Memoirs of an Imaginary Friend: A Novel Author: Matthew Dicks | Language: English | ISBN:
B007TJ53SY | Format: EPUB
Memoirs of an Imaginary Friend: A Novel Description
Imaginary friend Budo narrates this heartwarming story of love, loyalty, and the power of the imagination—the perfect read for anyone who has ever had a friend . . . real or otherwise
Budo is lucky as imaginary friends go. He's been alive for more than five years, which is positively ancient in the world of imaginary friends. But Budo feels his age, and thinks constantly of the day when eight-year-old Max Delaney will stop believing in him. When that happens, Budo will disappear.
Max is different from other children. Some people say that he has Asperger’s Syndrome, but most just say he’s “on the spectrum.” None of this matters to Budo, who loves Max and is charged with protecting him from the class bully, from awkward situations in the cafeteria, and even in the bathroom stalls. But he can’t protect Max from Mrs. Patterson, the woman who works with Max in the Learning Center and who believes that she alone is qualified to care for this young boy.
When Mrs. Patterson does the unthinkable and kidnaps Max, it is up to Budo and a team of imaginary friends to save him—and Budo must ultimately decide which is more important: Max’s happiness or Budo's very existence.
Narrated by Budo, a character with a unique ability to have a foot in many worlds—imaginary, real, child, and adult— Memoirs of an Imaginary Friend touches on the truths of life, love, and friendship as it races to a heartwarming . . . and heartbreaking conclusion.
- File Size: 491 KB
- Print Length: 336 pages
- Publisher: St. Martin's Press; Reprint edition (August 21, 2012)
- Sold by: Macmillan
- Language: English
- ASIN: B007TJ53SY
- Text-to-Speech: Enabled
X-Ray:
- Lending: Not Enabled
- Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #21,988 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)
- #85
in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Literary Fiction > Psychological
- #85
in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Literary Fiction > Psychological
On every level, this book is worthy of five stars. The story is original, touching and memorable. Budo (the narrator and main character) is a captivating mixture of innocence, childlike wisdom, love, wonder and fear. Matthew Green's characters are so vivid that they remain with the reader after the book is finished. Right from the opening page, the novel engaged my full attention, stirring up emotions that grew stronger as the story progressed. Memoirs of an Imaginary Friend is a masterclass in storytelling.
Budo is the imaginary friend of a nine-year-old boy named Max. Though not explicitly stated, it is implied that Max suffers from some type of autistic-spectrum disorder: we are told that he is 'different'; Max's mother and father argue over whether or not to raise him as 'normal'; Max does not like to be touched; when faced with too many stimuli or choices, he becomes 'stuck', retreating into his inner universe and becoming unreachable for a period; at school, he is bullied because of his unorthodox way of relating to the world. Budo lives in constant fear of disappearing. Imaginary friends, you see, exist only as long as their imaginer believes in them. Having existed for five years, Budo is the oldest imaginary friend he knows. When Max is abducted from school, Budo witnesses the crime and recognises the abductor. He is unable to tell anyone, though, as Max is the only human who can see or hear him. Setting out on a quest to save Max, Budo enlists the help of other imaginary friends. These strange creatures come in an intoxicating array of forms, as imagined by their human creators. Budo's desire to save his friend is driven by two forces: (1) his transcendent love for Max; (2) his fear that Max might stop believing in him, which would lead to his vanishing into nonexistence.
Writing a story from the perspective of a child's imaginary playmate is sheer genius. One has to be brilliant to pull something this extraordinary off and do so with the finesse that Matthew Dicks has done with Budo, the imaginary friend of 8-year-old Max. Budo is not like other imaginary playmates and Max is very different from most of his peers. Max has Asperger's Syndrome, the spectrum partner to autism.
Budo is a runaway train. He literally has his own mind, personality and insights. He describes what makes him different from other imaginary friends, whom he knows. He was created by Max when Max was 4. He had a distinct human shape and human features. He lasted way longer than Max' peers' imaginary friends. He describes how he was created in full detail whereas other imaginary playmates were amorphous blobs; mutant dinosaurs with weird features and a myriad of other weird characters. Budo will tell readers himself that imaginary playmates are reflective of the personality and needs of the children who create them. However, another distinguishing feature Budo has is that he is an Inner Self Helper, a term often applied to people who suffer from DID, Dissociative Identity Disorder. Not that DID applies here, but Budo IS Max' Inner Self Helper and often guides Max into making decisions, even if it is seemingly simple such as choosing what color popsicle he wants to eat and the variables that go along with that. Budo also helps Max navigate tricky social territory and even has his preference of the teachers in Max' life.
Budo is very clever and resourceful. He knows where other Imaginary Friends congregate and he as well as other Imaginary Friends are able to see and communicate with each other.
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