Monster
by Walter Dean Myers
Mystery
Realistic Fiction
Review #1
* * * * Stars (Great!)
“Monster” by Walter Dean Myers tells the story of Steve Harmon, a 16-year-old Black teenager from Harlem on trial for felony murder as an accomplice in a robbery that resulted in a store owner’s death. The novel is uniquely presented as a screenplay Steve is writing in his jail cell, interspersed with his personal journal entries.
“Monster” is highly liked for its innovative screenplay-and-journal format and its thought-provoking exploration of justice, identity, and racial bias, but some might dislike its ambiguous ending which leaves Steve’s guilt open to interpretation. For middle and high school readers.
