Matthew’s mother has been struggling with mental illness for a long time, so since he was eight years old, he has had to step in and take care of her, before he could even take care of himself. As a result, he thinks of himself as like the Minotaur, an isolated monster who everyone hates, even though he never asked to be different. Matthew admires a girl in his class called Ariadne (Ari for short), and when her bike is stolen, he is determined to get it back, just to prove that a Minotaur can be as much of a hero as Theseus. In the end, he discovers that people aren’t necessarily as mean as he thinks, and that sometimes it’s okay to accept help from others. 

I am the Minotaur is part of Oxford University Press’ Super-Readable Rollercoasters series, which aims to boost the reading vocabularies of readers aged 11-14. You can download a pdf version of the book and lots of free educational resources on the press’s website. The story is well written, but still uses simple language that is easy for reluctant readers to follow. The narrative voice goes back and forth between third and first person, as Matthew sometimes distances himself from his experiences and sometimes faces them head on. Matthew’s life is hard, though, and I am the Minotaur can be a difficult book for parents to read. By the second chapter, I desperately wanted to jump into the story and give the poor kid a hand. 

Young readers may have an easier time with this book, though. Certainly, they will sympathize with Matthew’s struggles and learn a lot about the burdens that young carers like Matthew carry. This book is a perfect example of how useful mythology can be to talk about difficult and important topics, like child neglect and poverty, in a safe, accessible way that won’t traumatize readers.    – Krishni Burns