I loved this book so much! It was the first book I have read by this author and I can't wait to read more! The characters and their story stick with you long after you finish the book.

My Name in Monster is a truly unique book. Set in a world where a girl (nicknamed Monster by her parents) seems to be the only living soul left on earth.
When a sickness and war wipes out the population, Monster is left to fend for herself until she encounters a young girl who she takes under her wing.
The story is told from Monster's perspective, flipping from past to present until she meets the girl who she names Monster and takes on the name Mother.
The story is well written, flowed well and was utterly engrossing.

After the War and The Sickness, Monster is the last human left on earth. Or so she thinks. After emerging from her Arctic vault, Monster begins to build a new life through scavenging and fixing. Until one day, she discovers a girl, feral and ready to be taught everything Monster knows. And so, Monster becomes Mother. The girl become Monster. And the story begins.

My Name Is Monster is set in a post-apocalyptic world, where war and a man-made sickness has all but wiped out the human race - how timely!. As far as we know, Monster is the only survivor thanks to her job as a mechanic in a seed vault in the Arctic. The setting of this book in itself was enough to spark my interest. I love dystopian, post-apocalyptic worlds, the strange familiarity of them. And what is so clever about Katie Hale’s construction of this world is that she doesn’t give away all of the details. What we know, we hear from Monster’s telling, mostly before she becomes Mother. The rest is snippets gleaned from the desolate surroundings. We are, in a lot of ways, as fresh and unknowing as the girl she unexpectedly discovers. A blank slate for Monster/Mother to imprint her history and world view onto.

The story of Monster, and then Monster and Mother is captivating. It is quite obviously heavily influenced by Frankenstein, with the ever present tug of war between nature and nurture raging under the surface. After Monster discovers the girl, and becomes Mother, we see her transformed into both a parent and a God, full of wisdom and knowing that is relayed in her own words, her own version of the truth. It is utterly fascinating, the way Katie Hale does this. How she plots the trajectory of the relationship. And when the narration switches from Mother to Monster half way through, it is a stroke genius. The way she shows the shift in dynamic, fleshing the new Monster out as an individual separate to Mother, with her own secret sense of free will, is artful.

It is tough to delve into this book without giving too much away. It is equal parts a tale of survival and a reflection on parent-child dynamics, or creator-inventor dynamics. The writing is lyrical and poetic. Hale plays with words in such a beautiful way, it’s sometimes breathtaking. The chapters, with their different lengths, have a rhythm which moves the story forwards and keeps the reader engaged.

I really could talk about and analyse this book all day. There are so many layers and new things to discover. I would highly recommend it. While there are fascinating and intriguing post-apocalyptic vibes, the story is very much an enduring human one which started many years ago with Mary Shelley.

Thank you to Katie Hale, Netgalley and Canongate books for a copy of this fantastic book in exchange for an honest review.

This book reads like poetry - you try hard to make sense of it at first, to understand where it’s going, what it means - and then you finally just let it wash over you. And at that point you realize it all so strangely beautiful, you just let it happen and it totally captures you and leads you into the sublime.

“Monster” is a woman “that never did fit into boxes” and her story, an apocalyptic tale, begins “deep and dark and empty” . Which at first, seemed like it might make for be difficult reading during these current Covid-filled days.

But stick with it , - this story unfolds like a beautiful flower and is ultimately about humanness and wanting, survival and survivors, creation and hope, - all mixed in with love, connection, and essentially the here-and-nowness of the world (any world) to be treasured in a timeless moment of silence.

It’s phenomenal.

5 “great big whopping I just loved it stars “

A very big thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, Canongate, and the author, Katie Hale, for an advance review copy of this book. All thoughts presented here are my own.