Her Monster by Jeff Collignon

From the Publisher

A beauty-and-the-beast story of a disfigured man living in a secluded cabin whose mother can no longer care for him. When Katherine guesses part of the mystery of Edward, his mother has little choice but to allow her to carry supplies to him. He will not permit her to see his disfigured body, but as a relationship develops, he wonders if she might come to love him, even though he isn't quite human.

Library Journal

In this bittersweet first novel, best-selling science fiction author Eddie Talbot, born hideously deformed, hides from the world in a remote mountain cabin. He relies on visits from his mother for provisions, but when ill health renders her immobile, a young woman with a preference for punk-style hair and clothes takes over her duties. Eddie is forced to cope with the world outside his imagination and with the growing attraction he feels for his new acquaintance. Collignon has crafted a moving novel out of the trite beauty-and-the-beast theme, never trivializing the characters or their emotions. He weaves into the narrative an intriguing second level: the adventures of Eddie's fictional creation Alovar, a warrior in a post-apocalyptic society, banished because he is physically different. The author caps Eddie's and Alovar's stories with two startlingly effective and very different endings. Recommended for most fiction collections.-- Eric W. Johnson, Teikyo Post Univ. Lib., Waterbury, Ct.

School Library Journal

YA-- An absorbing and touching novel that explores the concepts of beauty v. ugliness and the depths of differences that both can hide. A man/monster, so outwardly disfigured that he has hidden his entire life, is suddenly thrust into a speaking-only relationship with a woman whom he will not let see him. Their situation parodies Beauty and the Beast in many ways. She, with her spiked purple and orange hair, at first seems no beauty, although his outward appearance is definitely Beast. Inwardly, they find beauty in one another as their conversations expand. Philosophy, opposing values, warring emotions, troubling questions, and a good story all come together in this very readable and compelling book.-- Bunni Union, Geauga West Library, Chesterland, OH

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