Monster by the numbers
Walter Dean Myers · first published 1999 · dataset 2026-10-24
Who it is not for: readers below 8th grade: no school list in our data assigns it earlier.
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Length and reading time
| Pages (dataset edition) | 281 |
|---|---|
| Estimated words | 77,000 |
| Reading time, 300 wpm (fast) | 4 h 18 min |
| Reading time, 250 wpm (average adult) | 5 h 9 min |
| Reading time, 200 wpm (careful / younger reader) | 6 h 26 min |
| Days at 20 minutes a day | 16 |
| Lexile measure | 670L |
At 281 pages, Monster is longer than 74.3% of the 2,330 books on the reading lists we track whose page count we know (2,809 books are tracked in all). It is longer than the median book listed for grades 9-12 (273 pages).
Monster is 281 pages; the median book listed for grades 9-12 is 273 pages and the median of all 2,330 listed books with a page count is 187.
Source: Page counts of 2,330 books on U.S. school reading lists, bookstatistics.com · Dataset snapshot 2026-10-24
Show the numbers
| Book | Pages |
|---|---|
| Monster | 281 pages |
| Median book listed for grades 9-12 | 273 pages |
| Median of all listed books | 187 pages |
Word counts and reading times are estimates: pages × 275 words, divided by the reading speed. Your edition's page count and your own pace will differ.
Where Monster is on school reading lists
7 appearances (0.0% of all 20,804 listings in the dataset), drawn from 4 published lists, in grades 8th–12th. 7 of the 7 carry a link to the published source document.
States (3): Illinois, Kentucky, New York.
| Grade | Listings |
|---|---|
| 8th | 1 |
| 9th | 3 |
| 10th | 1 |
| 11th | 1 |
| 12th | 1 |
Sources
- Kentucky Association of School Librarians — Kentucky Bluegrass Award Winner's Circle, 2002 winner (9-12) · checked 2026-09-24
- Illinois Learning Standards grade 8 aligned reading · checked 2026-05-29
- NY Next Gen Learning Standards grade 9 aligned reading · checked 2026-05-29
- CCSS ELA Appendix B, grades 9-10 exemplar · checked 2026-05-29
Questions
How many pages is Monster?
Monster by Walter Dean Myers is 281 pages in the edition recorded in our dataset. Page counts vary by edition and format; at about 275 words per page that is roughly 77,000 words.
How long does it take to read Monster?
About 5 h 9 min at an average adult pace of 250 words per minute (4 h 18 min at 300 wpm, 6 h 26 min at 200 wpm). At 20 minutes a day that is about 16 days.
Is Monster on school reading lists?
Yes. It appears 7 times on the U.S. school reading lists, award lists and curricula in our dataset, in 3 states plus 1 national-curriculum listing, most often in grades 9-12. That ranks it #822 of 2,809 listed books.
Related
- Monster: reading level, grades and similar booksOn ReadingList, our sister site for school reading lists.
- Books of about the same lengthTo Kill a Mockingbird (281 pp.) · The Diary of a Young Girl (283 pp.) · Odder (288 pp.) · The Wild Robot (288 pp.)
- The most assigned books, rankedAll 2,809 listed books start here.
- Book length statisticsHow long assigned books are, by grade.
Cite this page
<a href="https://bookstatistics.com/books/monster/">Monster statistics</a>. Book Statistics, a Figures Bureau site. [Monster statistics](https://bookstatistics.com/books/monster/). Book Statistics, a Figures Bureau site. [url=https://bookstatistics.com/books/monster/]Monster statistics[/url]. Book Statistics, a Figures Bureau site.