Coraline

Summary:
When Coraline and her parents move into a new house, she notices a mysterious, closed-off door. It originally went to another part of the house, which her family does not own. Some rather eccentric neighbors call her Caroline and seem not to understand her very well, yet they have information for her that will later prove vital. Bored, she investigates the door, which takes her into an alternate reality. There she meets her "other" mother and father. They are very nice to her, which pleases Coraline but also makes her a little suspicious. Her neighbors are in this other world, and they are the same, yet somehow different. When Coraline gets nervous and returns home, her parents are gone. With the help of a talking cat, she figures out that they are being held prisoner by her other parents, as are the souls of some long-lost children. Coraline's plan to rescue them involves, among other things, making a risky bargain with her other mother whose true nature is beginning to show. The rest of the story is a suspense-filled roller coaster, and the horror is all the more frightening for being slightly understated. School Library Journal 8/1/02 Lexile: 740

Book Talk from Booktalks Quick and Simple:
Coraline is bored. Her parents are working from home now but that means they have little time to spend with her. The have recently moved into a new home so Coraline goes exploring. They actually have purchased one apartment in a large house so Coraline not only explores the house but also gets to meet the neighbors. In one apartment live a pair of elderly sisters. They used to be actresses and are on the eccentric side. Another apartment is owned by a strange old man who tells Coraline that he is training mice to dance. Coraline has her doubts about this. No one has ever seen the mice. The last apartment is empty. Mother says they are trying to find someone to live there. There is a door that connects Coraline's apartment with the empty apartment. When they open the door, they find a brick wall. But is it really a brick wall? If so, how did it open from the other side one night? And where are the voices coming from? When Coraline is alone one afternoon, she takes the key and opens the door. No longer is there a brick wall. The door opens on a large apartment just like their's. As a matter of fact, Coraline's mother is making dinner in the other apartment. At least it looks like Coraline's mother until she turns around.

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