A Monster Calls

Author and Illustrator: Patrick Ness
Original Story idea by: Siobhan Dowd
Ages: 13+

“Stories don't always have happy endings."This stopped him. Because they didn't, did they? That's one thing the monster had definitely taught him. Stories were wild, wild animals and went off in directions you couldn't expect.” 

What do you do when you are forced to face the worst fears of your life? What do you do when your nightmares are for real, when they are so tangible and facing them is the only option? What if the nightmares are so terrifying that even the presence of an eerie monster does not scare you one bit?

Conor is a teenager living with his Mum since Dad left them and went off to a different country. He is new to high school life and all the bullying, hatred, shames, fears and pressure that come with it. His mother is fighting a terminal illness, and though he fears oblivion so much that it haunts his nightmares, he refuses to believe it.

And then comes the monster to visit him. Exactly at 12:07 in the night every time. Dark, ominous and terrifying. But it does not scare Conor. He faces the monster with great ease and demands the reason for its presence. The monster says that he has been summoned by none other than Conor himself.

The monster says that it would tell Conor 3 parables by the end of which Conor should tell him his own true story or be banished from life forever. Connor objects, but isn't given any choice. He thinks that the monster is just imagination, but every time he wakes up the next morning, he sees little clues that make the monster's visit real.

While the monster continues to visit in the night with parables that question the very essence of "the good and the bad" as Conor perceives ( “There is not always a good guy. Nor is there always a bad one. Most people are somewhere in between.” ), Conor's days get worser and worser with the bullying in school and his mother's deteriorating health. He abhors the fact that his good friend went and told every one about his mother, because he hates all the pity that comes his way because of it - how his teachers give him extra perks, how his school mates give him the "loser" look and not really talk to him. Nobody knows how to talk to a person who has a tragedy in his life, so he is completely ignored almost as if he is invisible.

Conor is so deeply troubled by the pity and silent stares that he actually creates trouble in school and wills the Head teacher to punish him, because that would mean that they see him also as a normal high school boy worthy of punishment rather than a boy needing special care and attention because he has a dying mum. He simply wishes he were treated as a normal teenager - loved, hated, punished, praised, but certainly not shunned. And definitely not pitied.

“There was once an invisible man who had grown tired of being unseen. It was not that he was actually invisible. It was that people had become used to not seeing him.

And if no one sees you, are you really there at all?"” 

Mum is taken to hospital where treatments and options fail, Dad comes to visit but makes it clear that he would be an unwelcome guest back in his place. And then the worst thing happens - the monster demands Conor's story be told, failing which he would be banished into his nightmares forever. Conor finally reveals his nightmares to the monster. How he feels for wishing all the pain would end, which would mean his mother slipping away from him forever. How the waiting was much more painful than the end that Conor almost wished the end would happen soon.

“You were merely wishing for the end of pain, the monster said. Your own pain. An end to how it isolated you. It is the most human wish of all.” 

The monster asks him to come to face with all his worst fears. To accept the inevitable and acknowledge it.

"You wanted her to go at the same time you were desperate for me to save her. Your mind will believe comforting lies while also knowing the painful truths that make those lies necessary. And your mind will punish you for believing both.”

Finally, he learns to let his beloved mum go. To accept the truth.

“Conor held tightly onto his mother.
And by doing so, he could finally let her go.” 

It took me a good while to arrest the flood of tears. The monster's questions and statements are completely transcending. Not many books I've read have made me feel so raw, emotional and yet so connected. The soul of this book is to be read to be felt. Along with the haunting illustrations.

The Monster is a giant Yew tree. The Yew is always associated with ancient times, religion, the land and the people.  Some are thought to be so ancient that they are a few thousand years old. It is considered a symbol of immortality by some religions and always planted in churchyards. In some religions, though, it is looked upon as a symbol of doom and death. The fruits and leaves of the tree are highly poisonous.

A Monster Calls. Powerful.

The Arrival

Author: Shaun Tan
Ages: 6+ to 100+

"What draws so many to leave everything behind and journey alone to a mysterious country, a place without family or friends, where everything is nameless and the future is unknown? This silent graphic novel is the story of every migrant, every refugee, every displaced person, and a tribute to all those who have made the journey." - Blurb of "The arrival".

The blurb says it all. This is the story of one such immigrant who leaves his family to go and seek a living in a strange place. So alien, so full of strange structures, weird plants and animals, everything so foreign. It is the story of how he tries to communicate with the locals, not knowing their language. How he finds a place to live, a pet, a series of basic jobs, how he learns the new way of life, meets refugees and immigrants and learns of their stories, makes friends, saves up and finally calls his family over to settle down with him.

This book is very emotional. I ended up holding it and reading it for quite a long time. Which is amazing, given the fact that this is a picture book. With no printed story, not even a word. And any letters and words that do come in the drawings of the strange place are even more stranger, so this book is a story told with nothing but art. In black and white with that worn-out effect so beautifully created, it is a masterpiece.

So very daunting, isn't it! That feeling of being far away from family, missing that familiarity and warmth that is home, trying to fit in and belong in a strange place full of busy people and their busy lives. I can't even imagine how it would feel for people displaced because of war, poverty and homelessness, moving away with nothing but meagre belongings and leaving behind everything that must have meant the world to them, sometimes even loved ones, forever. People trying desperately to forget, to remember, to find hope and move on. People trying to feel accepted, people trying to live.

Throughout the story are people who take the time to step out of their routine and offer help to a complete stranger, be it with the directions, tickets on transport, or even inviting him home for dinner. They befriend the immigrant, talk about how they ended up in this place and try to help him with their knowledge of the place ( have you ever had a flashback story rendered just with still life pictures?! unbelievable work!!).

The immigrant works really hard, he finally settles down well and his family becomes so at-home in the new place that they even start helping other new comers.

The best books are those that give you a mental picture so vivid that you even remember it long after finishing the book. Shaun Tan has somehow managed to bring out these mental pictures to life so well with his illustrations that I almost felt like I was watching a motion picture.  It transported me to a world so far away, roused so many deep memories and feelings from my sub-conscious and affected me in a very profound way.

The children have been sitting with this book for days together, making out their own meanings from the pictures and noticing so many unspoken feelings. I realized this must be a wonderful book to discuss in a class. Imagination, creativity, sensitivity, war, life, compassion, displacement, hard work, value of family and love, there is so much that this book has to offer as classroom material.

Here's what Shaun Tan has to say about the book.

And here's the book ( most of it) on Youtube. (although it isn't as intense as it would feel when you actually read the book).

And that immigrant in the story, it is actually the author's drawing of himself.

The Arrival. Disturbingly strange, yet so familiar.

Colin Fischer

Authors: Ashley Edward Miller and Zack Stentz
Ages: 13+
Note: Contains some sexual references pertaining to teenage talk and adolescence

Colin Fischer cannot stand to be touched. He hates the colour blue. He needs index cards to relate to facial expressions. He has Asperger's, is socially awkward, emotionally bland with a very high IQ. He adores Sherlock Holmes' unemotional logic, sticks to routines, is too blatant, loves facts and can't relate to fiction, can't even lie. Yet when a gun goes off in his school's cafeteria, he is the only one brave enough to stay behind and investigate. And arrive at the truth, even if it meant saving the back of his bullying classmate ( who dunks his head in the toilet the very first day) who everybody thinks is the suspect.

If you got reminded of "The Curious incident of the Dog in the Night-time", you would be forgiven. The resemblance is unmistakeable and the plot, not really fresh. But the book is still a very good read and is unique in its own way.

Seeing the world in Colin's eyes gives us a taste of how it feels like to live with Asperger's. It is certainly a difficult challenge, and it certainly needs a huge change in perception among family and friends. However It is also amazing to see how much he accepts his own limitations and how well he acknowledges his gifts. Because of his lack of emotions, his inability to see through rhetorical questions and double meanings, he simply lives life black and white, which is kind of innocent and you feel like protecting him.

It is quite interesting how the author has managed to squeeze in humour as well! Also, Colin's diary features in the story almost as a supporting character and is quite entertaining. The wide variety of facts at the beginning of every chapter is also something I enjoyed reading, so would the kids. However, it has a few loose ends, and does not feel as complete as Mark Haddon's curious incident of the dog. Perhaps it is because it deals more with Colin's condition and his perspective than the curious incident itself.

The author has done a wonderful job with Colin's portrayal as an Asperger's child. I was reading through the "Asperger's" search results and this one lists almost everything that Colin feels / does.

The scenes inside the Fischer household are also something we would instantly relate to - calm Dad, slightly over-protective and over-reacting mum, a taunting sibling and a daily routine. I especially liked Mr Fisher's statement when he is nagged by Mrs Fisher to take her with him to fetch Colin when he gets himself into a tight corner by lying for the first ever time : "Sometimes, the last thing in the world a boy wants is his mother - especially when he needs her the most". (I should remember to respect the amount of free space children require when they grow into teens. It would be hard, but I shouldn't end up being the clingy mother.)

More and more children are getting diagnosed with Autistic Spectrum Disorder every day. Perhaps what was earlier dismissed as bad behaviour / shy character / clumsiness / dullhead / quirkiness / mental illness is now clearly diagnosed. About 1 in 100 children, and boys more often than girls get diagnosed with ASD. Some forms of ASD are more manageable, some barely noticeable and some, quite detrimental. Parents, doctors and schools are trying more and more to mainstream many of these children. It is only fair that proper awareness is created both among adults and children to be able to support them as class mates and friends. After all, they are also like us,  albeit with a slightly different set of needs.

In fact if we do think honestly, I bet we would certainly find some quirkiness inside all of us that needs quick pruning, but is always overgrown! But unlike those with ASD, we actually know what is wrong, where we are wrong, and yet we choose to ignore and carry on being the worser one, don't we!