Monster vs. Boy

In Karen Krossing’s meaningful novel Monster vs. Boy, a child faces a monster and his own past.

Eleven-year-old Dawz lives with his sister and their uncle, who adopted the children after their mother disappeared.He is happy, enjoys time with his best friend, and nurtures his passion for cooking. He also suspects that there is a monster in his closet. When he finally sees the monster, he realizes that he cannot tell anyone. He fears they will think that he sounds like his mother, who mumbled about yellow feathers and a scorpion tail. Mim has lived in the closet for years, enjoying her small space and listening to Dawz and his family read. After Dawz sees her, she ends up in search of a…

Monster vs. Boy is a supportive novel in which a boy learns to address his trauma—with his community’s support.

A boy wrestles with seeing a monster who shouldn’t be real and with finding a sense of belonging.
Morsh’s reputation for once having been home to monsters forms the heart of the town’s booming tourism market. For 11-year-old Dawz, these supposedly mythical creatures are a painful reminder of the monster-obsessed mom who left him and younger sister Jayla to be adopted by their maternal uncle, Pop. (The children have different fathers, but their mother refused to disclose their identities.) Dawz dreams of winning a local baking competition, like Pop before him; baking is a special passion they…

The question of what does and doesn’t make a monster is front and center in this dark yet earnest tale by Krossing (One Tiny Bubble). Eleven-year-old Dawz and his younger sister Jayla live with their uncle in Morsh, a town that was once purportedly the home of monsters, which haven’t been sighted in years—except by Dawz. Though no one else can see or hear it, he knows that within his closet dwells a small monster with gray fur and purple scales named Mim, who is not fond of the boy who lives outside her abode. But Mim develops an appreciation for Dawz and his family when she overhears them…

Dawz and Jayla live with their uncle, "Pops," who adopted them when their mom left. Together they live in the town of Morsh, a town known for its connection with monster, which is precisely what Dawz suspects has been hiding in his closet. While Dawz does everything to keep the door locked with the monster safe inside, Mim-- the cub-sized monster-- is growing tired of her nest in the closet. One night, Dawz and his best friend, Atlas, form a plan to trap Mim. However, monster-trapping isn't as easy as they thought, and now Mim is on the loose in Morsh. To save the town, himself, and maybe…