manwithanagenda's review
adventurous
lighthearted
fast-paced
3.0
It was fun to indulge a little and pick up the rest of the series. In some ways the 'Monsters' series held up, Rilla's character and her family hold up as an unusual but loving model of a working family. I think children reading this today would understand her situation a lot better than I did twenty years ago. The monsters themselves, and the ultimate reveal of how and why they came to stay at the Harmony House was underwhelming.
In my opinion, after Icicle, each monster diminished in importance with each appearance and the October, November and December monsters get almost no time at all. I still appreciate what Regan accomplishes with character development, but I speak for my dowdy old self as well as child-me when I say COME ON. Give with the monsters and lay off of the mushy stuff.
But, the story has a happy ending, and if Rilla hasn't grown up out of all of her swooning and jealousy, she did gain a lot more understanding about the adults around her and made peace, if not friends, with her arch-rival classmate. Her reflections about the relationship of her parents, her aunt's latest marriage and her "peer" Plum are self-aware and might strike a chord with a reader trying to make sense of similar situations at home or school.
Recommended, but not to your average monster fan.
Previous: 'Monsters in Cyberspace'
In my opinion, after Icicle, each monster diminished in importance with each appearance and the October, November and December monsters get almost no time at all. I still appreciate what Regan accomplishes with character development, but I speak for my dowdy old self as well as child-me when I say COME ON. Give with the monsters and lay off of the mushy stuff.
But, the story has a happy ending, and if Rilla hasn't grown up out of all of her swooning and jealousy, she did gain a lot more understanding about the adults around her and made peace, if not friends, with her arch-rival classmate. Her reflections about the relationship of her parents, her aunt's latest marriage and her "peer" Plum are self-aware and might strike a chord with a reader trying to make sense of similar situations at home or school.
Recommended, but not to your average monster fan.
Previous: 'Monsters in Cyberspace'
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