The Monster in Me - Hardcover

Middle-grades author Mette Ivie Harrison has known since she was in kindergarten that she wanted to be a writer. As she told SATA, her dream got another boost at age eleven, when her older sister married picture book writer Rick Walton, who gave her tips on writing and being published. Harrison even sent a book off to a publishing company when she was in tenth grade. It was not accepted, but in their rejection letter, the company encouraged her to send more works. However, Harrison's father encouraged her to find a "real job" because he did not think that writing was a stable enough career. Not until the grown-up Harrison started questioning her "real job" did she finally decide to try again to become a published writer. She got a PhD in German Literature at Princeton University, taught for four years, and then--I got my first story published, and quit. She now lives in Utah with her husband and 5 children, ages 5 to 14. She writes during nap time, or at 4 in the morning, or while the broccoli for dinner is burning. She loves to write the kind of books that she loves to read. She also do some racing in triathlon.

Gr. 5-8. Thirteen-year-old Natalie Wills, a foster child, has been removed from her drug-addicted mother's care and placed first in a group home and then with the Parkers, a caring family determined to make Natalie's life a bit better. But Natalie is both a cynic and a realist; she knows her new, peaceful life is only temporary. Eventually Mom will convince yet another social worker that she is clean and wants her daughter back. All that Natalie can control is her running, a skill that allows her to escape, not lingering long enough to get close to anyone at home or at school. This first novel is a foster-child story with a twist. The Parker family is loving and sincere in trying to help Natalie; and she, in turn, gradually--very gradually--responds. Yet the underlying truth of a child's deep need and longing for her mother, regardless of Mom's ability to parent, is always present and unresolved. While the book is hopeful, it is tinged with resignation, feelings readers will understand and appreciate. Frances Bradburn
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