A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness

From Goodreads:

The monster showed up just after midnight. As they do. But it isn’t the monster Conor's been expecting. He's been expecting the one from his nightmare, the one he's had nearly every night since his mother started her treatments, the one with the darkness and the wind and the screaming... The monster in his back garden, though, this monster is something different. Something ancient, something wild. And it wants the most dangerous thing of all from Conor. It wants the truth. 

This was not a book I would have read of my own volition. I would never have picked this up at the book store and said, "Oh, this sounds great, I think I'll read this!"

But I could not ignore a lot of well-respected writers and bloggers who were struck dumb by the profundity of this book.

And boy is it ever profound. I caution anyone who has ever had a loved-one die of cancer or who is fighting cancer to perhaps steer clear of this book until those feelings aren't so raw. I found myself shedding some tears over this one and I have been lucky enough not to have had to watch anyone in my life fight a losing battle with cancer (except for my grandpa, but his battle was quite short, lasting only a few days). Then again, maybe this book can help those people heal. Just know that it will be a healing process filled with raw emotion and will take you places in your thought-process that are extremely uncomfortable.

This book may be cataloged as a middle grade novel, but I think its meaning and symbolism speaks to people of all ages.

While not out yet in the U.S. (it's set to hit book stores in September), you can get A Monster Calls now in the U.K. and can order it, free shipping and all, through The Book Depository if you don't want to wait. Whether you wait or you purchase it today, this book is definitely worth adding to your TBR pile!




A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness
Publication Date: September 27, 2011
Pages: 224
Genre: Fantasy
Audience: Middle Grade
Disclosure: NetGalley Download

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