirits / ghosts move on and find peace. Ian is tired of digging graves and learning how to speak to the spirits. With the help of his friend, Fiona, he learns about the Capital’s schools, which are similar to Hogwarts. Students learn how to Heal, Call to the spirits, and practice other spooky supernatural crafts. Ian doesn’t want to be a Digger, he likes learning of the Healing craft. In this world, the work done by the people who live here coincide with what they learn as trades. There aren’t restaurants, grocery stores, or other post 21^st century creations. This gives me the illusion we are in an early 1900s tale. The language is also very similar to English slang, so it seems that the book would take place somewhere in Great Britain.

Fiona wakes Ian in the middle of the night, saying she’s been Called by a spirit of a young boy named Thatcher. Thatcher is depicted as a skeleton of a rambunctious and quite rascally thirteen-year-old boy. Ian realizes although he doesn’t want to be a Digger, he needs to help little Thatcher move on. As we follow this journey, we discover interesting locations. The book moves along like a Tim Burton video game. Each location acts like a stage in the book, where you meet this character. It moves very smoothly as you follow Ian through this map of the cemetery, the pumpkin patch, the village of the Weavers, the family crypt, Ian’s mother’s created world. The villains are pretty creepy, but with a middle grade fiction, you realize that there will usually be a happy resolution.

Without delving into any spoilers, I highly suggest you look into this book. It’s a great, spooky middle grade fiction book that’s highly enjoyable. I think the illustrations really add to the world-building. I don’t know if there would be a sequel, but I’d be very eager to read it if it ever comes to pass.