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jillib430's review against another edition
5.0
“Oswald was right. Everyone is someone’s devil, and I am Oswald’s devil.”
Oh this book is magical. It brought out a lot of feelings and memories. Especially from my childhood. E.T. was my imaginary friend.
I remember the day when I didn’t need him anymore. Poof goodbye.
Oh this book is magical. It brought out a lot of feelings and memories. Especially from my childhood. E.T. was my imaginary friend.
I remember the day when I didn’t need him anymore. Poof goodbye.
salgalruns's review against another edition
4.0
I loved that this book was so totally different than others that I have been reading. Told from the viewpoint of Budo, Max's imaginary friend, we learn the ins and outs of the struggles of a special needs student (autistic, most likely). Budo is truly the friend that all of us should have in our lives, willing to do WHATEVER is needed to protect and defend his person (Max).
Dicks is highly creative in his storytelling. Not only is Budo visible to Max, but to other imaginary friends. I absolutely adored the descriptions of these other characters. Some were without ears or eyebrows (since the humans hadn't imagined those initially), and some had magical powers (going through doors, flying, etc). For whatever reason, the creativity seemed justified without being ridiculous. Love it.
This was a very quick read in that the vocabulary is about that of a 9 year old but the content of what will happen is actually quite suspenseful. I cringed when I found out that the storyline involved
The ending of the story seemed very neatly wound up in a "feel good" kind of way, but I was okay with that. It seemed to fit with the way the storyline was going and made sense. Great read!
Dicks is highly creative in his storytelling. Not only is Budo visible to Max, but to other imaginary friends. I absolutely adored the descriptions of these other characters. Some were without ears or eyebrows (since the humans hadn't imagined those initially), and some had magical powers (going through doors, flying, etc). For whatever reason, the creativity seemed justified without being ridiculous. Love it.
This was a very quick read in that the vocabulary is about that of a 9 year old but the content of what will happen is actually quite suspenseful. I cringed when I found out that the storyline involved
Spoiler
an abduction of an autistic child. It just put an instant pit in my stomach.The ending of the story seemed very neatly wound up in a "feel good" kind of way, but I was okay with that. It seemed to fit with the way the storyline was going and made sense. Great read!
katejacks's review against another edition
4.0
I loved this book. The whole premise is based on the perspective of an imaginary friend to a boy on the Autism spectrum. It made me feel for the boy, his parents, his favorite teacher and even the imaginary friend himself. Don't be fooled into thinking that this book about an imaginary friend lacks depth. In fact, it kept me thinking throughout.
lisamchuk's review against another edition
3.0
Budo is Max's imaginary friend. Max is a special kid (we assume autistic spectrum?), and Budo is a special imaginary friend. The whole book is told from Budo's point of view - which makes it very interesting and insightful so good job to Dicks on that. It's first person pov but not in the way that annoys me. And because Max is a kid and thus Budo is a kid, it's a easy read. Well the language is anyway, eventually the plot picks up and it gets quite deep. But not too deep because afterall, they're just kids.
I really liked the first half of the book - Budo describes everyday life and we get to know the school/home setting and the characters. As a former elementary school teacher, I could really tell Dicks is an elementary school teacher as the setting is pretty accurate. Max is an interesting kid, and I appreciated the behind the scenes depiction of how a child who sees the world differently (we assume because he's somewhere on the autistic spectrum) operates and thinks. I suppose it's hard to know how accurate the author's portrayal of Max is, but as expected and assumed, this insight was a highlight of the book in my opinion. Dicks has also created an imaginary world of imaginary characters and I found it very interesting to learn about the rules he creates for their biology, culture etc. I found myself wanting to read more about the imaginary friends, as if they needed a spinoff series. Basically the first half is a childish romp through third grade and I didn't want the mostly happy stuff to end. But if there was no Sauron there would be no ring and thus no adventure so inevitably the bad plot device occurred and the story moved forward.
I wasn't expecting this particular turn of events [SPOILER] and the book became reminiscent of Room or Lovely Bones. Yeah I was somewhat disappointed my childish calm was spoiled but the action ramped up and the just resolution of the problem made up for it. I ended up [SPOILER] crying mostly happy/sad but not horrified tears to the point where I couldn't read the type on the last page. Yeesh.
I would recommend this book to anyone who likes children, identifies with a school setting, or who liked Room or Lovely Bones. It was a great easy, enjoyable, and somewhat emotional first pick for our new book club!
I really liked the first half of the book - Budo describes everyday life and we get to know the school/home setting and the characters. As a former elementary school teacher, I could really tell Dicks is an elementary school teacher as the setting is pretty accurate. Max is an interesting kid, and I appreciated the behind the scenes depiction of how a child who sees the world differently (we assume because he's somewhere on the autistic spectrum) operates and thinks. I suppose it's hard to know how accurate the author's portrayal of Max is, but as expected and assumed, this insight was a highlight of the book in my opinion. Dicks has also created an imaginary world of imaginary characters and I found it very interesting to learn about the rules he creates for their biology, culture etc. I found myself wanting to read more about the imaginary friends, as if they needed a spinoff series. Basically the first half is a childish romp through third grade and I didn't want the mostly happy stuff to end. But if there was no Sauron there would be no ring and thus no adventure so inevitably the bad plot device occurred and the story moved forward.
I wasn't expecting this particular turn of events [SPOILER] and the book became reminiscent of Room or Lovely Bones. Yeah I was somewhat disappointed my childish calm was spoiled but the action ramped up and the just resolution of the problem made up for it. I ended up [SPOILER] crying mostly happy/sad but not horrified tears to the point where I couldn't read the type on the last page. Yeesh.
I would recommend this book to anyone who likes children, identifies with a school setting, or who liked Room or Lovely Bones. It was a great easy, enjoyable, and somewhat emotional first pick for our new book club!
missyjohnson's review against another edition
3.0
I did enjoy this book. the idea of a memoir of an imaginary friend was quite different and fun to read about. I had imaginary friends as a child and I loved the thought process put into this story. it was nice to read something a little out of the ordinary.
jess_mango's review against another edition
4.0
This was a really quick & enjoyable read for me. 4.5 out of 5 stars.
more later...
more later...
jansbookcorner's review against another edition
4.0
Slow going at first - but oh what a story! It will stay with you and make you evaluate a few things in your own life.
capgambit's review against another edition
4.0
I really enjoyed the premise of the book. It was first person but also telling someone else's story. It was a great concept and execute well. My only hangup was that my anxiety got the better of me and I rushed the ending which I think caused me to miss the emotional impact.
amzy789's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-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? It's complicated
5.0