Monster

Myers, W. (1999). Monster [Kindle version]. Retrieved from Amazon.com

Citizens are innocent until proven guilty. It is the law. Aspiring filmmaker Steve Harmon hopes those statements hold true, because he has been arrested and is awaiting trial. Sixteen-year-old Steve lives in Harlem and has some undesirable acquaintances from the neighborhood. Alguinaldo Nesbitt had been shot and killed during the robbery of his convenience store. James King and Richard “Bobo” Evans have testified that Steve was part of their plotted “getover”. Desperately trying to make it through the trial, Steve decides to write about his experience as a screenplay. Through Steve the reader feels the fear and struggle of trying to prove innocence in a seemingly hopeless situation. Although Steve’s life is forever changed, he shows the justice system can prevail by separating truth from stereotypes. Myers wrote Monster through Steve’s screenplay. The book tells the story in a refreshing unique format, which makes the reader feel as if they are witnessing the trial first-hand. The book would be a great reinforcement tool for teachers illustrating the justice system and social injustices as well as an example of unique writing style.