Monster is told through a screenplay format because the narrator, a sixteen-year-old on trial for murder, is using filmmaking to process what's happening to him. The format is the meaning: who controls the story, and who gets to decide if you're the monster? Books in this family share that format-as-theme approach and the particular urgency of a Black teenager navigating the criminal justice system.
Reach for this book when your teenager is beginning to question how the world defines them versus how they define themselves. It is a vital resource for navigating conversations about systemic justice, the consequences of who we associate with, and the heavy weight of labels like monster. The story follows sixteen-year-old Steve Harmon, a Black youth on trial for murder, as he processes his fear and identity through a screenplay he writes while incarcerated. It deals with intense themes of guilt and accountability through a realistic, unflinching lens. Parents will appreciate how it challenges young readers to think critically about truth and the complexity of the legal system while remaining deeply human and emotionally resonant for the high school age group.
