Customer Reviews

The Monster at the End of this Book (Sesame Street) (Big Little Golden Book)

5 star:		(244)
4 star:		(17)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I wandered into the room of my best friend's three-year-old son, preparing to read him a book before he went to bed. When I saw this book among the pile on his floor, I got nostalgic. Really nostalgic. My mom read me the same book when I was his age, and I love, LOVE this book.

Not only does it teach you that sometimes the answer to all of your questions is right in front of you, but it does so by giving you pages of Grover, one of the most hysterical, lovable Muppets. The rattling of Grover's nerves, and the actual building of suspense in a picture book, keep the reader turning the book's pages -- even though Grover BEGS you not to do so. The reader is actually included in the narrative, for the book involves only Grover talking to the reader. The book thus becomes involving very quickly and entertaining throughout it.

Plus, the final punchline is a great payoff.

If you have children, this is an absolute must. Unlike other books from children's shows, this one's intelligent, maintains proper values and isn't beat-me-over-the-head annoying.

_The Monster At The End Of This Book_ (henceforth "TMATEOTB") is a fascinating treatise on several of the philosophical problems lurking at the core of modern and classical thought. The premise -- that, with the turn of each page, the reader brings self-described "lovable, furry Grover" closer to danger at the hands of the title monster -- allows one to question the very nature of free will and destiny. Is Grover doomed to encounter the monster? The conceit that it is the act of turning pages -- the literal act of reading itself -- that causes the ending to come about inevitably leads to the question: Would the book end differently if one _didn't_ finish reading it? On another level, TMATEOTB addresses one of the paradoxes of contemporary physics: The equality of space and time. The "end of the book" is an event in the future, but the monster is not spoken of as "arriving", but as _already being there_. Thus, turning pages moves the reader and Grover not only forward in time, as in most traditional literature, but also forward in space, leading to the perilous End of the Book. Lastly, TMATEOTB is about how we are ultimately at the whim of the cosmic forces that shape our lives. The hapless protagonist tries again and again to stop the reader from turning pages by erecting brick walls and nailing one page to the other. His efforts are futile, but he remains unaware of his essential helplessness in the face of a Reader. Perhaps, the book says, we are ultimately doomed to fail, trapped within the pages of cosmic irony, but unable to prevent or even perceive the inevitability of our encounter with the monster. The shocking twist ending wraps up the disparate threads of the text, presenting issues of self-knowledge, the nature of fear, and the question of what it truly means to be a monster. Perhaps the failure of our quests for safety in an uncertain world isn't so bad, it argues, if it leads to a confrontation like the one depicted in _The Monster At The End Of This Book_.

Grover was my favorite Sesame Street character as a child (and still is) and for some strange reason it isn't easy to find books on him. This one is so cute and adorable, just like "Lovable, Furry, Old Grover" himself!

As the adult you open the first page and instantly know the conclusion but looking at it from a child's viewpoint it is suspensefully entertaining. If you have a child that pushes books away alot I promise you he or she will NOT do that with THIS BOOK!

I highly recommend this book up to age 100! It is simply hiliarious! (When I first read it in the store I cracked up laughing and people were looking at me and I didn't care!) BUY THIS BOOK! YOU WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED--I PROMISE! YOU'LL PROBABLY LOVE IT MORE THAN YOUR CHILD! IT IS VERY FUN TO READ!

We first found this book when my nephew was born, over 18 years ago. He loved it so much we had to read it several times each time he was at our house, so we got him his own copy. We still had to read it when he came over and his parents read it to him every night(no skipping pages allowed, no matter how many times we had read it !). Both copies were completely worn out. We have been looking for more copies since then. It is surely a sign of how good this book is that it is nearly impossible to find in used book stores.

Do not get confused. This book seems to be written for children, and no doubt they will enjoy it. But this is, hands down, one of the greatest, most lucid and simple books on post-modern angst I can think of. The message: We always have a fear of a painful and uncertain end, and we do whatever we can to avoid the inevitable. But, in the end, the monster is ourselves. Buy this for your favorite existentialist or buddhist. You will not be disappointed. I even used this book as a source for my Master's Thesis on Absurdist theatre. It warrants praise.

No matter how old (or young) you are you will not be able to stop laughing after you read this book. I'm 23 and I still love it, in fact I love to read it to kids as well. I can't quite do as good a grover as my mom but the kids don't mind. I grew up with this book. I guaruntee you're kinds will love it and you'll love reading it to them. And if you don't well then maybe you should see your doctor becuase you've lost your funny bone!

This was my favorite book as a child, mainly because my mother loved it so much, and she did grover's voice while she read it. I think she read it every night for years. Now, as I work with children every day, I have found that they all love the story as much as I still do. It is a great light hearted story that can teach a child that it is ok to be scared as long as you don't let it control your life.

Get this book. It's the best bucks you'll ever spend. My 17 year old high school senior daughter's class was asked to bring their favorite book from childhood to class. They had to read the books to the entire class. Of course she took this book. The entire class voted this book their favorite. Imagine an entire class of 16 & 17 year olds giggling and laughing over something they normally wouldn't be caught dead looking at. She told how her mommy would act out the voices and plead and beg them to not turn the page, and how they would beg to be allowed their turn to turn the page and see how upset Grover got with them. They would giggle and laugh and always act surprised with Grover when they found out who the monster was. As they got older they would try to comfort Grover cause he was so afraid, and reassure him the monster wouldn't hurt him. Later when my daughter imagined monsters under her bed, and for three nights in a row I couldn't get her to sleep by herself, I remembered the book and got it out and read it for her. She was actually smiling when she went to bed and looked under her bed hoping to find a monster! There's only one problem ,you need to buy several books, because we went thru three while they were growing up, and I bought four more for future grandchildren. Now everytime someone has a baby I buy a book to include with the blankets and gowns. After all warm fuzzy memories are what it's all about.

More than two decades before the Internet made"interactive" a houehold word, Jon Stone's brilliant Sesame Street book, featuring furry, lovable Grover doing his best to convince the readers to not turn the pages (since there is a MONSTER at the end of the book! How scary...!) All the other positive reviews are correct: this is a brilliant children's book, every bit as fresh and inventive as the Sesame Street program itself.

What's best about this version, as opposed to the board-book or pop-up editions, is the part on the title page, where Grover glances at the indices and mutters, "this is a very dull page..." and rushes us to the beginning. Also included is the great gag where he makes us go back t the outside cover to confirm that it says there is a (yikes!) monster to the end of the book, each bit setting the tone for this wildly creative, comedic gem.

This is the greatest book ever. My parents read it to me when I was a child. Every night I had to have it read to me. It was the first book I learned to read. Unfortunatly my Mom had to throw it away because it was so worn. For years I looked for this book. I finally gave up a few years ago. Well, a couple of weeks ago I found a copy in my cousin's toy box! I was so excited I decided to look for it again. Now I've found it. I would reccommend this book for every child (and even a few adults) It is a wonderful story with a wonderful surprise ending