Rick Riordan, in his novel "The Lightning Thief", states that "the real world is where the monsters are." Monsters don't have to be alien; Monsters can be found anywhere and everywhere. A person can be monstrous due to misunderstanding, social isolation, or an extreme desire to be popular. In “Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter,” Tom Franklin unmasks the real monsters of Chabot, Mississippi. It is not Larry Ott but rather Carl, Cecil, Silas and Wallace who are the real monsters of the novel. The story of deception begins in Larry's own house. Larry's father, Carl, is neither a good husband nor a good father. He had an affair with their maid and a baby by her. The discovery of a photo of a "black woman with baby Larry on her lap at the bottom of an old shoebox in Larry's house" (Franklin 100) reveals the mystery of this maid associated with Carl and Larry being Silas' half-brother. The fact that Larry was “whipped with a belt” (Franklin 51) demonstrates his ugliness towards his son. Furthermore, he is also responsible for Silas being deprived of his father's love. Likewise, the other monster in the novel would be Cecil Walker. He was more of a monster than a stepfather to Cindy, as he was brutal and violent towards her. One day, during a New Year's party, he throws a bottle rocket at her which explodes behind her back. Additionally, he would not miss any opportunity to sexually abuse her, alone or in the presence of someone else, such as trying to take her towel away when she was getting out of the shower. “He does this kind of shit all the time,” she said. had said. “While trying to see me without my clothes on, he stumbles into the bathroom with his thing in his hand. Does it when he's drunk, acts like he doesn't remember when he... middle of paper ...... error books and guns and possessing a monster mask. After his date with Cindy, Larry, an ordinary boy from a lower-middle-class white family, is no longer common; he is infamous as "Scary Larry" around town and is always the first to be suspected in cases of crime. In conclusion, what we see is not always the truth. It takes a lot of effort to recognize the “real” monster masked behind an innocent face. A criminal mind does not differentiate between good and evil; he respects no ties of blood or friendship. A whisper of suspicion screams louder than any word of praise in life. In the novel, the blind society that monstrized the innocent Larry also let the real monsters live without fear and dignity in the same city. Reference Franklin, Tom. Crooked letter, crooked letter. New York: William Morrow, 2010. Print.