I loved this touching though Heartbreaking story. a true journey of Family, love and the quest for truth. what is personal truth? questions asked and lessons learnt in the heart of a young boy who faces a difficult reality. one everyone must read!

Wow! What an amazing story! Only took me a couple of hours to get through this & what an emotional journey it was! Did it tug at my heartstrings? Yes Did it make me an emotional wreck? Yes Did I cry like a baby? You bet i did I lost my mom in 2013 to cancer so i can definitely relate to this story. We've all experienced loss during our lives and its never easy. But it makes us who we are. This is definitely a book everyone should read. I highly recommend

An absolutely love this book and it is just such a good book!

I have experienced equal quantities of dread and delight whilst anticipating A Monster Calls, a novel which is the joint venture of two highly acclaimed authors of YA fiction. I've been dreading it as it will be my last experience of the wonderful writing of Siobhan Dowd who died in 2007 aged 47. Siobhan was the author of four brilliant novels, two of which were published posthumously and she had penned some notes for a new book which culiminated in Patrick Ness taking the baton and producing the thing of beauty which is A Monster Calls. So was it to be a Dowd or a Ness novel, whose influence would be felt the most? To tell the truth, it's different from anything either author has produced before. Yes, I felt Siobhan's touch at times but this really feels like a one-off, an original masterpiece. In just over 200 pages, Patrick Ness weaves the tale of Conor O'Malley, a 13 year old only child who has a battle on his hands. His single mother is nearing the end of her fight with cancer and Conor has a well meaning grandmother whose good intentions only end up estranging him further. His father has remarried, now living in the US and is in the clutches of a jealous new wife complete with new baby and he hardly wants the added troubles of his teenage son. Meanwhile, at school, the only people who really notice Conor are the bullies - everyone else is busily tip-toeing around the elephant in the room/playground. If that wasn't enough, a monster comes a-calling, in the shape of a yew tree - yew trees are symbolic of everlasting life and healing but this particular specimen doesn't seem very friendly. This is one of the most powerful, compelling books I have ever read. If you have ever experienced bereavement or even have the slightest human interest in other folks' emotions, you will adore A Monster Calls. Its simplicity and lyricism is perfectly balanced by the stark black and white illustrations by Jim Kay. You must get the "real" hard back edition, not the "pretend" e book version, this is a book which has to be caressed and treasured. It's a harrowing read, brutal in its honesty, never veering into mawkishness. I have a feeling that Siobhan's novels will have a much deserved renaissance with a whole new influx of readers and I, in turn, must pick up Patrick Ness' Chaos Walking trilogy which has languished on my bookshelves for long enough now...

Indescribable, but I will try Breathtakingly brilliant, heartbreaking, lyrical, Intense, harrowing, and unforgettable... I feel quite stunned.... This story was Siobhan Dowd's idea - written by Patrick Ness because Dowd died before she got the chance to get it down on paper. Patrick Ness's introduction to the book is lovely .... Don't wait for the pb ... the HB is such a lovely book, and one you will want to keep forever ...