The imaginary

by A. F. Harrold

Other authorsEmily Gravett (Illustrator.)
Hardcover, 2015

Status

Available

Collection

Publication

New York : Bloomsbury, 2015.

Description

Rudger, an imaginary playmate, must find his friend Amanda before he fades away to nothing, while eluding the only other person who can see him, evil Mr. Bunting, who hunts--and possibly even eats--imaginaries.

User reviews

LibraryThing member foggidawn
Rudger is Amanda's best friend. Of course, he's imaginary, but neither Amanda nor Rudger is bothered by this. Then, one day, Mr. Bunting comes to the door. Unlike any other adult in the world, Mr. Bunting can see Rudger -- but this is definitely not a good thing. It's obvious from their first
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meeting that there's something wrong with Mr. Bunting, something ominous about him. When a later run-in with the man causes an accident that separates Rudger and Amanda, Rudger must run for his life to escape Mr. Bunting and get back to Amanda . . . but can an imaginary boy survive on his own, without his real-world friend?

This book works so well on so many levels. The characters are quirky and fun, the plot moves right along, there are some scary bits and some funny bits -- kids will love this book. There's also pathos and attention to detail (the cat's name is Oven, and I won't tell you why that is significant, but it is) and depth -- adults will love this book. I can see it working really well as a classroom read-aloud for second or third graders, though it might be a little too scary for children any younger than that. Also, it is fabulously illustrated by the talented Emily Gravett. This may be the best book I've read so far this year. Highly recommended.
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LibraryThing member overthemoon
have not yet read this, but I met the author in Oxford, where he gave a poetry reading, and he restored my faith in the British sense of humour. This is beautifully illustrated by Emily Gravett.
LibraryThing member Whisper1
What a highly creative book. I loved it from start to finish. With the theme of children's imaginations and the fact that some children imagine playmates which they believe are real.

The author weaves a tale of the lives of the imaginary friends. They exist only to be a part of the person who
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imagined them..

When they are no longer needed, they fade away. If fortunate, they find the magical door for the imaginary playmates and look live in a library where a bulletin board shows possible children who may be looking for an imaginary friend.

My review cannot do this book justice. I highly recommend it!
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LibraryThing member BrendaKlaassen
This was a fun, fast read. I enjoyed the different characters. I cheered when Rudger and Amanda got back together. This story has a few dark places, but they were enjoyable. The author was new to me, but I plan to try to read other stories written by this author. I do think some adults have more
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"imaginary" then other adults.
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LibraryThing member acargile
This is a short, fantasy novel.

I don’t know if you’ve ever had an imaginary friend, but this is the story of one. Amanda is a little girl who has a wild imagination. One day, she opens her wardrobe to find a young boy, named Rudger. They have great fun playing together. In fact, Amanda is
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perfectly content and doesn’t desire friendship from anyone at school. Things become dark when Mr. Bunting arrives. He can smell imaginaries and feeds off of them. Rudger is in danger.

The suspense builds as Rudger is suddenly alone, without Amanda. If he isn’t with her and she forgets about him, he’ll Fade. Mr. Bunting is close on his tail, but no one believes Rudger because they think Mr. Bunting is just a made-up story. It’s a race to get back to Amanda in order to save both of them.

To be honest, I’m not a fan of imaginary friend stories. They seem silly. This novel seemed very 4th grade to me, but maybe I’m wrong. It’s cute and not bad; it just did not appeal to me.
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LibraryThing member AliceaP
The Imaginary by A.F. Harrold recalls to mind the memory of childhood and the power (danger?) of imagination. The story revolves around Amanda and her best friend named Rudger. They're typical friends that have lots of imaginary play, get into mischief, and share all of their secrets with one
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another. The only difference is that no one else can see Rudger because he's Amanda's imaginary friend. This book walks a tightrope between fantasy and reality which at times is quite blurred. This is not a fantasy full of giggles and silliness but one fraught with darkness and fear. There is a threat not only to Amanda and Rudger's friendship but to their very lives...and it's getting closer. This is a book about the true meaning of friendship and to what lengths you will go to preserve it. Also, cats. (I genuinely made a note after reading this book that was simply CATS so clearly that's an important aspect of this book.) I must also point out that the narrative was elevated even further by the fantastic illustrations of Emily Gravett. (I liked her work so much that I sought out her picture books.) I've been recommending this to reluctant readers because I think it's a great way to dip your toe into fantasy and the scary element definitely sells it as well. 9/10
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LibraryThing member lg503
This novel talks about a story with imaginary friends, and how the imaginary friend could "fade" if the are forgotten. A girl named Amanda had a car accident. she goes to the hospital, so her "imaginary" friend Rudger is left out alone, with no one to think of him. The story develops around his
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efforts to try to find Amanda again.
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LibraryThing member airdnaxela
A great book about friendship and interpersonal relationships. Although Harrold's writing style was a bit off putting at first, later I realized how well he verbalizes differences in character and lessons. There was a particular depth to this story that drew me in, and in completely unexpected
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ways. The characters and illustrations are very unique, I have not read a book that resembles this before. It seems that this book celebrates diversity in strengths and weaknesses, and how individuals can take responsibility for their actions.
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LibraryThing member ashleytylerjohn
Well, that turned out to be shockingly touching. It's pretty much everything I want in a book--compelling characters, an original take on a subject, a plot that manages to be consistent with expectations and surprising at once, and an unexpectedly moving conclusion.

I had literally no idea what
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this would be about or where it would go when I'd started it (I imagine Goodreads had suggested it because I liked something else, and I mindlessly added it to the queue), but it was a fresh, inventive, wonderful little read.

(Note: 5 stars = amazing, wonderful, 4 = very good book, 3 = decent read, 2 = disappointing, 1 = awful, just awful. I'm fairly good at picking for myself so end up with a lot of 4s).
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LibraryThing member A_Reader_of_Fictions
For more reviews, gifs, Cover Snark and more, visit A Reader of Fictions.

Erica Barmash first mentioned this one on Twitter months and months ago. Middle grade, as I keep saying, isn’t my jam most of the time. However, all of her praise made me want to check out The Imaginary, so, when the time
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came, I requested it, crossing my fingers I wouldn’t regret my choice.



I’m so grateful that I tried The Imaginary, because I think, without Erica’s promo, I probably never would have looked at it twice. The Imaginary is this gorgeous, surprisingly creepy story about imaginary friends and growing up.

The introduction, as introductions often are, is a bit misleading. It does, however, set the tone for The Imaginary really well. I mean, the first sentence is “Amanda was dead,” so this book isn’t going to be all fluffy magic times. There are silly, humorous moments, but there are also really dark ones too. The best comparison I can devise is A Monster Calls, though that’s taking on a heavier subject. Both are surprisingly dark, with beautiful stories made more arresting by the use of incredibly perfect illustrations. The Imaginary‘s intended audience skews a bit younger, but both are very powerful and a feast for the eyeballs.



One of the downsides of advance review copies is that you tend not to get the final illustrations. In this case, I did get to see seven of the ten full color illustrations in full color, though they were put together at the beginning of the novel. From those, it’s clear that Emily Gravett makes excellent use of color, popping certain things out of a gray background. Personally, I love the illustrations in black and white, so this wasn’t really a hardship.

I can only imagine the finished copy will be stunning. The illustrations are amazing, but, even more than the larger pictures, I adore the small touches that combine to make this book so pretty. There are a few pages with white font on a black background or where an illustration interacts with the text. Page breaks have a little cat in a whole bunch of poses. Not to mention the fact that there’s this one page that will haunt me because the illustration does horror so effectively.



The Imaginary posits what life is like for imaginary friends. Rudger is Amanda’s imaginary friend. The idea of imaginary friends is considered from two main angles: that of the imaginary friend and that of those looking on at the imaginary friendship. I think these two different considerations make The Imaginary an excellent choice for both children and older readers, particularly parents who might be side-eyeing their child’s imaginary friend.

I don’t think that I had an imaginary friend when I was a child, but I feel really horrible thinking I might have had and forgotten one. Most likely my imaginary friends were all the book characters I clung to, rather than one like Rudger. It’s unbearably sad to consider the way they disappear once the person who dreamed them up forgets them. The library of forgotten imaginary friends is at once the most comical portion of the book and the saddest.


I iz not alone. I got frands!

More than anything, The Imaginary delights in the imagination. One mother sends her child to a psychologist because she doesn’t approve of imaginary friends. Amanda’s mother, however, indulges Amanda, even going so far as to make food for Rudger, though he doesn’t eat it obviously. Combined with Rudger and Amanda’s story, looking at these two parents, it was impossible for me to see the other girl’s mother as doing anything but stifling creativity. Imaginary friends fade with time, but they’re sometimes an essential part of development.

I highly recommend taking the time to read The Imaginary. It’s under 220 pages and there are pictures, so why not? Seriously SO GORGEOUS.
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Language

Original publication date

2014

ISBN

0802738117 / 9780802738110

Barcode

483

Lexile

720L
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