A Monster Calls

By Patrick Ness

This book is about a boy called Conor being visited by a monster, but it is not the one he is expecting, not the one he is terrified of. The monster tells him three tales that help him. Conor's Mum is ill and having treaments in the book and so the monster makes him see things about himself.

To begin with I didn’t enjoy this book that much, but as I read more, I grew to like it more. My favourite bits were the ones with the actual monster in, especially as I think the stories the Monster told are very true. I liked them because although they were aimed at Conor I think they were true for nearly all humans.

I really liked the character of Conor’s Mum and I thought she really came across as someone who really really cared about her son. I also liked Conor, I thought it was really sweet how he really wanted to care for himself and his Mum without help, and I felt sorry for him, having to be so grown-up with his Mum.

Ness managed to really do the descriptions in the book well, describing everything clearly and I think that definitley added to the story. I also really liked the drawings in them, whole page ones and ones in the corner of the pages, they were really effective.

I read this book really quickly and although it didn’t take me long, I really enjoyed it. Overall, I think that this was a good book and an easy read.

By Emily B, Year 8