Making Friends With Monsters - Sandra L. Rostirolla - ★★★★.½

AUTHOR: Sandra L. Rostirolla

GENRE: YA Drama, Mental Health.

RATING: 4.5 stars.

In a Nutshell: Almost brilliant! A couple of things didn’t work well for me, but on the whole, this is a hidden indie treasure, albeit a somewhat emotional and depressing one. Better suited to the older YA segment and adults. Triggers galore: Reader discretion advised.

Story Synopsis:

2006. Tamworth, Australia. Twelve-year-old Sam Nolen’s life isn’t a happy one. His family farm has been affected by the ongoing drought, and the resultant stress has created a lot of monsters in the family. His dad has one, his seventeen-year-old brother Ben has one, and sometimes, even his six-year-old sister Abby has her own little monster. Sam tried his best to keep track of all the monsters and even writes on about what he has learnt about monsters, all so that he can help his family. However, there is soon a devastating accident, and Sam discovers that he too has a monster of his own.

The story comes to us in Sam’s limited first person perspective.

I don’t even know where to begin showering praise on this YA work. I loved almost everything about it, right from its purpose to its writing to its character development to its scenic descriptions

The purpose: The author’s introductory statement (which brought tears to my eyes) sets the right tone for the book. She mentions how her father had killed himself when she was thirteen, and how this led to her growing up amid dysfunction. The idea behind this book is to offer young readers a way of understanding mental health issues, euphemistically called ‘monsters’ in this book. Most of the content makes me feel that she nailed the agenda.

The writing: Not once did I feel that I was reading an indie work. Sam’s first person narration is endearing. You can sense his vulnerabilities and his determination at the start, and can sense the slow change in his perspective to anger and resentment.

The characters: Every single Nolen was written in a way that brought them alive. From the frustration of the father, the desperation of the mother, the rebelliousness of Ben, the unflinching optimism of little Abby, and of course the anxious sensitivity of the narrator Sam, the sketching was wonderful. There’s no way you will complete this book without loving Abby with all your heart. There are a few memorable secondary characters as well.

The setting: Just yesterday, I had complained about a book set in Australia that didn’t let me feel the place at all. And today, I come across this gem that is on the exact opposite of the spectrum, showing me a side of Australia I have not often read in fiction and brought it vividly alive. The impact of the drought in the rural area of Tamworth is portrayed in a gut-wrenching yet relatable way.

The themes: Mental health is the key focal area of the story, and the author makes good use of this in multiple ways. Sam’s “notes” about the monsters are brilliant and simplistic, and I am sure they will offer all of us (and not just YAs) a unique way of looking at our inner demons. I’ve read many MG/YA books covering mental health, and this is among the very best.

The cover art and the title: Both brilliant. Both perfectly suitable for the story.

Does this mean that the book was perfect in every way? Well, you know me. I always have at least one complaint. 😉 This time, I have two complaints, a major one and a minor one.

Major issue: I knew the book had triggers, and the author does warn about it right at the start, but I think it went too far in collecting traumatising topics. It was almost like the author had a checklist and with every subsequent chapter, the items on the list were getting ticked.

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With mental health being the main theme, I expected and found drug abuse, alcohol abuse, medical trauma, self-harming, suicide and other triggers related to the core idea. But even beyond these, the book ventures into illegitimacy, pre-marital pregnancy, (discussed) abortion, (possible) rape, amputation, bullying, assault, and a few more unrelated but difficult topics. By the end, my head was reeling with the extent of devastation faced by one family within the span of a few months.

------END OF SPOILERS-----

Minor issue: There are a few scenes in the book where Sam is made to narrate thoughts I didn’t find appropriate. Lines like “Her two perfect breasts swing like happy melons in a hammock” don’t look good coming from a sensitive twelve-year-old. Yes, boys that age might start thinking about women and breasts, and it might be accurate and all that, but that doesn’t mean I have to like it, right?

That’s it. No other issues. If you are okay with the overabundance of traumatic events in the book, then this would be a brilliant work offering a novel perspective of the mental health monsters within us. The nature of the content makes me push the recommended age to 16+, though our narrator is only 12.

4.5 stars, despite my reservations about the excessive negative triggers and the needless sexist content. The characters and the ‘monster’ idea makes the book worthwhile.

My thanks to Pinkus Books and NetGalley for the DRC of “Making Friends With Monsters”. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book.