My Monster Burrufu By: Alberto Corral

Seven-year-old Olivia has just moved to a new house—the same house where a lonely monster named Burrufu lives hidden in a secret attic. One night, unable to resist the smell of delicious cookies, Burrufu sneaks out and is discovered by Olivia. The two soon learn that you can find friendship in the most unexpected places.

My Monster Burrufu is a story of overcoming fear, a curse, and a most unusual monster who learns from a little girl how to trust his heart.

Goodreads Summary




My 8 year old niece and I started reading this story of a girl and her
monster.  It held her attention for a couple of chapters, but then she
went off to do something else.  We didn’t finish it together, but I think
she missed the best parts of the book.  The vocabulary was probably too
old for her; however, I know from reading to my own daughters that kids
pick up a lot from context.  It’s great to have them reach a little beyond
their usual understanding of words and situations!  My niece and I loved
the illustrations – yes, we skimmed ahead to see the pictures.  The
picture of Olivia hanging upside down in the attic is hilarious.  I
finished the book on my own (once I start a book I have to finish it, and
I’m glad that I did).

My niece thought that the way Olivia tried to catch and then befriend
Burrufu was clever and fun.  We set up a monster trap that day.  (Someone
ate the cookies, but we never caught the monster…her uncle.)  The fantasy
of the story – Burrufu who can grow 100 feet tall and jump hundreds of
miles away in a few minutes with Olivia on his back – is really
imaginative.  Burrufu’s exile, hiding from everyone because his appearance
is frightening, makes Burrufu an especially loveable character.  My niece
would have loved that he wrote books since she likes to make up stories
that we illustrate and put in book form.

The concept of the story seems aimed at a younger audience than the actual
writing seems to fit.  I’m not sure that a younger child’s attention would
be held through the whole book even though I thought this story of
friendship and adventure was cute and touching.  I also kept picturing
this book as a short animated story.  Reading the author’s and
illustrator’s experience with Dreamworks, Disney, Cartoon Network, and the
BBC may have influenced that perception.

Four Stars

*Reviewed by Colleen*

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This product or book may have been distributed for review, this in no way affects my opinions or reviews.