WHAT DO MONSTERS
LOOK LIKE?

by Amber Tayler

Illustrated by Ryan Birth

You know that monster that lurked under your bed when you were a kid? Ever wonder what he thought of the monster right over his head? A story told in two voices. First read the story from the child’s point of view, then flip the book over to read the story from the little monster’s point of view. The little monster’s mom doesn’t believe him any more than your mom believed you when you were a kid!

This unique story teaches a serious lesson in empathy, using humor and wonderful artwork; the book is fantastically, beautifully illustrated from acrylic paintings. Great stuff!

"I have always believed—secretly of course—in monsters, Santa, fairies, magic, and that toys come to life when you aren’t looking. So when my son was two years old and was afraid of the monster under his bed, I felt I needed to act.

First we discussed the options:
(1) we approach the bed, arm in arm, each of us with a monster-scaring water bottle (everyone knows monsters are TERRIFIED of water).
(2) we could approach the bed, both of us with a flashlight (again, a monster-scare tactic, since monsters only come out at night).
(3) we could line up stuffed animals, looking under the bed, to scare him.
(4) we could put Nemo, our somewhat hesitant and mostly lazy, but very fierce-looking “watchdog,” on guard at the bottom of the bed.

Well, after much thought and pondering we decided the first three ideas, while possibly effective, would probably be a little mean. We knew that those things would scare any huge, scary monster, but who wants to be a bully? We all know that no one wants to be on the receiving end of meanness, and that we are supposed to treat others how we want to be treated. So, we decided to write the monster a letter, asking him to please remain under the bed at night, because he would scare us if he came out, and in return, we wouldn’t squirt him, or shine lights at him, and sometimes we’d even clean under there.

So, as you might guess, it worked; we didn’t see him anymore. But, we still tuck our toes under the blankies because, as everyone knows, if your toes are sticking out they are fair game for a monster. No need to tempt fate."

"As you will surely understand, I felt that I needed to share our story with the world.
That is how this book, What do Monsters Look Like?, came to be. I hope you enjoy reading it." —Amber Tayler