Monster Man

This book is one of the best books I have ever read! I have given it to so many peopl to read and their opiniion is the same.....GREAT! It is well worth reading! It is soooooooo realistic! In some parts of the book you get a tad jumpy but you just gotta keep reminding yourself that it isn't true! If I can say one thing, that would be to read it!!!

Glyn Parry is a Western Australian author who writes mainly for young adults. His book "Monster Man' is a psychological thriller that successfully challenges the imagination by never revealing more than necessary, yet somehow manages to be chillingly realistic in its portrayal of modern issues such as abduction, child abuse and the relationships between teenagers and their parents, males and females. Samuel Levine (the character's name in the original WA version, with no anti-Semitic intent whatsoever) is a man who we can choose to either detest or empathise with. Coming from a horrific, yet shady past, he attempts to recreate his destroyed family in his own twisted way by abducting two young girls and heading off up north , pursued by the police. But the real heroine of this novel is Melanie Spence, the teenage girl he abducts from her quiet suburban home. Melanie is portrayed not as a victim, as the cover of the American edition would have you believe, but as a strong character and a survivor. We realise that while Samuel Levine cannot escape from the horrors of his past, Melanie can, and does, from hers. Parry uses an interesting and challenging narrative technique - by playing 'director' instead of 'author' he switches the novel between scenes, so that we follow the story through a variety of points of view. This may be confusing for younger readers, but ultimately it is successful in revealing the perspectives of the characters, including the eponymous 'Monster'. This novel proved to be a hit with my Year 11 English class (ages 15-17) who found that it was a book that did not patronise them and had a lot to offer in its positive portrayal of young adults, through the character of Melanie. The story is located in Western Australia, which American readers may find confusing, but as Parry himself says, "I love WA and will never write for anywhere else'. It offers Australian teenagers a great alternative to the American settings found in so many other books for young adults that have traditionally been used in our high schools. Recommended.

This book is one of the best books I have read in a while. It is realistic, and easy to relate to.The book is simple but complex and is very cleaverly written. I am 16 and read it for english, and I found it easy to read and the story line interesting I couldn't put it down!. It is a book that people between the ages of 14 and 19 would most enjoy as younger people probably wouldn't understand it. I think it is great that finally there is a book that Australian teenagers can relate too.

This book was given to me to read for an assignment.I this book was one of the most thought provoking books i have every read.In writing this book Glyn Parry challenged the sterotyping of teenage girls and also of mental illness.I strongly recommend to teenager every where.But this book deals with too many teenage themes to be understood.

Monster man I say was a job well done, it was appealing to my age group and every one I know who read it said it was a great book to relate to. The places in the book were the story took us were easy to relate to because of the fact that they are a few kilometers up north. Melinie was a good strong willed girl who was not your usuall blonde air head, she was a great way to show the world that all girls are not stupid and pathetic like in the movies.This book had an excelent range of techniques that kept you on the edge of your seat at all times, the scenes would leave you hanging and I found I could not put the book down! I also think that this is one of the most realistic possible senarios that could of occured. It just goes to show you it is not a picture perfect world here in W.A. This book would have to be the best book that I have ever read and Glyn Parry is a greatly talented aurthor who is still in touch with the people he is writing for. He is the best aurthor that this great state has ever produced!!!