The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

Three members of a family of four are murdered by a man named Jack. Before he can kill the final member (who is a young toddler), the little boy escapes from the house and toddles up a hill to a graveyard. The spirits who live in the graveyard are surprised to see a child in their midst, but sensing that something is wrong decide to take action. Following a flurry of discussion, a childish ghost couple adopt the boy and call him Nobody. Thus begins the story of Nobody Owens, a little boy who is raised in a graveyard while hiding from the man who has set out to kill him.

Nobody, or Bod for short, lives a strange existence among ghosts, supernatural creatures and other peculiar characters. As he grows up in this surreal environment, he begins to build friendships with the dead, living and those who are neither. In time, he not only learns how to read and write, but also how to fade away so he can't be seen, as well as how to haunt the living. Amidst this strange upbringing, he begins to track the man who tried to murder him, and in the process discover the secret of why he was almost killed.

This highly original novel by the creator of the Sandman comic book series, won the 2009 Hugo Award for Best Novel and the Locus Award for Best Young Adult novel, among other prizes. It is exquisitely written and a joy to read. That being said, if I had one complaint it's that I felt that the story ending was a tad forced. This relatively small bump, however, can be overlooked from what is in general an excellent work of fiction.

4 out of 5 stars