-
A Monster Calls (Hardback)
$14.72 - Save $2.27 (13%) - RRP $16.99 Free shipping worldwide (to United States and
all these other countries) Usually dispatched within 48 hours | |Short Description for A Monster CallsAn unflinching, darkly funny, and deeply moving story of a boy, his seriously ill mother, and an unexpected monstrous visitor. From the final idea of award-winning author Siobhan Dowd--whose premature death from cancer prevented her from writing it herself--Ness has spun a haunting and darkly funny novel of mischief, loss, and monsters both real and imagined. Illustrations.
Full description- Publisher: Candlewick Press (MA)
- Published: 01 September 2011
- Format: Hardback 204 pages
- See: Full bibliographic data
- Categories: Fiction | Fantasy | Family | Death & Bereavement
- ISBN 13: 9780763655594 ISBN 10: 0763655597
- Sales rank: 17,218
Other books
Reviews for A Monster Calls
powerful, haunting and gut-wrenching
A 13-year-old boy is dealing with the terminal illness of his single mother. He has nightmares almost every night, is a loner at school, is bullied by one boy in particular and one night begin the visitations of a monster at 12:07. The story deals with the normal emotions of a child dealing with the imminent death of a parent: grief, anger, etc. and the mystical world of the nightmares and the monster symbolize things the boy can't verbalize or rationalize himself otherwise.
This is a dark story but with a redeeming ending. Don't let the fact that it is an illustrated book fool you into thinking the book is suitable for young children. It is definitely a YA title, dealing with some tough emotions, dark situations, frightening scenes and emotionally draining. I lost my mother to terminal illness at age 24 and the deathbed scene brought tears to my eyes. A powerful, haunting and gut-wrenching story.
The book is profusely illustrated in a very dark manner. With what appears to be black ink throughout, some illustrations are mostly dark texturized blackness with no focal image while others are quite outstanding haunting images featuring the monster. On their own I'm not sure I would appreciate them but they are a perfect match for the story being told. This is a book I wouldn't be surprised to see on award lists. by Nicola Mansfield
share
tweet
