hiltzmoore's review against another edition
5.0
I'm a sucker for well built worlds, especially when those worlds are incredibly creative and something I never would have thought of before. Matthew Dicks' world of imaginary friends blew me away. His understanding of children on the autism spectrum along with his knowledge of elementary school teaching made this a very believable story about imaginary friends. I'm really glad I picked this one up.
jhalloran99's review against another edition
5.0
What an original and exciting read! I loved it. It reminded me of Room with the unique narrator and daring escape. Once I got past the first twenty chapters (they are short), I couldn't put it down.
dyerra's review against another edition
4.0
I give this book a strong 4, but I can't quite give it 5 stars. I really enjoyed it, and I thought the ending was great. I thought the premise was unique and fantastic and the plot was good, and I couldn't wait to find out what happened next.
There were times, however, where the story got very repetitive and slowed down, specifically around imaginary friends disappearing. The narrator was also very repetitive in general but I felt like that was a forgivable quirk of him being an imaginary friend. This is really the only thing that prevents me from giving 5 stars, but I really enjoyed this book and I truly would recommend it.
There were times, however, where the story got very repetitive and slowed down, specifically around imaginary friends disappearing. The narrator was also very repetitive in general but I felt like that was a forgivable quirk of him being an imaginary friend. This is really the only thing that prevents me from giving 5 stars, but I really enjoyed this book and I truly would recommend it.
jade314's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
tishreads's review against another edition
2.0
The concept of this book really intrigued me when I came across it at the library book sale. Told from the perspective of an Imaginary friend, I was looking forward to a unique novel about growing up with autism.
However, the novel ends up caught in this weird place. I found it with adult fiction, and am reviewing it as such. Because the MC is an Imaginary friend to a 3rd grader, he speaks about things in an extremely child like way. He never used contractions (except that he does a few times, and then it just annoyed me even more that he didn't the rest of the time) and describes items the way you would to a child. As I started the book, I thought perhaps it was a Young Adult novel instead. As the novel progressed, and the themes became darker, I grew more confused on the intended audience. I was quickly annoyed by the simplistic and repetitive style of the narrator and more than once considered just stopping and googling the ending.
SPOILERS BEYOND HERE
What really irked me is that it had the chance to be a novel about a child learning to be independent and solve problems. Max did, in a lot of ways, save himself from his situation, but it wouldn't have happened without Oswald. I also hated how much time was spent arguing about if Budo should save Max or save himself and describing the Imaginary friends "dying". That didn't need to be done with Graham AND Oswald.
Basically, if you took out the cursing, did some major editing, and left everything else alone I think this would have made an amazing Middle Grades novel. As it stands, it's a frustrating adult novel.
However, the novel ends up caught in this weird place. I found it with adult fiction, and am reviewing it as such. Because the MC is an Imaginary friend to a 3rd grader, he speaks about things in an extremely child like way. He never used contractions (except that he does a few times, and then it just annoyed me even more that he didn't the rest of the time) and describes items the way you would to a child. As I started the book, I thought perhaps it was a Young Adult novel instead. As the novel progressed, and the themes became darker, I grew more confused on the intended audience. I was quickly annoyed by the simplistic and repetitive style of the narrator and more than once considered just stopping and googling the ending.
SPOILERS BEYOND HERE
What really irked me is that it had the chance to be a novel about a child learning to be independent and solve problems. Max did, in a lot of ways, save himself from his situation, but it wouldn't have happened without Oswald. I also hated how much time was spent arguing about if Budo should save Max or save himself and describing the Imaginary friends "dying". That didn't need to be done with Graham AND Oswald.
Basically, if you took out the cursing, did some major editing, and left everything else alone I think this would have made an amazing Middle Grades novel. As it stands, it's a frustrating adult novel.
aimxxgarcia's review against another edition
4.0
This is one of those books that would make a perfect movie, for kids and adults alike. And a tear-jerker at that.
At first I didn't actually wanna read this book because of the implication of an imaginary friend. Yes, I don't like imaginary friends because the idea gives me the creeps. So I had put off reading this until last Friday. And after reading it today, I had regretted having waited too long.
I loved it. I love it. And I will love it forever. I certainly think the characters will stay with me for long.
I want a movie out of this ASAP!!!
At first I didn't actually wanna read this book because of the implication of an imaginary friend. Yes, I don't like imaginary friends because the idea gives me the creeps. So I had put off reading this until last Friday. And after reading it today, I had regretted having waited too long.
I loved it. I love it. And I will love it forever. I certainly think the characters will stay with me for long.
I want a movie out of this ASAP!!!
unclelazy's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
This was a really fun book to read because it was really unlike anything I’ve ever read before. Not my absolute favorite in terms of plot but the voice of the narrator was so rich and it made sense that given his lack of being real, the plot becomes secondary.