One Monster After Another (Hardcover)

by Mercer Mayer (Author) "One day Sally Ann wrote a letter to her best friend Lucy Jane..." (more)
Key Phrases: Letter-Eating Bombanat, Stamp-Collecting Trollusk

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
If I Had a Gorilla by Mercer Mayer, reissued on the occasion of the book's 35th anniversary, chronicles the wistful desires of a boy in need of bully protection. "If I had a gorilla, I'd take him to school. Then the big kids wouldn't pick on me if I had a gorilla." Other Mercer Mayer titles being reissued are You're the Scaredy-Cat; Professor Wormbog in Search for the Zipperump-a-Zoo; and One Monster After Another. (May)
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Description
If you open almost any of award-winning author/illustrator Mercer Mayer's 250+ children's books you'll see dragons, cuddly monsters, wonderful creatures, and endearing critters. Born in Little Rock, Arkansas, Mr. Mayer spent his childhood hunting lizards and snakes in the swamps by his home. During his teenage years, he lived in Hawaii where he attended the Honolulu Academy of Arts. He later received additional training at the Art Students League in New York City. Upon completion of his studies he set out with pen and ink to write and illustrate adventures he experienced as a child. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Hardcover
• Publisher: Golden Pr (September 1974)
• ISBN-10: 0307157946
• ISBN-13: 978-0307157942
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,066,228 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Too small!, September 11, 2004

By	William Lewis Read (San Diego, CA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: One Monster After Another (Hardcover)

One of the all time greats. But I was disappointed after ordering a new hardcover copy. It is smaller than the original printing, with the result that the binding cuts across monster faces. Very lame. I am sending it back and ordering a used copy from the original printing.

15 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars classic Meyer worth tracking down!, April 4, 2001

By	Chess Heart "paxbear" (Cattauraugus County, NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: One Monster After Another (A Critter Kids Book) (Paperback)

Mercer Meyer is best known for his series of "Lil' Critter" books ("I Just Forgot", "Grandpa and Me", etc). In "One Monster After Another" he's created a whole passle of strange-yet-lovable creatures with fantastic names like the Stamp Collecting Trollusk, the Letter Eating Bombanant and-my favorite-the Wild N' Wooly Typhoonagator.

At the beginning of the story, Sally Ann writes a letter to her friend Lucy Jane. However, before the mailman can pick up the letter, a top hat-wearing Stamp Collecting Trollusk steals the letter from the mailbox (Sally Ann's mother is seen gasping in fear as she looks through the window in her housedress and hair curlers). BUT, before the Trollusk can collect the stamp-he carries a huge mail bag at his side that's overflowing with collected stamps-a flying creature called the Letter Eating Bombanant flies out of Nowhere (a street sign points "TO NOWHERE" and, opposite, "TO TOWN") and snaps up the letter.

Of course, the story hardly stops here. Another monster, the Bombanant Munching Grimley, snaps up the Bombanant, intending to eat him. BUT before it can do that, another series of misshaps takes the monsters (and the letter!) on another series of adventures. Does the letter finally get to Lucy Jane?? Heh, heh, heh... Read the book to find out!!

"One Monster..." is a kids' classic, and it is such a shame that the book is no longer in print, especially considering that the other books by Meyer are always on school and bookstore shelves. The book is oversize and the illustrations very finely detailed so the reader can all but walk into the book itself (indeed, in my imagination as a child, I did that very thing, always following my favorite creature of the moment on their adventures). The illustration is immediately identifiable as Meyer's work: it has that characteristic heavy outline and crosshatch that is the hallmark of his illustrating style, although these creatures are like no others in the body of Meyer's work.

Buyers who are searching for the book may wish to periodically check in with Amazon.com's auctions or zShops, as I've seen the book for sale there a few times (though I can't imagine why anyone would wish to part with it!). If you find it, KEEP IT. Turn it into a family heirloom and read it often, it's one of Meyer's finest works. In the meantime, petition the publishers! Write your congressperson!! Get this staple of childhood back into print!!

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars childhood favorite, July 24, 2005

By	E. Horton - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: One Monster After Another (Hardcover)

Although now in my mid thirties, I still remember the story and illustrations from this book -- my childhood favorite. Now that my friends' children are almost to reading age, I plan to give this book for birthdays and holidays so that others can enjoy the whymsical tale with ornate illustrations.