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"The suspense and drama keep reluctant readers turning the pages, while more advanced readers will respond to the issues raised. Walter Dean Myers writes about human beings who make their own choices and react to their own circumstances -- even the minor characters have enough individuality to ring true -- and, as a result, teen readers care about them. They want Steve to be found not guilty, even as they try to figure out if Steve really is guilty. Steve's feelings about himself, his terror of jail, and his reaction to the epithet \"&amp;quot;Monster&amp;quot;,\" leave the reader guessing.\nThe format of this taut story regulates the pacing. Edge-of-the-seat courtroom scenes written entirely in dialogue wind the reader up, then thoughtful journal entries allow readers to catch their breaths. Readers can feel Steve's terror and confusion, and will ponder Myers' point about how the road from innocence to trouble is taken in small, almost invisible steps, each involving a \"lack of positive moral decision.\""^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<https://www.commonsensemedia.org/book-reviews/monster>