A Monster Calls: Patrick Ness Paperback – 7 May 2015

I first came across this book when my son was asked to read this. It was one of a small number of books that he was advised to read ahead of his 1st year of secondary school.This book centres around a 13 year old boy, Conor O'Malley, whose mother is terminally ill with cancer. The central theme is Conor's emotions. Fears and emotions with origins sown at the time he learns about his mother's 'illness', but that have grown whilst Conor remained unsupported, as he tries to deal with the reality of his and his mother's circumstances.One night Conor wakes from a recurring nightmare to encounter a 'monster' who over ensuing nights recounts three stories in exchange for one from Conor. To help Conor to face his present and deal with the reality that lays ahead.This is an extremely easy to read, well written and brave book.It is also very powerful. Not only because of the way it deals with the subject matter but also because it brings to the fore the difficult and sometimes conflicting emotions that are faced in such circumstances.Powerful also because of its realness. Ness does not attempt to disguise rather he delivers the setting, the dialogue and the emotion that any age group can and most probably will associate with.The subject is timeless and the delivery effortless, whilst the powerful message from this book - not to fear confronting your fears, mark this book out as an utterly compelling read and one that will tug on the heartstrings, even more for those that can associate - those that have encountered the various stages of grief and the eventual loss of someone close.I have intentionally avoided retelling or providing a summary of this book. I have done this because for this particular book, less is more, and as potential readers, should put you in a better position to immerse yourselves, to enjoy, to appreciate, to acknowledge the authenticity, the power and emotionally charged ... A Monster Calls.

this book gripped me from the first page and wouldn’t let me go until the final page and I was weeping by the end. For starters, the writing is beautiful. The prose is perfectly judged between lyrically balanced descriptions, pin-sharp characterisation and a very good grasp of just how children behave when confronted with extreme stress over a long period of time. As an ex-primary school teacher, I thought the depiction of both Conor’s reaction and some of his classmates was realistic and apt.The monster’s appearance is marvellous and I loved the interaction between Conor and his monster – and the stories he tells. For starters, Conor wasn’t the only one confounded at the stories the monster tells – and his reactions to the outcome. Having heard one or three folk/fairy tales in my time, I had a sense that I knew where the first story was going – and was completely wrong-footed by the monster’s judgement at the conclusion. Meanwhile, Conor’s mother is still struggling with a latest treatment – and he then has to contend with his grandma. She isn’t the cuddly, white-haired lady so popular in modern imagination – she wears tailored suits, is hopeless at cooking and works full-time. She also is clearly adrift when dealing with Conor as she hasn’t spent much time with him. I enjoyed the fact that as the story is told from Conor’s viewpoint, any adult reading the story will appreciate that she is under enormous stress, but most children – and certainly Conor – will probably miss the signs. Until a disastrous visit by the monster…So do I have any quibbles? Well, given the mention of mobiles and other contemporary details, I don’t think this story is set in the past – and so my problem with this tale is that most schools these days would be far better equipped to deal with Conor’s situation. Nowadays there would be trained help available for teaching staff and all adults dealing with Conor and it’s highly likely the school would have a specific policy to deal with children undergoing a major family trauma – it happens more often than you might think. Conor would have some sort of counselling, probably be put in touch with other children coping with similar situations and have some time out of the classroom. He would also be asked how he would like to be treated. However, that isn’t a dealbreaker – there is so much about this story that blew me away and I very much recommend this one.9/10