Monster by Walter Dean MyersMyers, Walter Dean. Monster. 1999. New York: Harper Collins. $21,Trade Cloth. 0060280778.
Annotation:
16 year old Steve Harmon is in prison and on trial for felony murder. He writes up his experience as a screenplay.
Awards:
Coretta Scott King Honor Book, 2000
Kentucky Bluegrass Award, 2002
Booklist Editors' Choice (Books for Youth: Older Readers Category), 1999Imagine a movie is just beginning:
Behind the bars of a grim, gray prison cell sits a thin, brown skinned,16 year old boy wearing a prison uniform. His head is in his hands. There is a suit and tie next to him that he will wear to court tomorrow.
This is the movie of Steve Harmon’s life while he is on trial for felony murder. He’s a good kid whose passion is making movies in his film class. The State of New York aims to prove that he was involved in a drugstore store robbery where a man was killed. The other people involved say he was the lookout for them. If he’s convicted he will have to serve 25 years to life. The minimum sentence is longer than he’s ever even lived yet. Steve hates prison so much; he is afraid all of the time. To cope with this awful situation Steve writes it up as a screenplay. It gives him some distance; allows him to see things more clearly. Being in prison has a way of making you feel guilty even if you are innocent. But, did Steve do it? Like a good movie, it isn’t spelled out for you. See for yourself if you think Steve deserves to be called a Monster.
Image from Novelist Plus database.
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