The Monstrumologist, by Rick Yancey

The Monstrumologist, by Rick Yancey. New York: Simon and Schuster BFYR, 2009. ISBN-10: 1416984488; ISBN-13: 978-1416984481. 454 p.

Plot Summary
"mon-strum-ology. n. 1: the study of life forms generally malevolent to humans and not recognized by science as actual organisms, specifically those considered products of myth and folklore. 2: the act of hunting such creatures."

During the late 1800s, Will Henry is the orphaned assistant of Dr. Pellinore Warthrop, a man who has devoted his life to the study of monsters. Will, like his father before him, has seen plenty of gruesome scenes as he assists with necropsies in Dr. Lathrop's basement laboratory, but nothing can prepare him for the horrors that are about to come. The Anthropophagi--headless monsters with sharp teeth in their bellies, who impregnate and then feed on humans, have been discovered in North America. As they begin to prey on a New England town, can Will and Dr. Warthrop discover a way to defeat these monters and keep their town safe?

Critical Evaluation
Rick Yancey spends a lot of time setting the scene and presenting the history of human interaction with the monsters, but the tension he spends time building develops into a nail-biter of a climax. Yancey attempts to imitate the Victorian language of classic horror such as Frankenstein and Dracula. On the whole, he succeeds, although his excessive use of alliteration sometimes seems forced. Yancey's exploration, not only of the horror of monsters, but of the downsides of unfettered human ego and vanity, starts slow, but ends up being a great read.

Reader’s Annotation
Will Henry is the orphaned assistant to a scientist who studies monsters. When a group of violent, bloodthirsty monsters is discovered in New England and begins stalking the residents of a small town,Will discovers the horrors that human vanity and pride can cause.

Author Information

Rick Yancey knew he wanted to be a writer since he was a child in Florida. He earned an English degree from Roosevelt University in Chicago, and then returned to Florida, where he taught and did some theatre work. He then began working as a revenue officer for the IRS, and eventually worked there for 10 years. However, he kept writing, and was able to leave the IRS after the publication of his memoir, Confessions of a Tax Collector, in 2004. He has published six novels in addition to his memoir, including the Alfred Kropp trilogy for young adults and the Teddy Ruzak mystery series for adults. He lives in Florida with his wife and three sons (source). His website is www.rickyancey.com.

Yancey realized he wanted to be a writer in middle school. He says, "a teacher assigned a five-page narrative paper and I turned in 25 pages! I wrote a note to him, apologizing for the length, and he wrote back, “Never apologize for something you should be proud of.". He says his wife is the greatest influence of his writing career. "[She] knew how much the dream of being a professional writer meant to me and dreamed for me when I lost all hope. She rescued manuscripts from the trash, gave me pep talks and bought books to encourage me. She's my biggest fan and toughest critic."

Genre
Gothic horror

Curriculum Ties
English: A modern companion to be read with classic horror novels such as Dracula or Frankenstein to help teens learn to analyze the gothic horror genre.

Booktalking Ideas
-Read the passage where a monster explodes out of a cemetery grave to kill its first victim. It's gruesome and bloody, and will immediately set the scene and grab the interest of teens who like such things.

Reading Level/Interest Age
Grades 9-12. While the protagonist is a 12 year old boy, I would hesitate to recommend it to younger teens because of the graphic, gruesome violence the monsters inflict on humans during the course of the story.

Challenge Issues
Gory, graphic violence, similar to that of Stephen King.

I included this book because it was a 2010 Printz Honor Book, and it was also recommended on the blog A Chair, a Fireplace, and a Tea Cozy.

Christine, by Stephen King

Christine, by Stephen King. New York: Signet, 1983. ISBN-10: 0451160444; ISBN-13: 978-0451160447. 528 p.

Plot Summary
Arnie is a loser. Every high school has at least two--a girl and a boy--and he's the boy at Libertyville High. He's too scrawny to fit in with the jocks, doesn't fit in with the intellectuals because he has no specialty, even though he's smart, and out with the girls because of terrible acne. But Artie is great with one thing--cars. When he sees an old junker, a 1958 Plymouth Fury, on the side of the road with a For Sale sign hanging in the window, it's love at first sight. But the car, Christine, isn't just a car. She's possessed--and out for blood.

Critical Evaluation
Stephen King is often called the Master of Horror, and this book is a stellar example showcasing King's skills at creating setting and developing his characters. King's earlier works--including Carrie, Cujo, The Shining, 'Salem's Lot, and Christine, are especially effective examples of the horror genre done well. A creeping sense of horror builds as King slowly sets the scene, and the buildup pays off at the tense, transfixing climax of Christine's reign of terror.

Reader’s Annotation
Arnie is a loser whose only real talent is working with mechanical things--especially cars. When he first sees Christine, a 1958 Plymouth Fury in terrible condition, it's love at first sight. Yet, as Artie restores Christine to mint condition, it becomes clear that Christine is more that just a car--she's a killing machine, and she's out for blood.

Author Information

Stephen King is renowned for his skill at writing horror. Born in Portland, Maine, he graduated from the University of Maine at Orono, where he met his wife, Tabitha (they married in 1971). Although Stephen was qualified to teach English at the high school level, he was unable to find work as a teacher after graduation, so he worked at an industrial laundry while his wife worked at Dunkin' Donuts. He still found time to write, despite an exhausting job, and eventually was employed by a high school in Hampden, Maine. He sold his first novel, Carrie, and the paperback rights sold for a very nice price that enabled him to begin working full-time. Since the publication of Carrie, he has published nearly 80 books, mainly novels and short-story collections (A complete list of all his publications can be found at his personal website.). He and his wife have three children, and they live in Maine. More biographical details can be found at StephenKing.com.

King has been vocal in his support of building bridges between popular and literary fiction. In an interview at Powell's.com, he explains that "there's a whole range of people who are doing really, really good work, that we call popular fiction. First of all, it's an artificial distinction between literary fiction and popular fiction. I sometimes think that literary fiction is a term that writers and critics give to a certain kind of well-written fiction that doesn't sell very much. That's the criteria, and a certain prejudice kicks in against you if you do sell a lot of books. The way the prejudice works, it's never scathing, outright, but it goes something like this: If three million people are reading X, I don't really need to read X to know that that is a bad writer's work. Because all I do is divide three million by the average IQ and come out with a minus number, and that's the IQ of people reading that book. That's bullshit, is all, it's just bullshit" (link). As a writer of popular fiction, he tries never to dismiss his readers because of what they like to read, and wishes that the media establishment would do the same.

Genre
Horror
Adult crossover

Curriculum Ties
None

Booktalking Ideas
-Read intro to Arnie as a character, especially the ways he doesn't fit in with any of the groups at his high school.
-Read the hallucination Dennis (Arnie's best friend) has when he first sits in Christine. He hallucinates that the car is in mint condition, with Christine telling him to take a drive, and it freaks him out.

Reading Level/Interest Age
Grades 9-12

Challenge Issues
Language, graphic violence, disrespect for parents/elders

I included this book because King's early novels, many about the horrors of high school (especially Carrie and Christine) are appealing to teens who are ready to move past the sterile, short horror novels meant for high school students (such as books by authors like R.L. Stine and Christopher Pike). I love Stephen King and I thought Christine was a perfect choice to recommend as a good adult crossover, specifically because its descriptions of high school as a horrible place for those who don't fit in. It's an appealing notion.