In the graveyard, Nehemiah Trot is known as the Poet. He was a writer and a poet in life and Bod often seeks him out for advice. Nehemiah speaks in flowery sentences and often repeats himself as he tries out new words or sentence constructions. Bod finds him alternately helpful and silly. For instance, Nehemiah helpfully reminds Bod that he won’t get anywhere if he doesn’t try. However, Bod isn’t sold on Nehemiah’s thoughts on revenge: Nehemiah believes he’ll one day get revenge on his critics because he insisted on being buried with his poems. He thinks that when people remember what a great poet he was, they’ll dig up the poems and publish them, making Nehemiah posthumously famous. The eventual discovery of his poetic genius, Nehemiah believes, will have his critics spinning in their graves.
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Nehemiah Trot Character Timeline in The Graveyard Book
The timeline below shows where the character Nehemiah Trot appears in The Graveyard Book. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 7
...graveyard. Bod wanders through the graveyard’s abandoned and dangerous corner in search of the Poet, Nehemiah Trot. When Nehemiah shows himself, Bod asks if he should go find a girl he...
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Nehemiah proceeds to tell Bod how he bested his literary critics by asking to be buried...
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...begins to trail him as Bod walks into the overgrown section of the graveyard. When Nehemiah Trot appears, Bod asks the Poet to say something when Mr. Ketch gets close. Bod...
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