Bibliography
Myers, Walter Dean. 2000. MONSTER. Recorded Books. New York, New York. ISBN 0788752197
Plot Summary
This is a story about a teenage boy, Steve Harmon, and his part in a crime that ended in murder. This book is written from his point of view and contains information about his life before the crime, in jail, and during the trial.. There are many flashbacks as this story is told like a script for a movie.
Critical Analysis
I found the plot of this story intriguing. I wasn’t sure throughout the entire book whether Steve Harmon was really guilty or if he was just trying to convince himself that he was innocent. Myers makes him seem like a good kid with his many references to his brother and parents and how they must feel about him in jail. The weakness of this audio book is that because of the playwright style I had a hard time following the action in the first half. The lawyers names to me even sounded similar which made it hard for me to distinguish who was asking the questions. I had to relisten to several different parts to be sure I really understood the action. I did enjoy the audiobook and felt that the narrator was an excellent choice as I felt he provoked emotion and could sound like a young African American kid who is in trouble frequently.
Review Excerpt(s)
From School Library Journal “Many elements of this story are familiar, but Myers keeps it fresh and alive by telling it from an unusual perspective. Steve, an amateur filmmaker, recounts his experiences in the form of a movie screenplay. His striking scene-by-scene narrative of how his life has dramatically changed is riveting. Interspersed within the script are diary entries in which the teen vividly describes the nightmarish conditions of his confinement. Myers expertly presents the many facets of his protagonist's character and readers will find themselves feeling both sympathy and repugnance for him.”From Kirkus Reviews
“Myers leaves it up to readers to decide for themselves on his protagonist's guilt or innocence. The format of this taut and moving drama forcefully regulates the pacing; breathless, edge-of-the-seat courtroom scenes written entirely in dialogue alternate with thoughtful, introspective journal entries that offer a sense of Steve's terror and confusion, and that deftly demonstrate Myers's point: the road from innocence to trouble is comprised of small, almost invisible steps, each involving an experience in which a ``positive moral decision'' was not made.”
From AudioFile
“The youth and innocence of Jeron Alston's voice, as Steve, summons the listener into his limited reality and serves as a counterpoint to the authenticity of the courtroom drama, presented through the voices of the prosecutor, the D.A., the defendants, and the witnesses. Flashbacks deliver the backstory and raise essential doubts in the mind of the listener. A superb recording of an intriguing work.”
Connections
*This book could be used to help teens that are struggling with obeying the law the vivid description of the jail cell caused me to hope I never have to see the inside of a jail cell.
*This book could be used for a study in politic and the way the judicial system works.
*This book would be great to assess what it would be like to be on a jury and before the verdict is read let the students talk like a jury and create their own verdict.
DeGezelle, Terri. SERVING ON A JURY. ISBN 0736836861
Hjelmeland, Andy. PRISONS: INSIDE THE BIG HOUSE. ISBN 0822526077
Stewart, Gail B. TEENS IN PRISON. ISBN 1560063386
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