The Monster Returns

Starred review from December 19, 2011
One day when Jeremy is drawing alone in his apartment, the blue, spiky monster that he created in Jeremy Draws a Monster calls him from a telephone booth: “I’m coming back.... And I’m bored!” Thinking quickly, Jeremy arms his young neighbors with fancy pens and they craft a menagerie of additional monsters. McCarty’s story is Hitchcockian in its suspense, as the monster, wearing a pink hat and carrying a brown suitcase, makes his way to Jeremy’s door. Once again, the monster proves that he knows exactly how to shift Jeremy’s quiet life into unexpected territory. Ages 3–6.

November 15, 2011
Jeremy hatches a plan to cope with his monster's unexpected return. In the opening scene, Jeremy's alone, just as he was at the beginning of Jeremy Draws a Monster (2009). He seems content drawing, hoping not to be disturbed, though McCarty's tempting view of neighborhood kids outdoors implies a gentle question about whether Jeremy's isolation is really optimal. A paper airplane flies in the window, instructing Jeremy to draw a compass and telescope. Jeremy peers though the telescope (everything he draws becomes real, as in Harold and the Purple Crayon) and sees his old blue monster, who rings up via telephone to declare, "I'm back. And I'm bored!" This announcement means different things to different readers. Those who've read Jeremy Draws know that the monster's bossy and domineering, so they'll find Jeremy's monster-diversion scheme a clever defense; new readers may see the plan as simply sweet and fun. Jeremy invites neighbors into his apartment to draw with the fancy pens that carry conjuring power. Each child draws a new monster to partake in the surprise. Copious white space keeps focus on the monster, with his contained, slightly alarming flowery blue swirls, and on the appealingly buoyant kids, drawn in fine, delicate lines and colored with pleasantly pale watercolor. It might lack the mild menace of its predecessor, but it satisfies in its supply of companionship all around. (Picture book. 3-6)

(COPYRIGHT (2011) KIRKUS REVIEWS/NIELSEN BUSINESS MEDIA, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.)

January 1, 2012

PreS-Gr 3- Jeremy Draws a Monster (Holt, 2009) was a big hit with kids due to the picture-perfect scenario of a child confronting fears of solitude in a creative way. In this sequel, the tone is crisp and mysterious. The neighborhood kids outside are staring at the gliding paper airplane headed for Jeremy's window. The boy is alone drawing when it lands on his floor. "But what is this?/It was a note." Unfolded, it reads: "Draw a compass and a telescope and look out your window north by northwest." Jeremy hears the phone ring. "I'm coming back and I'm bored!" The monster is back! Rather than panicking, he thinks fast and invites the kids up. He hands each of them a fancy pen and tells them what to draw. Readers will certainly chuckle at the similarities between the children and the monsters they create. The pictures are uniquely drawn with such fine lines that one might think that a computer did some fancy feathering, but closer examination reveals the drawings to be entirely human in their imperfection and in their vast range of values, almost swirling from effervescent to dense crosshatching. McCarty's pen, ink, and watercolor artwork is delicate and spare, and allows youngster the space to wonder and gather evidence, bringing a joyful conclusion to Jeremy's desperate dilemma. The pacing is superb and invites viewers to linger over each page. This is an engaging celebration of artistic imagination and friendship.-Sara Lissa Paulson, American Sign Language and English Lower School PS 347, New York City

Copyright 2012 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

July 1, 2012
In this sequel to Jeremy Draws a Monster, the boy learns of the monster's imminent return, so he enlists some kids to draw monster "friends" to placate him. In the book's conclusion, Jeremy admits his ulterior motive: his ploy earned friends for him, too. McCarty hints at Jeremy's loneliness in his sensitive illustrations set in an adult-free anonymous city.

(Copyright 2012 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)