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Check for Availabilityout of stock. Click on the button below to search for this title in other formats.  The Monster Variations
Synopses & ReviewsPublisher Comments:This fast-paced read will keep readers on the edge of their seats! Someone is killing boys in a small town. The murder weapon is a truck, and the only protection is a curfew enacted to keep kids off the streets. But its summerand that alone is worth the risk of staying out late for James, Willie, and Reggie. Willie, who lost his arm in the first hit-and-run attack, finds it hard to keep up with his two best friends as they leave childhood behind. All of them are changing, hounded by their parents, hunted by the killer, and haunted by the “monster,” a dead thing that guards the dangerous gateway between youth and manhood. But thats not all: shadowing the boys everywhere is Mel Herman, the mysterious and brilliant bully whose dark secrets may hold the key to their survival. As the summer burns away, these forces collide, and it will take compassion, brains, and guts for the boys to overcome their demonsand not become monsters themselves. In this chilling and poignant debut novel, Daniel Kraus deftly explores the choices boys grapple with and the revelations that occur as they become men. Review:"Kraus's stark debut never quite feels completely comfortable in its own skin, but still delivers a moving story and points to a huge amount of potential for the author. When the summer begins with two accidents in which children are hit by a truck — one is killed and the other loses his arm — a curfew is imposed in Kraus's unnamed town. Determined to enjoy themselves, three 12-year-olds — Reggie, James and Willie (the maimed first victim of the mysterious driver) — go on adventures including breaking into school, stealing the skeletal 'monster' an older boy keeps in his barn and investigating the school bully's possible ties to the killer. The bully, Mel, is easily the most intriguing character, volatile and socially inept, but also brilliant and artistic. Kraus meshes the uncertainty of adolescence with the dangerous knowledge of an adult world in which people have affairs and kill children — the boys' growing awareness of this world is the true horror. An unnecessary framing sequence and the general absence of girls (even as objects of the boys' attention) undermine the book's intensity, but the tragic ending is still powerful. Ages 12 — up." Publishers Weekly (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.) About the AuthorDaniel Kraus is a writer, editor, and filmmaker. He lives with his wife in Chicago. What Our Readers Are SayingBe the first to add a comment for a chance to win!Product Details
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