Nobody Owens (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
therewaslife) wrote2009-12-26 07:39 pm
therewaslife) wrote2009-12-26 07:39 pm
Entry tags:
But between now and then, there was Life - The Skinny on Nobody Owens
A new arrival to the island always requires the requisite info post, right? It seems to be the initial rite of passage for the poor noobs. This one's no different. So here, have some information on Nobody Owens.
THE CANON
The Graveyard Book is a children's fantasy novel written by Neil Gaiman, author of other novels such as Coraline, Neverwhere, and Stardust just to name a few. The book centers on a young protagonist by the name of Nobody Owens (yes, that's his name though he goes by Bod) whose entire family was murdered when he was just a baby by the man Jack, a member of a shadowy secret society, the Jacks of All Trades. Bod, fortunately, managed to get out of his crib and toddled down to a nearby graveyard where he was taken in by Mr. and Mrs. Owens, two ghosts, at the urgent urging of the apparition of Bod's mother.
Mr. and Mrs. Owens agree to take Bod in, to become his new parents but some of the other inhabitants of the graveyard aren't so quick to agree to this mostly because Bod's human and they are not. A meeting is held and it's discovered that, like humans, ghosts tend to argue and disagree a lot too. It's then that Silas, another living (in a sense) occupant of the graveyard, steps forward and manages to reason with the throng of ghosts. It's decided that Mr. and Mrs. Owens will act as Bod's parents while Silas will act as his guardian. Bod is given the Freedom of the Graveyard, a privilege typically reserved for the ghosts and for Silas. It allows Bod to travel around the graveyard and into places only ghosts can go. Essentially, they're treating Bod like a ghost even though he's alive.
From there, the story begins to unwind and take shape but I don't want to spoil you too much. I promise I'll help out if there are interested parties at the end of this info post.
THE BOY
So, this is Bod. For the first chunk of his life, Bod's been living and learning in a graveyard. Despite (or possibly because of that), he's very well adjusted, very smart and very observant. On first look, you're not going to be able to tell that he grew up in a graveyard and was raised by ghosts. He won't hesitate to tell you because he's not ashamed but he's not going to be look ghostly or ghoul like (just pale and fair haired like most British folk are).
He smiles rarely but that doesn't mean he dislikes you. It's just his way. He actually really enjoys being around people, especially living, breathing people, after so long spent around ghosts. It's a different experience for him and it's one (of the many) that he was desperate for towards the end of the book. He wants to live with the ghosts and stay in the graveyard but he wants everything else too. Due to that, he's going to want to do it all, meet everyone, see it all, and anything in between. He's hungry for new things.
Bod's also very smart but in a different sort of way than most may be used to. He lived in a graveyard where ten thousand were apparently buried so he had a pretty wide open choice of what to learn and who to learn from. So, he might have learned poetry from an actual dead poet or history from a soldier who fought in the war and thus, it may differ from anything in books and Bod's going to think he's right because he heard it straight from the source.
Bullies beware, if Bod gets wind of something like that going down, he'll most likely try to interject himself in some way, shape or form. He did it in the book (even if the outcome turned out less than pleasant for him) and he'd be hard pressed to not do it on the island. He might think a little harder about it now that he can't Haunt or Dreamwalk but he'd still take notice and probably attempt something.
He's also going to be pretty unaffected by any attempts to scare him or freak him out in the way that most newbies are subjected to. Bod was kidnapped by ghouls, stalked by a secret society intent on killing him, lost his entire family to the man Jack's knife, waltzed through the graveyard like it was a playground, was cared for by a Hound of God, and many other things. He's just not going to freak out at most things.
THE POWERS
So, these are dampened by the end of the book but I'm going to list them just for completion's sake. Bod had been able to:
Again, these were pretty much extinguished when Bod left the graveyard so he probably won't be using them at all in Fandom.
THE ODDS AND ENDS
Bod's PB is Ben McKenzie and this was after weeks of agonizing. He almost ended up Ryan Gosling but I decided he looked too old and oftentimes, too greasy. I almost went with Jamie Bell but Griffin flails enough as it is. He doesn't need a double.
In the end, Ben McKenzie had the fair haired look that caught my eye in this illustration. Now, I'm really happy with the pick. There's a good assortment of icons to pick from and he's pretty.
THE GOOD STUFF
Here, have a computerized copy of the book. It's a short, quick read but it's really damn good.
THE CANON
The Graveyard Book is a children's fantasy novel written by Neil Gaiman, author of other novels such as Coraline, Neverwhere, and Stardust just to name a few. The book centers on a young protagonist by the name of Nobody Owens (yes, that's his name though he goes by Bod) whose entire family was murdered when he was just a baby by the man Jack, a member of a shadowy secret society, the Jacks of All Trades. Bod, fortunately, managed to get out of his crib and toddled down to a nearby graveyard where he was taken in by Mr. and Mrs. Owens, two ghosts, at the urgent urging of the apparition of Bod's mother.
Mr. and Mrs. Owens agree to take Bod in, to become his new parents but some of the other inhabitants of the graveyard aren't so quick to agree to this mostly because Bod's human and they are not. A meeting is held and it's discovered that, like humans, ghosts tend to argue and disagree a lot too. It's then that Silas, another living (in a sense) occupant of the graveyard, steps forward and manages to reason with the throng of ghosts. It's decided that Mr. and Mrs. Owens will act as Bod's parents while Silas will act as his guardian. Bod is given the Freedom of the Graveyard, a privilege typically reserved for the ghosts and for Silas. It allows Bod to travel around the graveyard and into places only ghosts can go. Essentially, they're treating Bod like a ghost even though he's alive.
From there, the story begins to unwind and take shape but I don't want to spoil you too much. I promise I'll help out if there are interested parties at the end of this info post.
THE BOY
So, this is Bod. For the first chunk of his life, Bod's been living and learning in a graveyard. Despite (or possibly because of that), he's very well adjusted, very smart and very observant. On first look, you're not going to be able to tell that he grew up in a graveyard and was raised by ghosts. He won't hesitate to tell you because he's not ashamed but he's not going to be look ghostly or ghoul like (just pale and fair haired like most British folk are).
He smiles rarely but that doesn't mean he dislikes you. It's just his way. He actually really enjoys being around people, especially living, breathing people, after so long spent around ghosts. It's a different experience for him and it's one (of the many) that he was desperate for towards the end of the book. He wants to live with the ghosts and stay in the graveyard but he wants everything else too. Due to that, he's going to want to do it all, meet everyone, see it all, and anything in between. He's hungry for new things.
Bod's also very smart but in a different sort of way than most may be used to. He lived in a graveyard where ten thousand were apparently buried so he had a pretty wide open choice of what to learn and who to learn from. So, he might have learned poetry from an actual dead poet or history from a soldier who fought in the war and thus, it may differ from anything in books and Bod's going to think he's right because he heard it straight from the source.
Bullies beware, if Bod gets wind of something like that going down, he'll most likely try to interject himself in some way, shape or form. He did it in the book (even if the outcome turned out less than pleasant for him) and he'd be hard pressed to not do it on the island. He might think a little harder about it now that he can't Haunt or Dreamwalk but he'd still take notice and probably attempt something.
He's also going to be pretty unaffected by any attempts to scare him or freak him out in the way that most newbies are subjected to. Bod was kidnapped by ghouls, stalked by a secret society intent on killing him, lost his entire family to the man Jack's knife, waltzed through the graveyard like it was a playground, was cared for by a Hound of God, and many other things. He's just not going to freak out at most things.
THE POWERS
So, these are dampened by the end of the book but I'm going to list them just for completion's sake. Bod had been able to:
- see dead people
- Fade (disappear from human view)
- Dreamwalk (appear in a human's dreams)
- Haunt (frightening a human)
Again, these were pretty much extinguished when Bod left the graveyard so he probably won't be using them at all in Fandom.
THE ODDS AND ENDS
Bod's PB is Ben McKenzie and this was after weeks of agonizing. He almost ended up Ryan Gosling but I decided he looked too old and oftentimes, too greasy. I almost went with Jamie Bell but Griffin flails enough as it is. He doesn't need a double.
In the end, Ben McKenzie had the fair haired look that caught my eye in this illustration. Now, I'm really happy with the pick. There's a good assortment of icons to pick from and he's pretty.
THE GOOD STUFF
Here, have a computerized copy of the book. It's a short, quick read but it's really damn good.
no subject
...Not that he has an anonymity problem.
/ramble.