A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness

A book about facing some of the scariest monsters: grief, sadness and loneliness. This is an EMOTIONAL read, but I'm so glad I read it.

Colin's mum has been diagnosed with cancer. Every night he has the same nightmare, and is visited by a monstrous yew tree, which tells him tales that have surprising outcomes.

This story is all about facing up to your deepest fears, one of which is the thought of losing the person you love the most in the world (every time I tried to dry the tears off my face, it was basically soaking wet again). It is like a fairytale in many ways, but the feelings could not be more real.

Colin learns how important it is to be completely honest with himself about his feelings, and to feel them completely, or they will never properly go away.

You'd have to be much braver than I am to read this book if you're actually grieving, or worried about someone's health. Honestly, it would just be too much. But if you're in the right place for it, this book could be really cathartic (help you get rid of lots of emotions).

One tip: Make sure you read the printed version. I read it on an e-reader and later discovered the beautiful illustrations. This book suits ages 12 and up - Colin is young but I believe anyone could get something from his story.

This is a book for #grief, #loneliness, #anger, #bullying and #cancer.

Video review here.