Sunday, March 18, 2018

Monster, Human, Other by Lauren Gales - OPTIONAL

Gales, Lauren Monster, Human, Other, 309 pages. Crown Books, 2017. $17.00. Language: G (0 swears); Mature Content: G; Violence: PG;

Isaac, a young clepsit (a race of humanoid creatures with furry tails) living in a human world, and Wren, his human counterpart living with the clepsits, are training to be diplomats in the hopes that human/clepsit relations will continue to be cordial. Isaac enjoys the human world but chafes against having to move constantly for fear of neighbors and friends discovering he is actually a clepsit. Wren battles prejudice and feeling like an outsider as a human among clepsits. Their lives are turned upside down when Isaac is captured by the voracans (a race of underground- dwelling monsters who are made out of spikes and feed on human bone marrow) and his human parents are framed for his apparent killing. The voracans are planning to take over the world and kidnap Isaac to disturb human/clepsit relations.
Isaac and Wren must work through their own situations to save the world from the voracans.

I liked the imaginative premise and the focus on tolerance and empathy for others who are unlike us. The story developed nicely and had some interesting twists.
Although some of the characters were a bit one-dimensional the overall values the book is trying to teach were quite clear, and there were enough situations where the reader is forced to ask thought-provoking questions that it’s an overall worthwhile read.

EL, MS – OPTIONAL. Reviewer: Jerusha Johnson.

https://www.perma-bound.com/ViewDetail/148758-monster-human-other

No comments: