A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness

1:32 AM

Pages: 215
Publisher: Walker Books
ISBN13: 9781406311525
Genre: Middle Grade

Review by Geraldine

Synopsis: A Monster Calls tells the story of a young boy named Conner who is faced with many obstacles in his life including the fact that his mother is always sick and the fact that his father has abandoned both of them to start a new life in America. One night, Conner thinks he's having a nightmare but in reality there's a monster outside his window. The monster claims that Conner has called on him but Conner denies it. Conner thinks he knows why the monster has come to him, but the reasons as to why the monster has showed up turn out to be quite the opposite. The monster then tells Conner what exactly he is and also lets him know that he will be visiting Conner in the nights to come. Then, the monster confuses Conner when he tells him that he will be telling Conner three stories. Three stories of the times he was called on before to walk the earth. And so the story starts, and we began to wonder what exactly is it that the monster wants from Conner?

"This monster is something different. Something ancient, something wild. And it wants the most dangerous thing of all from Conor. It wants the truth."

My Thoughts:

Now, going into this book I was expecting it to be written for children, but as I turned the page, I realized that this was the type of book that everyone would enjoy reading whether they were young or old. I also thought this was going to be the type of book that would give you nightmares, but it turned out to be the complete opposite.

From the beginning, I was hooked! This had a great beginning that would draw any reader in immediately. It was written in a way that draws the reader in because as a reader you feel a connection with Conner from the get go. I also thought that the story was so intricately woven together that it was easy for the writing to flow from page to page. I do feel like this story had two different sides to it. On one hand, the author was very imaginative with the stories that the monster told and with the story line in general. On the other hand, it was realistic enough to where most people could relate to the many problems that Conner faced throughout the story.

When I was reading this book it tugged on the strings in my heart in every possible way. And, even though I predicted the ending, I admit that the story still ended with a BANG! All my emotions just could not be contained any longer. I completely broke down and cried my eyes out. I do not want to give any spoilers, but I will say that no matter what you are going through, it is easy to relate to Conner and the plot.

When it came to the characters, I think the monster was my favorite character because of the dialog that the author used for the monster. I don't even know what to say because I am just speechless with the dialog overall. I don't think I will be including any of the monster's dialog, because every line moved me and I would not want to spoil that for anyone. Also, throughout the story I felt horrible for Conner and what he was going through. I felt like he had too much pain balled up inside him to the point where he closed off himself from the rest of the world. At the same time, I understand that young boys such as Conner cannot easily cope with problems such as bullying, their father abandoning them, and a sick mother that they have to come home to.

I can honestly say that after thinking about it over and over, I cannot for the life of me think of anything I disliked about this book. Nothing.

But, can we just talk about what I loved for a second? I loved the fact that there were illustrations in this book, it definitely enhanced the story line. I usually complain about how the illustrations never go with the storyline, but the illustrations in this book were so precisely placed that it honestly gave me the chills. When I came across an illustration, I always felt nervous and excited at the same time. Excited, because I was eager to see what illustration was going to be shown next. Yet, I felt nervous because of all the emotions I felt that went along with the illustration. And, that was my favorite part about reading this book, the fact that I felt different emotions stirring inside of me all at once.

In my entire life, I've never re-read a book, but the moment I read the last page of this book, I felt the urge to re-read the entire book right then and there. The urge to feel those unexplainable, gut-wrenching feelings all over again.

This is a must read! 5/5 stars!

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