A Monster Calls

67 pages • 2 hours read

A Monster Calls

Fiction | Novel | YA | Published in 2011

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Introduction

Before Reading

During Reading

After Reading

During Reading

Reading Questions & Paired Texts

Reading Check and Short Answer Questions on key points are designed for guided reading assignments, in-class review, formative assessment, quizzes, and more.

CHAPTERS 1-6

Reading Check

1. Why is the yew tree monster angry at Conor’s reaction when it first comes to life in Chapter 1?

2. What evidence does the monster leave behind in Conor’s bedroom in Chapter 2?

3. What is the name of the kid at school who bullies Conor?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. What happens between Lily and Conor in Chapter 4?

2. What does the monster say will happen when he visits Conor in the future?

3. Why does Conor think that his grandmother is not like other grandmothers?

Paired Resource

“Author Patrick Ness Exclusive Interview – A Monster Calls”

In this interview, Patrick Ness discusses the success of A Monster Calls and the screenplay adaptation of the book, which was released as a film in 2016.
This connects to the themes of The Necessity of Confronting Difficult Truths and The Power of Guilt and Shame.
How does Conor give the reader/viewer a unique perspective on the difficult emotions of guilt and shame? How might a child confront difficult truths differently than an adult?

CHAPTERS 7-12

Reading Check

1. Who called the monster to come visit Conor, according to the monster?

2. What does Conor’s mother ask him to look after while she is away at the hospital?

3. What does Conor compare living in his grandmother’s house to while looking at the “prize clock” in Chapter 12?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. What is the monster’s first story about?

2. What is the moral of the monster’s first story?

3. Why does Conor feel worse when Miss Kwan tells him that if he needs to talk about anything, he should let her know?

Paired Resource

“One Thing Leads to Another: An Interview With Patrick Ness”

In this Young Adult Library Services Association article, Ness describes his writing process for books like A Monster Calls, Monsters of Men, and The Chaos Walking trilogy.
This connects to the themes of The Necessity of Confronting Difficult Truths and The Difficult Necessity of Grieving.
How does Conor experience “complexity” as described in the article as he moves through his own childhood?

CHAPTERS 13-18

Reading Check

1. What is it about Conor’s father that makes Conor ill at ease when they try to reconnect over dinner in Chapter 13?

2. Conor accidentally breaks which of his grandmother’s possessions in Chapter 14?

3. In Chapter 18, Conor’s father tells Conor that they are “going to pretend like it never happened” (124). What incident is he referring to?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. What do we learn about the relationship between Conor and his father in Chapter 14? What causes tension in the way they communicate and relate to one another?

2. What is the monster’s second story about?

3. What is the moral of the monster’s second story?

Paired Resource

“What to Know About the Anger Stage of Grief”

In this article from Verywell Mind, Sanjana Gupta discusses the five stages of the grieving process, focusing on the characteristics of—and coping strategies for—the anger stage.
This connects to the theme of The Difficult Necessity of Grieving.
What are some of the characteristics a person experiences during the anger stage of grief, as outlined in the article and evidenced by Conor?

CHAPTERS 19-26

Reading Check

1. What is the special treatment made from that Conor’s mother says they are going to try in Chapter 19?

2. What does Conor’s father tell him after Conor becomes angry at the end of Chapter 20?

3. What does Conor ask the monster if he can do in Chapter 21?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. What does Harry decide will be “the hardest hit of all” in bullying Conor in Chapter 22? Why?

2. What is the monster’s third story about?

3. How is the monster’s third story different from the others in terms of plot and the way it is delivered?

Paired Resource

“Talking to Your Kids about Grief is Painful. And You Have to Do It.”

In this New York Times article, writer and social worker Miranda Featherstone discusses how parents can have conversations with their children around the tough subjects of death and mortality.
This connects to the theme of The Necessity of Confronting Difficult Truths.
How might the adults in Conor’s life have benefitted from reading this article? How would you advise Conor’s father, grandmother, and even his mother on how to better approach the subject of death?

CHAPTERS 27-32

Reading Check

1. What does Conor do to the yew tree to awaken the monster in Chapter 27?

2. What does the monster tell Conor it is possible for him to desire and still love his mother?

3. What do Conor and his grandmother have in common, according to Conor’s grandmother in Chapter 31?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. What does Conor discover is the fourth story, as described in Chapter 28?

2. What “truth” does the monster insist that Conor tell him about the fourth story?

3. Why is 12:07 significant throughout the novel? What is revealed about this time at the end of the book?

Recommended Next Reads

The Rest of Us Just Live Here by Patrick Ness

Released five years after A Monster Calls, this fantasy YA novel is the story of Mikey, an ordinary senior living in a fantastical world where the kids at his high school are trying to prevent the end of the world.
Shared themes include The Necessity of Confronting Difficult Truths.
Shared topics include fantasy, difficult emotions, and the struggles of young adulthood.
The Rest of Us Just Live Here on SuperSummary

More Than This by Patrick Ness

This novel opens with Seth, a 16-year-old boy recalling his drowning after he wakes up in an unfamiliar world, where everything is abandoned and covered in dust. The book tells the story as he discovers the truth of what happened to him.
Shared themes include The Difficult Necessity of Grieving and The Necessity of Confronting Difficult Truths.
Shared topics include difficult emotions, death, and the struggles of young adulthood.
More Than This on SuperSummary

Reading Questions Answer Key

CHAPTERS 1-6

Reading Check

1. Because Conor is unafraid of it (Chapter 1)

2. There are short, spiky yew leaves on the bedroom floor. (Chapter 2)

3. Harry (Chapter 3)

Short Answer

1. Lily confronts Conor, asking why he lied to Miss Kwan and let Lily get in trouble. Conor angrily pushes past her and tells her to leave him alone. As the argument progresses, he says that everything is her fault, and then he emphasizes the fact that they “used to be” friends, indicating that he no longer wishes to be. (Chapter 4)

2. The monster says he will continue to visit Conor and tell him three stories. After that, the monster says Conor will need to tell it a fourth story that will be “the truth” (35). Conor knows that telling the story that is “the truth” means that he will need to talk about what happens in his nightmare. (Chapter 5)

3. Conor’s grandmother is a career woman. She can be abrasive, which Conor finds grating. (Chapter 6)

CHAPTERS 7-12

Reading Check

1. Conor (Chapter 7)

2. The yew tree in the backyard (Chapter 11)

3. Living in a museum (Chapter 12)

Short Answer

1. The first story is about an ancient kingdom ruled by a beloved king who marries a young woman after his queen dies. Rumor spreads that the new wife killed the beloved king, along with the prince’s sweetheart. When an angry mob forms to murder the new wife—now queen—the monster steps in to rescue her from the mob. It turns out that the prince is the one who killed his own sweetheart, so that the kingdom would turn against the queen and help him defeat her. (Chapter 9)

2. The monster explains that sometimes things in life feel true when they are in fact “a cheat” (64). Life can be unfair. (Chapter 9)

3. Conor feels a great deal of shame and secrecy around his mother’s illness and Harry’s bullying. Miss Kwan’s offer to talk only makes Conor feel more shameful and secretive; he can’t talk to anyone about what is happening to him. (Chapter 10)

CHAPTERS 13-18

Reading Check

1. His father’s American accent/vocabulary/phrasing and mentions of his “other” family in America (Chapter 13)

2. Her prized clock (Chapter 14)

3. When Conor tore up the sitting room at his grandmother’s house (Chapter 18)

Short Answer

1. Their relationship is strained. Conor loves his father and is happy to see him, but they do not have an easy or pleasant relationship. Conor comments on his father’s strange accent and vocabulary several times during their dinner, which highlights the subtle difficulties of their relationship. Conor and his father are growing apart, not just geographically, but in culture and in schools of thought. Conor feels a deep sense of heartache and rejection when his father says that he cannot come to live with him in America. (Chapters 13-18)

2. The second story deals with a Parson and an Apothecary. The Parson is a man of god; the Apothecary practices the art of ancient medicine. The Apothecary asks the Parson if he can cut down the yew tree in the Parson’s yard to make some healing medicine, but the Parson refuses. Later, when the Parson’s two daughters become sick, the Parson swallows his pride and goes to the Apothecary to ask for his help, saying he can now cut down the yew tree to create medicine. The Apothecary is shocked and disgusted that the Parson would give up on his beliefs and turns the Parson away. The girls die, and the monster destroys the Parson’s home. (Chapter 15)

3. The Apothecary, despite being greedy and rude, is a healer. The Parson, on the other hand, is a man of belief, but he throws it all away when those beliefs inconvenience him. The Parson’s yew tree could have saved numerous people; however, he only cares about its healing properties when it affects him personally. In this way, the Parson is the more morally corrupt of the two men. While there is no clear moral, the story emphasizes the complexities of human nature as well as the importance of standing up for your beliefs and caring for others. (Chapter 16)

CHAPTERS 19-26

Reading Check

1. Yew trees (Chapter 19)

2. He says stories don’t always have happy endings, and that life can be unfair and cruel. (Chapter 20)

3. If he can heal her (Chapter 21)

Short Answer

1. Harry realizes that ignoring Conor is the worst thing he can do to him. Harry has figured out that Conor feels seen when Harry hits him, and so Harry will now withhold his attention as a new form of bullying. (Chapter 22)

2. The third story is about an invisible man who grows tired of being unseen. As the monster continues speaking, Conor becomes the main character of the story—he is the invisible man. The monster speaks directly in Conor’s ear, saying that he knows a way to make people see him. Guided by the monster, Conor attacks Harry in the cafeteria. (Chapter 23)

3. The monster’s third tale is presented in a different way than the first or second story. The monster does not use the same parable format to suggest complex themes, but he makes Conor the main character in the tale. The monster also seems to have a guiding power as he tells this story. (Chapter 23)

CHAPTERS 27-32

Reading Check

1. He kicks it. (Chapter 27)

2. That her suffering end (Chapter 30)

3. They both love and care about Conor’s mother. (Chapter 31)

Short Answer

1. The fourth story is Conor’s nightmare. Conor watches as his mother stands on the edge of a cliff and a huge, terrible monster attempts to pull her over the edge. When his mother’s weight becomes too heavy to bear, she falls into the depths. (Chapter 28)

2. The “truth” is not that Conor’s mother fell into the abyss because he couldn’t hang onto her, but that Conor let his mother go. Conor expresses that he just wants it to be over. (Chapter 29)

3. 12:07 is the moment that the yew monster usually comes to Conor, though there are occasional variations. In the end, it is revealed that 12:07 is significant because it is the precise time that his mother passes away. (Chapter 32)