Product Details
- Title: A Monster Like Me
- Author: Wendy S. Swore
- Age Range: 8 - 11 years
- Grade Level: 3 - 6
- Hardcover: 304 pages
- Publisher: Shadow Mountain (March 5, 2019)
- Genre: Middle Grade Fiction
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 1629725552
- ***I received a review copy in exchange for an honest review***
Book Summary
“In the vein of R.J.
Palacio’s Wonder, this debut allows readers to step inside Sophie’s
thoughts and to understand and emphasize with her.” –Booklist, starred review
Sophie is a monster expert. Thanks to her Big Book of Monsters and her vivid imagination, Sophie can identify the monsters in her school and neighborhood. Clearly, the bullies are trolls and goblins. Her nice neighbor must be a good witch, and Sophie's new best friend is obviously a fairy. But what about Sophie? She’s convinced she is definitely a monster because of the monster mark on her face. At least that's what she calls it. The doctors call it a blood tumor. Sophie tries to hide it but it covers almost half her face. And if she’s a monster on the outside, then she must be a monster on the inside, too.
Being the new kid at school is hard. Being called a monster is even harder. Sophie knows that it’s only a matter of time before the other kids, the doctors, and even her mom figure it out. And then her mom will probably leave just like her dad did.
Because who would want to live with a real monster?
Inspired by real events in the author's life, A Monster Like Me teaches the importance of believing in oneself, accepting change, and the power of friendship.
Wendy S. Swore farms on the Sho-Ban reservation where her corn maze and pumpkin patch is home to her five kids, two dogs, two geese, seven peacocks, eleven ducks, nineteen cats, and two hundred thirty seven chickens. She farms in the summers, writes in the winters, and would rather chew her leg off than eat something spicy.
Sophie is a monster expert. Thanks to her Big Book of Monsters and her vivid imagination, Sophie can identify the monsters in her school and neighborhood. Clearly, the bullies are trolls and goblins. Her nice neighbor must be a good witch, and Sophie's new best friend is obviously a fairy. But what about Sophie? She’s convinced she is definitely a monster because of the monster mark on her face. At least that's what she calls it. The doctors call it a blood tumor. Sophie tries to hide it but it covers almost half her face. And if she’s a monster on the outside, then she must be a monster on the inside, too.
Being the new kid at school is hard. Being called a monster is even harder. Sophie knows that it’s only a matter of time before the other kids, the doctors, and even her mom figure it out. And then her mom will probably leave just like her dad did.
Because who would want to live with a real monster?
Inspired by real events in the author's life, A Monster Like Me teaches the importance of believing in oneself, accepting change, and the power of friendship.
Book Trailer
My Review
A Monster Like Me is a truly unique and charming book. This book is based on real life experiences from the author in fiction form.
Main character Sophie has a hemangioma on her face that makes her feel like a monster. Readers find out from the first that she feels she was cursed by a witch. Sophie retreats in her own world as she reads her book, The Big Book of Monsters. As she goes throughout her life she identifies the people around her as monsters and fairies. This is a coping mechanism for her as she deals with bullies at school and out in public. Sophie's single mom tries hard to bring her out of her shell but often doesn't know how to help her child. This book told from Sophie's child-like perspective deals with huge human issues of bullying, anxiety, and a deadly disease; but it also shows the beauty of friendship and acceptance and learning to love yourself despite what's going on inside or outside of ones self.
This novel would be a great book to read out-loud to children in the home where good discussions could take place. My other favorite characters were Autumn, Sophie's "fairy-like" friend, her grandmother the "good witch" Mrs. Barrett, and her mother's boyfriend Kelsi who taught her a lot about self acceptance. This book is a well written first novel by the author which is brimming with good messages. This novel is bound to teach many children about hard to talk about issues within the pages of a sweet story.
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Author: Wendy S. Swore
Wendy S. Swore farms on the Sho-Ban reservation where her corn maze and pumpkin patch is home to her five kids, two dogs, two geese, seven peacocks, eleven ducks, nineteen cats, and two hundred thirty seven chickens. She farms in the summers, writes in the winters, and would rather chew her leg off than eat something spicy.
A Note From The Author
Sophie’s story is dear to my heart because I know how it feels to be bullied because I looked different from everyone else. When I was a child, I
had a hemangioma on my forehead that stuck out so far my bangs couldn’t cover it, no matter how hard my mother tried. Because the tumor was made up of blood vessels, I could feel my heart beating inside it when I was playing hard or really upset.
The incident at the grocery store where the hydra lady says, “Hey, look kids! That girl doesn’t need a Halloween costume. She’s already got one!” is an exact quote of what a woman once said to my mother and me. Another woman told a classroom full of kids that I had the mark of the devil. Kids asked if it was a goose bump, or hamburger, or if my brains had leaked out. My dad had to chase away some bullies who had followed me home, called me names, and pushed me into the street. Sometimes, after a bad day of bullying, I wished I could just rip the mark off my face and be like everyone else—but it was a part of me, and wishing didn’t change that.
My parents decided to take an active role in educating the people around me so they would know what a hemangioma was and understand that it wasn’t icky, or gross, or contagious. Whenever we moved to a new place, my dad would go with me to the elementary school and talk to the kids about my mark and let them ask questions. After those talks, kids befriended me and noticed when bullies came around. Like Autumn, my school friends would speak up when they saw someone being mean to me, and sometimes they would stand between me and the bullies until they left me alone. I didn’t let the bullies stop me from doing what I wanted to do. I climbed trees, went swimming, wrote poetry, brought my tarantula and snakes to show-and-tell, and played in the tide pools.
This is my message to anyone who experiences bullying: Don’t let the bullies define you! I’ve been there, I know it hurts to be teased, but don’t let it stop you from doing what you want. Find something you enjoy—a hobby, talent, or challenge—and practice that skill. Know that someone out there, maybe even someone in your same school, needs a friend as much as you do. Be that friend. Stand up for each other. And know that you are not alone.
You can always find me at WendySwore.com, and I would love to hear your stories and what you thought of the book.
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