The Monster Manual

★★☆☆☆

The Monster Manual: The Ultimate Guide to Werewolves, Goblins, and Other Wicked Creatures by Sarah Glenn Marsh, illustrated by Justine Wollman (2026)

The Monster Manual

Strike while the iron is hot. This, I’ve figured, is true of anything. This is also not what I’m doing for this review. I finished this book weeks ago and can barely remember what it’s about.

Why it sucked:

  • I was not the target audience. I thought judging by the cover (“Never judge a book by its cover”, sorry) that the book was for occulty adults, witchy women perhaps. Nope. It’s for preteens, the kind that walk home from school and have sleepovers and make sure to ask for parent permission before using a hot glue gun. Why is a book for preteens so brown and non-gaudy? No offense to preteens.
  • The author and the illustrator were not in harmony. Clearest example would be the cover, but there were some entries where the author would describe the monster’s appearance and the illustrator would draw something slightly different.
  • The book isn’t based on standard mythology. It’s styled as a non-fiction guide where some monsters are definitely real and others, like dragons and manticores, have all gone “extinct.”
  • Minotaurs are strict vegetarians who make weapons to trade for food. Goblins are white or black or stone-colored, but never green. I, too, can make things up.
  • Every entry is the same length. Whether it’s a dragon, ghost, or “hinkypunk”.
  • MOST IMPORTANTLY: When I returned it to the library, I forgot to take out the index card detailing all the ways the book sucked. So now a librarian will know my deepest, darkest secrets.

It’s over.