Monster

Monster. Walter Dean Myers. Illus. by Christopher Myers. New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 1999. 281 pages. $15.89 (Hardcover). ISBN 0-06-028078-6. Grades 7-12.

My Thoughts… 

When I reached for this book on the library shelf I recognized its cover. I had read this book before. I also remembered that I liked this book even though I couldn’t remember why. I did remember that there was a trial and a young boy was being tried for a crime that he didn’t commit. Upon rereading this book I know I had thoughts and questions that I didn’t have the first time around. While I did thoroughly enjoy reading this book again, it was for different reasons.

I watch A LOT of Law and Order, so I am pretty familiar with procedures of courtroom trials. I am also familiar with how questions are phrased, what is permissible, how closing statements work, etc. When I read this book the first time I was in middle school and was not as aware of these details. I took everything about the trial in the book at face value as fact. I did not understand what leading the witness meant or why the defense attorneys only had to provide “reasonable doubt.” I also didn’t understand how Steve Harmon could be found guilty since he didn’t actually do anything. Well, I am wiser now, and I am not sure that Steve Harmon should have been found not guilty. Don’t get me wrong, I was still relieved when the verdict of not guilty was delivered because Walter Dean Myers did make him a human and not a monster. Steve didn’t seem to want to get a cut of money or even participate in the crime, and he didn’t give any signal. There is definitely reasonable doubt for his participation in this crime so I think the trial was legit as an outsider looking in, or as a member of the jury. As a reader, however, who is privileged to all of the information and thoughts of Steve, know that he lied on the stand, and that doesn’t sit well with me now. He said he was not in that drugstore when he was and I don’t think that is okay. This lie does not make this a bad book, but I am not sure about the message it sends to readers. I don’t think it is okay to show someone lying under oath.

This book is interesting and great for many different reasons, however, and I don’t want to get caught up in the semantics of the court case. This book deals with peer pressure and wanting to be tough and how that can and will get you in to trouble. It deals with the myth of innocence until proven guilty, especially when you are African American. It also talks about the struggles of race, when the idea of turning against your own comes up. The emphasis on race in the prison (pointing out most prisoners are Latino or Black) seems a bit racist, but if that’s how that prison tends to be then it is more fact. I do think, however, talking about how a person sees themselves, their hobbies and passions, and how they see the world around them is crucial. I love the movie format. I think it allows the reader to take in all the sights and senses. The notes give us a personal view of Harmon, but the movie gives us what the outside world sees. The parts in jail are terrifying, and I think it is impressive that Myers put it so bluntly. I think that is another reason this book is great. It talks to young adults like they are adults. It shows them the ugly in the world and lets them face it. I definitely think this is a great book that can have young people looking at themselves and their decisions.