https://padlet.com/nicole_eshelman/tn3rn9x1dxrn This Padlet will discuss the novel for my March SSR book. en-us 2017-03-27 12:41:52 UTC 2017-04-02 22:21:38 UTC hello@padlet.com nicole_eshelman https://padlet.com/nicole_eshelman/tn3rn9x1dxrn/wish/162788044 2017-03-27 12:45:36 UTC https://padlet.com/nicole_eshelman/tn3rn9x1dxrn/wish/162788044 nicole_eshelman https://padlet.com/nicole_eshelman/tn3rn9x1dxrn/wish/162788370 The book begins with a man who travels back to his hometown to attend a funeral.  While there, he is drawn to a pond, or "ocean" at the end of the lane, where he spent time as a boy.  Most of the book is flashback to a particular event revolving an unusual family, the Hempstocks, who owned the pond.]]> 2017-03-27 12:46:25 UTC https://padlet.com/nicole_eshelman/tn3rn9x1dxrn/wish/162788370 nicole_eshelman https://padlet.com/nicole_eshelman/tn3rn9x1dxrn/wish/162789413 There are many topics about this book as it is deceptively "deep."  Some of them include innocence, knowledge, morality, and isolation.  
Innocence of youth is one topic. Given this topic, I think the theme is how our childhoods inform who we are as adults, how we need to hang on to parts to be fulfilled as grown-ups.]]> 2017-03-27 12:49:16 UTC https://padlet.com/nicole_eshelman/tn3rn9x1dxrn/wish/162789413 nicole_eshelman https://padlet.com/nicole_eshelman/tn3rn9x1dxrn/wish/162790334 "I do not miss childhood, but I miss the way I took pleasure in small things, even as greater things crumbled. I could not control the world I was in, could not walk away from things or people or moments that hurt, but I found joy in the things that made me happy" (Gaiman 149).]]> 2017-03-27 12:51:40 UTC https://padlet.com/nicole_eshelman/tn3rn9x1dxrn/wish/162790334 nicole_eshelman https://padlet.com/nicole_eshelman/tn3rn9x1dxrn/wish/162790644 The boy in the flashback is seven-years-old, so he sees the world as a child. Even the narrator, a middle-aged man, tells the story as he saw it as a boy. From this perspective, we see how a child understands things, even as we adult readers can see greater meanings and consequences. This perspective allows the reader to have pleasure in the naivete, to see and remember when situations were things that happened to you, when it was easy to be distracted. I think Gaiman wanted the reader to realize the fragility and beauty of youthful innocence.]]> 2017-03-27 12:52:29 UTC https://padlet.com/nicole_eshelman/tn3rn9x1dxrn/wish/162790644 nicole_eshelman https://padlet.com/nicole_eshelman/tn3rn9x1dxrn/wish/162791354 The protagonist is a young boy who is never named.  I didn't even realize it till now!  
He is interesting because he is an adult telling us the story as a child, as the story is told in flashback.  We see the story through the child's eyes, but it is being told to us by the adult version.  
He is easy to sympathize with as he is a kind and thoughtful child.  However, his "story" is one that needs a leap of faith.  Given the author's style, I believe the narrator to be reliable, but events beg the question: Is the story true or is it the tale of a child?  ]]> 2017-03-27 12:54:33 UTC https://padlet.com/nicole_eshelman/tn3rn9x1dxrn/wish/162791354 nicole_eshelman https://padlet.com/nicole_eshelman/tn3rn9x1dxrn/wish/162792450 At first, I didn't.
I am not truly a fan of Neil Gaiman, but I picked it up because of the cover and the small size.  However, I quickly became very interested in the boy, the Hempstocks, and their unusual existence.
The story was more fantastic (meaning having supernatural/fantasy) than I thought it would be, but I became invested quickly in the fates of the characters. The main character also goes through some unpredictable events and has unusual reactions that keep you interested.
I enjoyed this quick read and recommend it.]]> 2017-03-27 12:57:33 UTC https://padlet.com/nicole_eshelman/tn3rn9x1dxrn/wish/162792450