Audible Book Review: The Monster Calls by Patrick Ness

This is a dark, yet charmingly creative, tale of loss suitable to help young people who have a loved one facing serious illness.
A Monster Calls: Inspired by an Idea from Siobhan Dowd
Written by: Patrick Ness
Narrated by: Jason Isaacs

Length: 3 hrs and 59 mins
Unabridged Audiobook
Release Date:09-23-11
Publisher: Brilliance Audio
Genre: Teens, Fantasy, Family
My Rating: 4.5 of 5.0

Publisher's Summary
The monster showed up after midnight. As they do. But it isn’t the monster Conor’s been expecting. He’s been expecting the one from his nightmare, the nightmare he’s had nearly every night since his mother started her treatments, the one with the darkness and the wind and the screaming.... This monster, though, is something different. Something ancient, something wild. And it wants the most dangerous thing of all from Conor. It wants the truth. Patrick Ness spins a tale from the final story idea of Siobhan Dowd, whose premature death from cancer prevented her from writing it herself.

Darkly mischievous and painfully funny, A Monster Calls is an extraordinarily moving novel about coming to terms with loss from two of our finest writers for young adults.

©2011 Patrick Ness (P)2011 Brilliance Audio, Inc.

Review:
Conor is a troubled youth. He has suffered nightmares since his mother started her treatments. Nightmares with darkness, wind, cliffs and screaming. Conor struggles to be left alone in school although he is caught between the taunting bullies and the pitying teachers who cut him too much slack because of what he is dealing with at home.

One night, at 12:07am exactly, the Monster arrives at his window. Not the monster from his nightmares, but one rather closer to home. Conor sort of recognizes the Monster as the ancient yew tree that grows behind their house, up the hill, beside the old church. The Monster insists that he has been called to help Conor get through the nightmares… to the truth. The Monster tells three stories with the instructions that Conor is to tell the final, fourth story. Conor might think it is just a dream except for the leaves in his room one night and the poison yew berries all over his floor another night.

Even when Conor’s grandmother takes charge of him and moves him temporarily to her home, the Monster still shows up. The stories the Monster tells don’t really make sense to Conor, although the Monster will try to explain before their time is over. It all has to do with the unreliability of appearances, the vagaries of men, self deception, responsibility and the frailties of life.

This made me realize the impact that illness can have on others around a patient -- the children and the parents.  Especially children old enough to struggle with the idea of losing their beloved parent. The story is wonderfully imaginative even if a little on the dark side. I could see it being a helpful story to be shared when an older tween or younger teen who is facing illness, and mortality, in a family member.

Audio Notes: Jason Isaacs does a lovely job with the narration. He provides just the right accents to match the characters and convey the darkness of the Monster that is tempered with his caring nature. The narration evokes the appropriate emotions of fear, pain, despair, frustration and love. The audio is a great experience.

This was a story from my Audible TBR shelf. It qualifies for 2017 Audio Book Challenge, Mount TBR and "M" in Alphabet Challenge.

Audible Review: The New World: Prequel to the Chaos Walking Trilogy by Patrick Ness

This is a quick listen that introduces the series of a 'new world'.

The New World: Prequel to the Chaos Walking Trilogy
Written by: Patrick Ness
Narrated by: Angela Dawe

Length: 47 mins
Series: Chaos Walking, Book 0
Unabridged Audiobook
Release Date:09-13-11
Publisher: Candlewick on Brilliance Audio
Genre: Sci Fi, Fantasy
My Rating: 4.0 of 5.0

Publisher's Summary
The New World is a prequel to the award-winning Chaos Walking trilogy, setting the stage for the world we discover in The Knife of Never Letting Go, The Ask and the Answer, and Monsters of Men. The story was written while the author served as writer in residence for the Booktrust an independent UK-wide charity dedicated to encouraging people of all ages and cultures to enjoy books.
The New World tells of Viola's journey to the New World, brilliantly capturing the hope and fear of settlers in search of a new life. Patrick Ness says that he wrote it "as a huge and deeply-felt thank you to readers. I've had so many questions about Viola and what her life was like before that I couldn't resist the opportunity to reveal just a little bit extra. I knew these things - they're vitally important to her as a character, even if they're not directly in the novels - so it felt like a secret trip I could take readers on. The challenge was to make it work on its own, too, so anyone could read it. That was really, really good fun, and I hope the final result is an exciting one."
The New World can be listened to before or after the trilogy – and some may choose to do both. The story works as a standalone piece, but listeners already familiar with The Knife of Never Letting Go will learn more about Viola’s life and the events leading to her arrival and first encounter with Todd, while newcomers to the trilogy will discover a white-knuckle ride of an introduction to the series. Whether you're a new or faithful listener, though, it's a welcome chance to immerse yourself in the world of Chaos Walking.
Listen to more Chaos Walking.
©2011 Patrick Ness (P)2011 Brilliance Audio, Inc.

Review:
Viola is a twelve year old child of space, traveling with her parents and their community to become settlers in a New World. No one remembers what it is like to live on land. Viola and her parents each have excellent skills and knowledge to make them a good choice as the scout ship that is sent to be the first to land on the planet. Viola is not really happy about her family being the first to go since other children in her class make fun of her and taunt that she will have no one to celebrate her 13th birthday.

Viola’s parents are very excited about their opportunity to select the landing site and establish the base for their people. Unfortunately Viola has a pretty bratty attitude about going even though her parents try to instill their hope in her. Viola has to deal with a lot of young emotions especially when the ship experiences trouble coming through the atmosphere.

Viola’s parents were so positive which was the exact opposite of their daughter. I found it difficult to relate to Viola’s bratty, sulky and depressed personality. The story is presented in first person from Viola's view which focused on her young, rebellious attitude. I did enjoy the set up of the world and the suspense which created interest in the series -- as long as Viola grows up a bit.

Audio Notes: I listened to this as a free Audible book. Angela Dawe does a reasonable job with the characters and maybe did too good of a job portraying the sulky attitude of Viola. This was a quick listen and it may be that reading it would not have created such a reluctance towards the primary character.

This title was from my TBR Pile Challenge as free kindle book from 2010 and a free Audible title. It also qualifies for my Audible Challenge.