A Monster Calls (not a horror story)

I will remember ‘A Monster Calls’ as one of the best books I have in several years. I can barely recall another tale so gripping from the beginning to the end. A powerful tale of mental struggle that goes on in the mind of a twelve year old boy. Flawlessly written in simple words, it shook me from within.

The theme is straight and simple – the protagonist, the boy, has to admit to a small truth that he has been avoiding. A simple truth is so difficult to own up; it must have happened to all of us. These are moments when our conscience hides behind half-truths. It takes so much pushing on our part to convince our own conscience to accept the complete truth.

The book swept me off my feet. The undertone of sadness, of heartbreaking reality is looming on every page. We know it is coming, there is going to be a tragedy, but we are also hoping some suspenseful intervention by the monster will change the events.

The monster is the symbol of our own conscience.

Of the author Patrick Ness, John Green says: An insanely beautiful writer.