Name _________________________________________________

Monster
By: Walter Dean Myers
Character List:
- Steve Harmon: 16 yrs old, on trial for felony murder
- Kathy O’Brien: Steve’s defense attorney
- Sandra Petrocelli: prosecutor
- James King: also on trial for felony murder
- Asa Briggs: lead defense lawyer for James King
- Mr. Sawicki: film club advisor at Steve’s high school
- Alguinaldo Nesbitt: 55 yr old storeowner, murder victim
- Bobo Evans: prisoner who admits to participating in felony murder to receive a deal
- Jose Delgado: store employee, found Nesbitt’s body
- Salvatore Zinzi: prisoner who told in order to receive a break, heard about case from Bolden while imprisoned
- Wendell Bolden: told Zinzi what he knew about case, found out when he bought cigarettes
- Detectives Karyl & Williams: investigating the case
- Osvaldo Cruz: 14 yrs old, member of the gang Diablos, admits to being involved in the crime, his job was to slow
down anyone who pursued King and Evans
- Allen Forbes: city clerk
- Dr. James Moody: medical examiner
- Loretta Henry: 58 yr old, retired school librarian, was in drugstore on Dec 22nd
- Dorothy Moore: King’s cousin, says that King spent the afternoon of Dec 22nd with her
- George Nipping: 50 yrs old, testifies that he has known King for years and that King is left handed
- Freddy Alow: hangs out with Osvaldo Cruz
- Mr. Harmon: Steve’s dad
- Mrs. Harmon: Steve’s mom
- Jerry Harmon: Steve’s little brother

Movie Terminology
- fade in – a smooth move in to an image from black
- fade out – a smooth move out of an image into black
- cut to – a move from one shot to the next
- voice over (vo) – the voice of an unseen narrator or character
- medium shot (ms) – a shot in which the subject does not appear to be too close or too far from the viewer
- close up (cu) – a shot in which the subject fills the screen and details are noticeable
- long shot (ls) – shot in which the subject is shown at a relatively small scale
- flashback – cinematic device in which an earlier event is inserted into the normal chronological order of a narrative
- point of view (pov) – the image onscreen is what one of the characters sees

Questions to Guide Your Reading

July 6th Pages 7-43
1. Why do you think the book is called Monster? (5)

2. What crime is Steve being tried for committing? (12)

3. Who else is on trial with Steve? (12)

4. The guard explains, “It’s a motion case. They go through the motions; they lock them up” (14). What do you
think he means by this?

5. Whose testimony does King’s lawyer make a motion to suppress?

6. What merchandise was stolen from the drugstore during the robbery?

1
July 7th Pages 45-59
1. How did Bolden and Zinzi find out about the robbery?

2. Why do you think Steve choose to include the flashback about throwing the rock with Tony?

Sentence from text Definition

Pertinent (55) “Overruled, it’s pertinent”

July 8th Pages 59-88

1. Steve believes that “making you live is part of the punishment” (59). Do you agree with this? Why?

2. Why does Steve think the prosecution is parading witnesses with terrible character in front of the jury?

3. How did Detective Karyl get his leads on potential suspects?

4. What reason does Osvaldo give for his participation in the crime? (86)

Sentence from text Definition

Stooped-67 “The detective is heavy, stooped”

Slain-68 “We see the legs of the slain drugstore

owner, Nesbitt.

Pessimist-73 “What are you, a pessimist? Hope for

the best.”

Proposition-85 Did Mr. Evans, or Bobo, make a

proposition to you?

Juvenile-86 “Your honor, Mr. Cruz is a juvenile!”

July 9th Pages 89-126

1. Why is the fact that Osvaldo a member of the Diablos gang important? (108)

2. What happens when Steve’s father visits him in prison?

3. How does Steve represent his innocence in his notes? (115)

4. What does the prevailing neighborhood attitude seem to be regarding Mr. Nesbitt’s murder? (121)

5. Why do you think that Steve chose to include the flashback about watching the cartoon?

6. Why do Detectives Karyl and Williams come to the Harmon Household?

Vocabulary
Sentence from text Definition

Cacophony-117 “… We pick up a cacophony of

sounds.”

Distinguish-119 “We can no longer distinguish Steve.”

July 10th Pages 127-137

1. What does O’Brien cite as Petrocelli’s reason for showing the pictures of Nesbitt’s body to the jury on Friday afternoon?

2. What contradiction does Steve offer in his journal? (130)

3. What does the testimony of Forbes establish? (131)

4. How does Petrocelli attempt to sensationalize Dr. Moody’s account of Nesbitt’s death? (136)

Sentence from text Definition

Premises-131 “Mr. Nesbitt applied for a license to

have a gun on the premises in August
of 1989.”
“Presumably he wanted it for the
Presumably-132 store.”

“The bullet entered the body on the

Traversed-135 left side and traversed upward
through the lung”

July 11th Pages 137-152

1. How does Steve represent his guilt? (138)

2. Do you think there is a difference between saying he isn’t guilty and that he didn’t do it? If so, what is the difference? (138)

3. What three things does Steve say prisoners focus on while they are imprisoned? (140)

4. What was different about Mr. & Mrs. Harmon’s visits?

5. How does Steve represent his guilt after his mom leaves? (148)

6. Who asks Steve to be the lookout for the robbery? (150)

Sentence from text Definition

Wrenched-147 “The smile that came to her lips was

one she wrenched from someplace
deep inside of her.”

3
July 12th Pages 153-160
- Why does Steve think that the prisoners fight so much? (155)

- Why does Steve say that he needs to write the movie? (159)

July 13th Pages 161-200

1. Why does the prosecution call Mrs. Henry to the stand?

2. Who does Mrs. Henry identify as one of the men that she saw threaten Mr. Nesbitt? (164)

3. During the cross examination of Mrs. Henry, why does Briggs seem interested in the process and order of photographs and
the lineup? (167-170)

4. Why does Briggs want to object to the way that Bobo is dressed during his testimony? (172)

5. How does Bobo’s testimony attempt to establish Steve’s role in the crime? (177-178)

6. Did Steve give King and Bobo a sign?

7. Had Bobo ever talked to Steve about the robbery? (197)

Sentence from text Definition

Diminutive-161 “The diminutive 58-year old retired

school librarian is neatly dressed”

July 14th Pages 201-268

1. Why did the defense have Ms. Moore testify?

2. Why is King’s right vs. left handedness an issue? (212)

3. Why does O’Brien want Steve to testify?

4. Why can’t King testify at the trial? (216)

5. What activity does Steve say that he was engaged in at the time of the felony?

6. What does Mr. Sawicki’s testimony accomplish? (234-235)

Sentence from text Definition

Surly-215 “He’s sitting there looking surly.
Maybe he thinks he’s tough”
Soliciting-231 “The prosecution is soliciting an
argument”
Indulgence-244 “I would like to beg your indulgence
while I review that testimony”
Vicinity-248 “We might expect someone in the
vicinity to have noticed it”
Alleged-249 Where was Steve Harmon? The
alleged lookout man?
Implicated- 249 “… The deal they get depends on their
convincing you that other people are
implicated”

4
 Proceedings-250 “The killing here is the key to what
these proceedings are about”
Gullible-250 “Is this a shallow, gullible man who
doesn’t think about very much of
anything?”

July 17th Pages 269-278

1. Why do Steve and Kathy O’Brien talk about appeals even before the verdict is delivered?

2. What verdict does the jury deliver

a. for King:
b. for Steve:

3. How does O’Brien react to Steve after the verdict is delivered?

4. Why do you think that Steve chooses to end the movie in the way that he does?

Sentence from text Definition

Desperation-270 “There was a look of desperation on

her face”
Transcribed-275 “He has transcribed the images and
conversations as he remembers them”
Distorted-276 “…Her face distorted with the
tension of the moment”
Pensive-276 “Her lips tense; she is pensive”

December 5th Pages 279-281 5 months later

1. How has the trial and experience continued to affect Steve?