Last Summer Entry

The reason I chose the book Monster over other books was due to the brief explanation on the back. I chose to read it because I can connect to be accused of something, when it wasn’t me, then I have to convince the person who is accusing why I wouldn’t do it. Anyone can connect to this, because it happens daily. If I had to recommend this to someone, I would recommend it to someone struggling at a certain time in their life, one who may be accused more than someone else, or to one who feels like they are being attacked by accusations. I target these people because they will easily be able to connect to Steve.

Summer Entry 3

A place in the book Monster that really grabbed my attention was on page 108 during Steve’s “Saturday, July 11^th” journal entry. In it his states “Everybody in here either talks about sex or hurting somebody or what they’re in here for. That’s all they think about and that’s what’s on my mind, too. What did I do? I walked into a drugstore to look for some mints, and then I walked out. What was wrong with that? I didn’t kill Mr. Nesbitt. Sunset said he committed [his] crime. Isn’t that what being guilty is all about? You actually do something? You pick up a gun and you point it across a small space and pull a trigger? You grab the purse and run screaming down the street? Maybe, even, you buy some baseball cards that you think were stolen?” ( Myers 108) This hooks me into the book because it shows how Steve feels about the situation, and gets me to take Steve’s side.  Steve is trying to support his case by sharing that everyone in jail is there for serious things, and how he is being accused of murder when all he did was walk in, buy mints, and leave.

Summer Reading Entry 2

The main character in the book Monster by author Walter Dean Myers is Steve Harmon. Steve being a normal individual, wants a lot of things but, the question is will he get what he wants?  In this book he is put on trial for murder, so it is fair to say the biggest thing he wants is to be proven innocent.  Another big desire Steve has is to be free, and not spend his life behind bars for something he didn’t do. Although Bobo is his friend he wants him to be thrown in jail, since he was the one who murdered the guy that Steve is being accused of killing. Everyone can connect to this because no one wants to be accused or get in trouble for something they didn’t do. The book Monster is structured like the show Law and Order, there is an investigation going on, and someone gets accused of something they didn’t do, until the end when they finally find out it was someone else. Steve being the guy that is accused of the crime at first, but Bobo was the actual suspect. It’s fair to say the themes of this book are the want/desire to be free, and the want/desire to not be accused.