I won’t talk about her unconditional love for her boy nor will I talk about her courage and strength. One of the characters in the monster’s first tale. The evil queen is the young prince’s stepmother, and she is much younger than the king (though many of the villagers in the kingdom…

Sometimes it isn’t clear whether things are really happening or are just happening in Conor’s head.

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Despite this, she is always positive and puts on a brave face when she talks to Conor. Sometimes this makes Conor feel very angry because he feels like he is being lied to. At school the next day, Harry tells Conor that he knows the worst thing he can do to Conor is to no longer see him. Instead of hitting him, Harry turns and walks away, pretending not to hear Conor's voice calling out to him. The monster appears and tells Conor the story of a man who felt invisible and so lashed out in violence to get people's attention. Meanwhile, the monster guides Conor to grab Harry's shirt and punch him repeatedly in the face. Harry is hospitalized and Conor goes to the headmistress's office. Hoping to be punished, Conor is dismayed when the headmistress decides she couldn't punish him given what he is going through with his mother's illness. In class, people notice Conor now but do not interact with him, and he feels further from them than when he was invisible. My favorite part of this book was the author’s note. The author’s note is beautiful, and you should read it and then put the book down because you’ve just read the best part and it will not get better. Basically a good kid, Conor acts out due to his tough situation and gets into trouble that he normally wouldn't take part in. He is very loving and helpful to his mother ("I wish you didn't have to be quite so good," she says), and the pain of his struggle is palpable, making it clear why he acts the way he does. Conor's mother is loving and forgiving of her son's misbehavior, and his friend Lily is a staunch and loyal friend. Conor is angry at his best friend Lily for telling people at school that his mother is ill because this makes people treat him differently. People at school find it hard to talk to him because they don’t know what to say. This makes Conor feel alone.

I will stay, the monster said, its hands still on Conor’s shoulders. Now all you have to do is speak the truth.Conor's nightmares begin shortly after his mother starts her treatments for cancer. He's also dealing with a father who lives far away and is engrossed with his new family, a brisk and determined grandma who doesn't understand him, and schoolmates who don't seem to see him anymore. As readers learn more and more about Conor's story and the terrible monster who comes to visit, it is impossible not to feel worry and fear and sadness for this boy, whose must shoulder problems that have toppled many adults before him. But even in his anger and pain, Conor's defiant spirit shows flashes of dry humor and painful hopefulness that are difficult to witness, but make him impossibly endearing. Although I was reading this book through Connor's eyes, it was like reliving the tough year my family had to endure together while my mom fought the battle of her life. I've felt every emotion that Connor experienced. I hated being pitied. I was angry. At myself. At the world. At God. And when his mother spoke, it was my mother speaking to me through her words. A Monster Calls was a painful book. There were times when I even had to put this book down to compose myself. But reading it felt a lot like... closure. It reminded me that it was okay to be angry. It was okay to hurt, to be scared. It was okay to let go. Flood, Alison (4 November 2011). "Alan Hollinghurst puts Booker snub behind him with Galaxy triumph". Alison Flood. The Guardian. Retrieved 4 November 2012. Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Violence & Scariness in your kid's entertainment guide. Get started Close The Apothecary is one of the protagonists from the monster's second tale. The Apothecary is greedy and charges too much for his remedies, but the monster reminds Conor that he is at least an effective healer. The Parson