There's a Monster Under My Bed

by James Howe, David S. Rose (Illustrator)

Something is under Simon's bed. He can hear it breathing. Is it a monster? Simon has to find out. He shines a flashlight under the bed, to discover that something is hiding there -- but what?
This warm and humorous story will delight any child who has ever envisioned monsters lurking in the bedtime darkness.

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Monsters, Fantasy

32 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1986

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name. See this thread for more information.

James Howe has written more than eighty books in the thirty-plus years he's been writing for young readers. It sometimes confuses people that the author of the humorous Bunnicula series also wrote the dark young adult novel, The Watcher, or such beginning reader series as Pinky and Rex and the E.B. White Read Aloud Award-winning Houndsley and Catina and its sequels. But from the beginning of his career (which came about somewhat by accident after asking himself what kind of vampire a rabbit might make), he has been most interested in letting his imagination take him in whatever direction it cared to. So far, his imagination has led him to picture books, such as I Wish I Were a Butterfly and Brontorina (about a dinosaur who dreams of being a ballerina), mysteries, poetry (in the upcoming Addie on the Inside), and fiction that deals with issues that matter deeply to him. He is especially proud of The Misfits, which inspired national No Name-Calling Week (www.nonamecallingweek.org) and its sequel Totally Joe. He does not know where his imagination will take him in the next thirty-plus years, but he is looking forward to finding out.

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.

Reviews

[Calista · Rating 3 out of 5]

I got this to read with the kids. I could read this to the younger one, but the older one is still afraid to sleep by herself or be in the house by herself. I thought this might help. I read this and it confirms fears even as it confronts them. The twist at the end is the boy and his younger brother are in bed together feeling safe and it shows monster eyes under the bed again. I'm afraid this will scare my niece to death. I did not read this to the kids.

I thought it was a simple and cute story. The kid has to face his fears and he did. To me, the end says there is always mystery left in life. The art is ok and not great. But I couldn't let my niece read this. It really would scare her.

I love James Howe, but that was an interesting choice he made at the end.

[Kristen Dutkiewicz · Rating 3 out of 5]

A slightly spooky Halloween book that dives into every child's fear - is there a monster under the bed? Children luckily have a flashlight to reassure them they are safe and sound!

[Samantha Brumbaugh · Rating 3 out of 5]

Summary: Something is under Simon's bed. He can hear it breathing. Is it a monster? Simon has to find out. He shines a flashlight under the bed, to discover that something is hiding there -- but what?
This warm and humorous story will delight any child who has ever envisioned monsters lurking in the bedtime darkness.
Genre: Fictional Picture Book
Reading Level: Transitional, this book has several sentences on each page but the words within the sentence should not be hard for early readers. It contains many high frequency words.
Topic: Facing Fears, Imagination
Curriculum: Guided Reading, Independent Reading
Social Issues: This book deals with the universal fears that most children face.
Literary Elements: Onomatopoeia, uses imagery, adjectives to better explain situations.
Illustrations & Text: The illustrations in this book are showing the thoughts the boy is having in his head. For this reason, the illustrations show a make believe world inside the boys head. The illustrations are very creative and detailed.
Thoughts:
There's A Monster Under My Bed is about Simon, who thinks a monster is under his bed. Simon thought he was old enough to sleep on his own without a night light but in the middle of the night he becomes scared when he hears sounds under his bed. SImon begins to think about what the monsters would do to him, if he was under his bed. He decided they would fry him over a fire. Eventually, he builds up enough nerve and looks under his bed. He finds his little brother, curled up under his bed. His little brother, Alex, was trying to hide from the monsters under his bed. The two brothers decide that they will sleep together that night to protect one another.

[Melanie Hetrick · Rating 3 out of 5]

Simon told his mom that he was too old for a nightlight. Now he realizes that maybe he was wrong. He's pretty sure there are monsters under his bed. They are waiting for him to hop out of bed so they can grab him! Wait! There's the flashlight mom left "just in case." Simon can check.

Oooohhhh...there is something under his bed! Wait a minute...you look an awful lot like _______!

[Mary Sesar · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is about a boy who decided he was too old for a nightlight. So his mom doesn't leave it on. He becomes afraid and thinks there is a monster under his bed but is too afraid to look or move. He finally realizes that there is a flashlight next to his bed and looks underneath.
This could be a good book to use to teach children to face their fears.

[Luann · Rating 3 out of 5]

A nice not-too-scary picture book for Halloween or anytime. Simon imagines a host of monsters under his bed, yet finds only his little brother hiding from the monsters in HIS room when he finally turns on his flashlight and looks under the bed.

[Maritza Trujillo · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is relevant to younger children who are afraid to sleep by themselves at night. This book can be read at home before bed to remind the child that there are no such thing as monsters. I enjoy this book because it can be used at school and at home.

[Steph Strapple]

Great book to use all kinds of expression while reading!

[Don Gubler · Rating 3 out of 5]

Best of the genre is "There's a Nightmare in My Closet.

[Sydney Conrad · Rating 2 out of 5]

My kids liked this book which is the only reason I gave it 2 stars instead of one. It is unimaginative and focuses too much on how scary the thought of monsters under your bed is.

[Paty · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book. Really discusses the feelings kids have when they fear that "monster under their bed."

[Victoria Coody · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a good book about that tells you a little bit about monsters under your bed. This book is really great for kids because it is intriguing and all young kids love monsters! I recommend this book!

[Y.Poston]

Cute!

[Random Scholar · Rating 5 out of 5]

When a young boy imagines monsters under his bed, they seem to grow in size as his fear increases. This would be perfect for young readers grades K-2 around Halloween.

[Books Kids Like · Rating 4 out of 5]

Simon forgets to check under his bed before he climbs in. Now he is sure that there is a monster under it. He can hear it breathing. Simon can even feel the mattress jump. He wants to find out, but if he gets out of bed the monster (or, by now, monsters) will get him. Simon wishes he hadn't told his mother he was too old for a night light. Finally he gets up the courage to jump out of bed and shine his flashlight in the monster's eyes. It should scare him long enough for Simon to escape. When Simon shines the flashlight under the bed all he sees is his younger brother Alex. Alex is hiding from the monsters under his own bed. Simon tells Alex that he can sleep with him, and Alex feels much better. (So does Simon, but he can't let Alex know how scared he was of monsters under his own bed.) After all, Alex is confident that Simon won't let the monsters get him.
©2024 Kathy Maxwell at https://bookskidslike.com

[Kayla · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book depicts a child struggling with the idea of a monster hiding under his bed. He goes through imagining all the different kinds of monsters and all the horrible things that they want to do to him. When Simon finally builds up enough courage, he grabs a flashlight and shines it under the bed. To his surprise, his younger brother is hiding under there! He snuck in because he was afraid that there was a monster in his room. Simon tells his brother to sleep in his bed and he will protect him.
I gave this book a 3 star rating because it does have a good message showing kids with younger siblings that they should look out for, protect, and be strong for their younger siblings. However, it feeds into their illusions that monsters hide in their rooms and may even expand that fear with how much detail it goes into. I think if a child is old enough to realize that monsters are not real, then this is a good book for them.

[Becky · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cute! I remember those exact moments as a child...

[Kest Schwartzman · Rating 3 out of 5]

several stars for monster design. No stars for anything else.