Monster: A Printz Award Winner

Walter Dean Myers

Oct 2009 · Harper Collins

About this ebook

This New York Times bestselling novel from acclaimed author Walter Dean Myers tells the story of Steve Harmon, a teenage boy in juvenile detention and on trial.

Presented as a screenplay of Steve's own imagination, and peppered with journal entries, the book shows how one single decision can change our whole lives.

Monster is a multi-award-winning, provocative coming-of-age story that was the first-ever Michael L. Printz Award recipient, an ALA Best Book, a Coretta Scott King Honor selection, and a National Book Award finalist.

Monster is now a major motion picture called All Rise and starring Jennifer Hudson, Kelvin Harrison, Jr., Nas, and A$AP Rocky.

The late Walter Dean Myers was a National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature, who was known for his commitment to realistically depicting kids from his hometown of Harlem.

Ratings and reviews

I first picked up Monster as part of the required reading for an Adolescent Literature course. Upon opening it, I was surprised to find definitions all over the bottoms of the pages and "vocabulary" words bolded for further study. My edition was published by Hampton-Brown and graded as a "Level 3" book suitable for 6th to 8th grade readers. I would be horrified to find a twelve-year-old who needs a definition at the bottom of the page to tell him what "running his mouth" or "beaten up" means! The dialogue (for the book is written as a facsimile screenplay) is achingly dumbed-down as if middle-schoolers have never heard of such a place as a courtroom and need three different lawyers to rephrase questions multiple times to elucidate the plot. I kept stopping to count the number of pointless objections, unrealistic dialogue, and insipid definitions like what "have a cold" could possibly mean. As far as the plot, it ran boring and predictable as a due course. I understood this novel to be some sort of ground-breaking piece of diverse YA literature but having an African American teen in Harlem interact with one white lawyer, the minority troublemakers with which he is associated, and his parents doesn't make for much social upheaval. Any sort of cultural conflict was colored in as broad, vaguely racist or class-conscious remarks from guards and that's about it. None of it even seemed very in-character for guards who work at a jail in HARLEM to poke at an African American teen as though he is a minority in that environment. I don't know how to explain it, but the entire plot feels like a device to insert poor ethnic characters and then paint them as criminals. It doesn't sit on the inspiring end of the spectrum, that's for sure. I still crack the book open from time to time to laugh at the definitions. Who doesn't know know that having "a cold" means being sick? Oh, right, the same readers who don't know what "swirls" or "folks" are.

Monster is about young 16 year old African American teenager named Steve Harmon who has been accused to be part of a “get over” as a lookout. He has been accused and brought out for a felony trial. Steve was held in jail during the whole trial leaving his parents and brother worried about Steve staying in jail for his whole life at his age. Even though that Steve is innocent his emotions and nervousness show the opposite. This book was confusing but at the same time mysterious because Steve said that the only thing he did were the crime was committed was go inside and get some mints. The people who came and testify said the opposite, which made the reader not fully believe him. Steve produced his own personal movie film in his head while in jail and made the story different. The novel Monster is really different from the other stories I read before. Monster made me feel like I was actually in the book seeing the whole trial. The characters were well described and that made you visualize the character in your head. This book gets you thinking of prejudice against minors. Even though Steve was not found guilty I still had doubts left in my mind of how everything happened exactly. This book is different and that makes it special because I had never read something like this before and that makes it interesting. -Review By Alma Lopez

This book was about a 16 year old african american STEVE HARMON. Steve, King, Bobo Evans all took part of the crime. They robbed the drugstore shot Mr. Nesbit took the money and some packs of siggerts. Steve was the look out king shot Mr. Nesbit and Bobo took the money and the ciggerts. Steve left Lorrele Henry in the drugstore. Lorrele henry was in their because her grandaughter had a cold and she was buying her some medican. So Steve, King, and Bobo went on trial. Steve was found... King was found... and Bobo was found...

About the author

Walter Dean Myers was the New York Times bestselling author of Monster, the winner of the first Michael L. Printz Award; a former National Ambassador for Young People's Literature; and an inaugural NYC Literary Honoree. Myers received every single major award in the field of children's literature. He was the author of two Newbery Honor Books and six Coretta Scott King Awardees. He was the recipient of the Margaret A. Edwards Award for lifetime achievement in writing for young adults, a three-time National Book Award Finalist, as well as the first-ever recipient of the Coretta Scott King-Virginia Hamilton Award for Lifetime Achievement.