YA Buddy Readers' Corner ♥ discussion

Megan and myself will be buddy reading A Monster Calls on the 27th January 2014. Join us :)

i loved this book! i hope you guys enjoy it! =)

Great book! I loved it, enjoy your reading Christina & Megan :)

Wow I read a few pages and I really like the illustrations in this book!

23% - (view spoiler)[The pages with pictures of the 'monster' are scary. I got chills when Conor woke up to find leaves and poisonous yew berries in his room. What is that fourth story that the monster wants him to tell? (hide spoiler)]

I loved this book! I hope you guys like it as well :)

@Tori I liked it so far!
41% - The first story was (view spoiler)[disturbing. How the prince killed the farmers girl and blamed it on the queen (witch?) for the 'greater good'. I wonder how that story relates to what Conor has to do later on... (hide spoiler)]

59% - The second story was crazy! (view spoiler)[So much role reversal. Just like the first story, I completely believed one side was good but turned out they weren't and the yew tree/monster ended up helping the ones I perceived as villains.

So shocked when Conor trashed his grandma's place! I can't even distinguish between reality and dream in this story. Does 12.07 have anything to do with this all? (hide spoiler)]

72% - Pretty confused at the moment (view spoiler)[Is the yew tree false hope for Conor's mum? Because this plot is pretty unpredictable

And I don't get what is up with Harry and Conor. By the looks of it, neither does Anton and Sully (hide spoiler)]

100% - (view spoiler)[I could see it coming! And when the moment came for Conor to let go, it made me 100x more sadder than I thought it would. I feel really depressed after reading this :(

Beautifully written!! (hide spoiler)]

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Restarting 20th of September 2014.

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Starting this tomorrow. :)

Me too. :)
Do you have the illustrated version? I don't. Not sure if it really matters or not.

Yes, I have, it was pricier than the average book. Haha. What do the illustrations look like on your reader, though?

I was given the book for my birthday and there isn't any pictures at all... I'll just see how it goes, maybe if I enjoy it I will buy the illustrated version.

Oh I think I know the edition you have now! Yeah that may be wise.

Up to the chapter 'Understanding' (view spoiler)[ I really like this so far, the mystery behind Connors dreams are intriguing but the underlying story of his mum is heartbreaking. I love how he is trying to look after her although he seemed slightly bitter towards Lily (hide spoiler)]
Really quick read by the look of it, excited to read the rest tomorrow. :)

I'm up to the third tale. (view spoiler)[ what's up with the whole 'I no longer see you' thing? There must be a underlying meaning there. (hide spoiler)]

I'm sorry I haven't updated, I've been gone all day. I'm on page 65, just finished the 'First Tale': I love the writing of this! It's very engaging and easy! I also love the little bit of mystery element to it. :)

Hi Mei, I just finished. I thought it was pretty good but forgettable, if I'm being honest. (view spoiler)[ Conor was an okay character but I didn't feel connected to the story at all. His mum obviously died but I was like 'eh okay then' And I really wanted Connors tale to be a big deal but it pretty much was a stupid ending. Who would want to watch their mum like that for all those months? I'd want it over and done too. (hide spoiler)]

Oh dear. Well, I do hope it' work better for me, because if I'm being honest also, I'm really enjoying it. Just finished the chapter 'Destruction' (view spoiler)[and I like how the two tales were told, so far. I think it is powerful, vivid and brings so much meaning to the story. It has a 'childhood' feel to it, like a classic. (hide spoiler)] Hoping to finish today. :)

Oh don't get me wrong, it wasn't bad! I just found it hard connecting with the characters. Patrick Ness really does describe things amazingly! And I loved the way he put the paranormal Yew tree into the story. :)

Oh okay, and yeah I loved that about the book, too! I read your review and I do agree that maybe it was short that it lacked a bit of magic.. But it's a great story for me, nonetheless, about loss and acceptance.

To be honest, I didn't really know what the monster actually meant for each tale. I do have an idea, but I'm not sure if it's what the monster meant. I know we all have different interpretations for the tales but it drove me crazy. Lol

Amy wrote: "Hi Mei, I just finished. I thought it was pretty good but forgettable, if I'm being honest. [spoilers removed]"

This, I agree the most! Connor's tale was a bit anticlimactic and I have to say it lacked on that part. I was hoping he got the most highlight of all the tales.

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Date Changed. Restarting June 5th 2016. Happy Reading ☺

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:)

Started a day early :)

This is a beautiful written book i have read mine on audio. Patrick Ness is also the narrator and does a fabulous job. I would have like to have seen the illustrations though so i will keep an eye out for a Hardcover :)

Right from the start i was sucked into this story. (view spoiler)[The way Conor stands up to the tree and tells him he is not afraid of it was awesome. It was so easy to imagine the tree opening up and swallowing him whole. (hide spoiler)]

coincidence hmm (view spoiler)[ The nightmares started the same time Conor's mother got sick and started her treatment. (hide spoiler)]

Ending (view spoiler)[ A heart breaking ending I had not guessed what Conor's own story would be my heart goes out to him how many knights had he had that nightmare and could not talk to anyone about it :( (hide spoiler)]

Chapter 1 (view spoiler)[ Poor kid raising himself no wonder he's not impressed with the monster. (hide spoiler)]

22% (view spoiler)[ Man this is so sad so far. His mother fighting her illness, him having to grow up at 13. Grandma is a bit annoying pushing the "after" on him though. (hide spoiler)]

56% (view spoiler)[ The story sounded like a hold onto your belief but the destruction is kind of like letting him get out all the feelings he'd been holding in. (hide spoiler)]

Carrie wrote: "56% [spoilers removed]"

Yes it does appear to be away of letting his feelings go wild. I thought the grandmother handled it well.

Ending thoughts (view spoiler)[ That was so sad. I was really hoping that his mother would make some kind of miraculous recovery in the end. I know the story was all about teaching him to deal with the loss but it's still incredibly sad that a thirteen year old even has to deal with it. :( (hide spoiler)]

I have read on Patrick Ness account that the movie is coming out in October 21st in the US i hope it comes out here soon after .

Ch1-powerful attempt to show Conor's emotions. Heard such good things about this, but fear it might be a bit close to the bone.

29%-Conor's fear is palpable. Atmospheric. Can't wait to hear the three stories-wonder if/how they'll apply to Conor's situation.

60%-the despair is evident. I wonder if Conor is imagining some of these experiences.

70%-this, understandably, is becoming more pessimistic. Beautiful descriptive writing.

Completed. Not crying, honestly, but this was beautiful. It all makes sense by the end.

Glad you were able to enjoy it Karen. I would like to think this is required reading in every school its so beautiful done.

restarting sept 20th

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Reading from the 20th of September 2016

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Reading from the 6th of January 2017

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Anyone here?

Starting now

I couldn't even put this book down to update on here

Christina wrote: "Wow I read a few pages and I really like the illustrations in this book!"

The illustrations are great! It's like a kids book but not lol