Monster on the Bus

Monster Books / Monster's Adventures #8

by Ellen Blance, Ann Cook, Quentin Blake (Illustrator)

27 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1973

About the author

Ellen Blance grew up in the northeast of England. She moved to London in 1964 and attended the University of London in order to study alternative methods of developing language and reading skills for children. In 1970 she was invited to work with New York City teachers. She taught classes at the New School and at City College. Ellen joined the staff at Bank Street College where she worked on the desegregation of the Stamford, Connecticut, schools. She also worked with teachers in Mamaroneck and Rye Brook, New York. Now retired, Ellen spends some time in New York City and Connecticut schools reading the Monster books and talking about writing to enthusiastic young writers.

Reviews

[Jessica Burstrem · Rating 3 out of 5]

What's great about this book is that no one shows alarm at a monster in their midst as they go about their business, and they ultimately appreciate his unique contributions to their society. In today's social media culture, I can't imagine that there wouldn't be a subset of people responding to news about the heroics of an outsider with warnings about how he could be dangerous. There'd be some Karen calling the police. It's nice to lay the groundwork for a different attitude toward others in children's books like this one.

[Nathan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoyed having my kindergartner read this to me.