Thirteen year old Conor is woken every night at seven minutes past midnight by a monster outside his bedroom window. Conor has been having the same nightmare every night since his mother started her treatments, but there's a twist - this monster is ancient and wild and has become a part of Conor's life for one reason only - to give Conor the strength to finally face the truth.

Not surprisingly Monster Calls has been shortlisted for this year's Carnegie and Kate Greenaway medals. It's haunting yet beautiful illustrations by Jim Kay and Patrick Ness' compassionate yet straightforward approach in tackling issues of bullying and self-image from the viewpoint of a teenager, is a credit to an idea originally conceived by the late award winning novelist Siobhan Down.

Monster Calls is a must for young and old.