Rating: 
Summary: Good, but not quite outstanding
Review: Monster is a very good story, but I found myself skipping over quite a bit of it, because it was written as a screenplay. That's where it kind of lost points. It's good, but not quite one of my favorites.
Steve Harmon is a 16 year old on trial for murder. I really can't give anything away, it'll spoil the story!
Rating: 
Summary: ...Monster
Review: Monster by Walter Dean Myers is an outstanding and phenomenal book. I highly recommend this book to anyone (12 to adult). It has won 3 awards already since it's release in May 2001, "The Michael Printz Award For Excellence In Young Adult Literature", "The Peace, Non-Violent Social Change, Brotherhood, and Honor Correta Scott Award", and was a "National Book Award Finalist". I do not like reading in general but when I started to read this book, I could not put it down. I learned to enjoy and love this book so much that I read it twice! It is the story about what happens when the world turns inside out for Steve Harmon, a sixteen-year-old boy from Manhattan, who's life might come crashing down with it when the petrified teen finds himself on trial for felony murder. In order to adjust to this dramatic part of his life as it quickly develops, he decides to ignore what is going on around him in the courtroom and deal with it in a very creative way. He becomes the writer, the director, and the star of his own personal true, real-life horror flick. Told as it actually happened! This story also has some engaging characters. The movie sure has an interesting cast. Take a look:
Monster...Featuring...
Sandra Petrocelli
(as the Dedicated Prosecutor)
Kathy O'Brien
(as the Defense Attorney with Doubts)
James King
(as the Thug)
Richard "Bobo" Evans
(as the Rat)
Osvaldo Cruz, member of the Diablos,
(as the Tough Guy Wannabe)
Lorelle Henry
(as the Witness)
Jose Delgado
(he found the body)
*---AND STARRING---*
16-year-old Steve Harmon
(as the Boy on Trial for Murder!) Walter Dean Myers writing style in this particular book is very fluent and elaborative, not to mention convincing! The whole book is written like a movie script...all 281 of it. With using the phrases "Fade In", "Fade Out", "Cut To", "VO" (Voice Over), "Reaction Shot", "CU" (Close Up), and many many more you can actually mentally picture the movie in your head rolling on a movie projector and onto a movie screen.
For example: CUT TO: CU of JURY
JUDGE: "Bring in the jury."
(Very LS as WORDS roll slowly over the screen as in the beginning.)
-This is the true story of Steve Harmon. This is the story of his life and of his trial-
(We see the jury member taking their places in the jury box.)
-It was not an episode that he expected. It was not the life or activity that he thought would fill every bit oh his soul or change what life meant to him.-
(The JUDGE has the verdicts and hands them to the CLERK as GUARDS stand behind the DEFENDANTS.)
-He has transcribed the images and conversations as he remembers them.-
The color begins to fade as the JURY FOREMAN reads verdicts. Two GUARDS begin to put handcuffs on ***** ***** as color changes to black and white. It is clear that the JURY has found him guilty. We see ***** being taken from the COURTROOM This is just a little sample from the book, and what it is about. As I said before I HIGHLY recommend this to pretty much anyone and it is such a wonderful, powerful, and especially entertaining book. (I left out the names at the end because I didn't want to give away the ending.) If you think you would enjoy this book and want to know what happens to Steve Harmon read Monster by Walter Dean Myers and I guarantee you will not be left disappointed.
Rating:
Summary: A Great Read for Anyone!!
Review: I would highly recomend this book to anyone. The book teaches you many lessons and can teach you a great deal. You feel like you really know the characters and you get an intricate view into the like of a young teen in prison and his journey. This is a book full of emotions and would be a pleasure to anyone of all ages, and plus for kids who want an easy book to read for summer or a project this goes by like that and is a pleasure i give it 10 stars out of 5.
Rating:
Summary: EASY READ
Review: I SAT AND READ THIS BOOK IN ABOUT 2 HOURS. I REALLY FELT AS THOUGH I WAS MAKING A MOVIE WHILE READING ALONG. I WOULD RECOMMEND THIS BOOK TO YOUNG ADULTS AND BEYOND. THE BOOK COULD HAVE BEEN MUCH LONGER AND MORE IN DEPTH BUT IT MAKES FOR A NICE EASY READ.
Rating:
Summary: Intresting Read
Review: I dont remember how i ended up getting this book but it was a good read. The first thing i noticed is that the book is composed of his Diary admissions, and then 1st person, as the trial plays out. The author does a great job of making you feel what Steve feels. Your feeling can either be that Steve is guilty or Inoccent as in all trials, so there isnt an imidiot good VS Evil in this book. You also start to understand that not all people that are put into Steves position are Bad they just might have gotten into a bad position and not been able to get out. I think this book really expands the Horizon for you and is an easy read. I would suggest this book to all ages.
Rating: 
Summary: Not my type. . .
Review: Steve Harmon is on trial for murder. He is accused of being the lookout during the murder of a store owner. During the trial, Steve writes what is going on like it is a movie script, not real life. The book is mostly just how Steve's trial goes, and how he feels about the trial, filmmaking, and being in jail. This book was not interesting. It was actually extremely boring. If you are a lawyer or a judge, or training to be those, you might like it, but it is filled with court lingo so for kids it is hard to read. I didn't understand what was going on, and there was no real plot. I thought it was a waste of my time. I only read to the end because I wanted to find out if Steve was guilty or innocent. I gave it one star because Steve's feelings are a little bit interesting, and give you some insight to his character. I would give the plot 0 stars because it was a boring waste of time.
Rating:
Summary: Realistic portrayal of a juvenile.
Review: Having worked myself in a juvenile treatment center with habitual offenders, I have witnessed the realities of the characters experience. To see first hand the realities of despair among youth that have from social, economic and racial binds of choices weighted by poverty. As I read the book, I was captivated. I could not have been told it was not a true story, one that I had not witnessed from an observation tower, juror seat or group discussion. There wasn't a day or a page that didn't reflect what I knew in my heart while working in the system that all of these youths are still children. Hardened on the outside and soft and swiftly crumbling on the inside. Excellent!
Rating:
Summary: Understanding yourself in Walter Dean Myers Monster
Review: Set in the format of a movie script Monster is the story of sixteen-year-old Steve Harmon who is in jail for murder. The novel alternates between a movie script and a diary to reveal Steve's inner thoughts as he faces trial as an adult. From the start the novel poses the question of a person's identity and how others view you. Steve is compelled to write his experiences in the form of a script so that he may deal with the label of "monster" that the prosecutor has used to describe him. Racked with self-doubt and confusion, Steve writes in order to understand himself, his decisions and how others view him. Flashbacks of friends, family and school are interwoven into the "script" in order for the reader to understand who Steve is and how he finds himself on trial. This novel humanizes the face of young men in trouble with the law. Steve comes from a good home, with strong family ties and is involved in school activities. Despite all these safeties Steve is somehow propelled into a world of criminals and violence. This confrontation with jail, the court system and punishment come in contrast with Steve who is a sensitive young person. His guilt is never asserted nor is his innocence ever proclaimed. This novel is not about those isues it's about understanding your place in this world,why you do the things you do and how other people view you.
Rating:
Summary: Great book for teens especially boys
Review: Steve Harmon is a good kid growing up in a rough neighborhood. He does well at school and seems to be going in the right direction to have a successful life. A bad decision may cost him everything for which he has worked. This book describes how that choice could send Steve to prison for 25 years. The story provides a good lesson about the choices young people make. Is Steve really guilty of the crime he has been accused of? Did it happen the way his "so-called" friends that are testifying against him say it did or are they lying to cover for themselves? The story is told through Steve's eyes as a movie script, a way that is new to this reader. He tells of the days before he is incarcerated, his time spent in jail and his trial. The reader gets a very heart felt look into this young man's heart throughout the story and the ending is VERY thought provoking. This is a must read for all young people especially boys.
Rating:
Summary: Powerful, Engaging and Eye-Opening
Review: The style of this post-modern text is engaging and enveloping. The reader is drawn inside the mind of the young, Steve Harmon, who is portrayed mainly as a victim in a cruel world and unfair system of justice. Race is certainly an issue in the book, though it is not the central focus. For instance, while not portrayed in an entirely negative light, the professionals (i.e. lawyers, judges, prison guards) are mostly white, and they seem to treat the trial in a very nonchalant manner, as if this is just another day of work. These people, especially O'Brien, do their jobs competently, but they neglect any emotional attachment with their "work," as proven in the end when Steve turns to hug O'Brien, and she "pensively gathers her papers and moves away." The cruel, unforgiving nature of human beings is illustrated clearly through Steve's graphic descriptions of the fights and violence in prison, and it is shown in the flashbacks to different scenes on the streets. Differences of language and dialect are obvious between characters of different races. High school students with experience in a tough, urban environment could certainly relate to the events in the text, but I think the materials are too graphic to be used in any younger grades. The book also offers a unique opportunity to teach students about the writing of and creation of film.
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