The Imaginary

The Imaginary
Rating: 4/5
Buy or Borrow: Buy
Source: Copy courtesy of the publisher!

One day when Amanda opens her wardrobe, there's somebody in it. Somebody only she can see his. Name is Rudger and he's her imaginary friend and her best friend. But when the sinister Mr. Bunting arrives at her door, it turns out he can see Rudger as well. Mr. Bunting hunts Imaginaries and....well....eats them. He's quite attached to his own imaginary friend you see, and in order to keep seeing her he has to eat Imaginaries. Mr. Bunting sniffs out Rudger, and after an accident, Rudger is left all by himself and running for his life. Rudger needs a friend to believe in him and see him otherwise he'll fade, but can he get back to Amanda before he fades away?

It has to be said, this book is so incredibly beautiful, the end papers, the illustrations, all are so incredibly gorgeous it took me ages to read this because I kept stopping to stare at them! I mean, I don't usually read books like this, for this age range, but I couldn't resist the pretty! Beneath the dust jacket is even gorgeous!

I thoroughly enjoyed this book, it was so unique to me, I've never read a children's book before that covers imaginary friends, and it was so unique with the whole Library thing and them choosing their friends and everything, and it was so CUTE! It's a book about friendship and imagination, and it's so beautifully written. There's the lightheartedness of friendship and trust and hope and imagination, then there's the sinister baddie and his really creepy sidekick, and the shadowy parts, I think the pink dinosaur called Snowflake also helps to alleviate the creepiness.

The book is funny in parts, but also has plenty of tension and is a liiiiittle bit ominous in parts! The story is kind of like Pringles, once you start you can't stop and you eat up the illustrations and the words. I seriously couldn't stop reading, and it resulted in a later night than usual. I determined to only read a couple of chapters, but the next thing I know it's 1am and I've finished it! I'll be lending it to my mother as well to take to work and read to the kids there I think!

For younger kids, this might be a good idea to read in the sunlight, swiftly followed by an episode of a TV show, I'm not really down with the kids so I have no idea what's occurring in the world of kids TV, all I know is Pokemon! Elder kids should have no problem reading this after nightfall! I'm so astounded by the detail and the quality of this book still to be honest! It's the best I've seen and it's the first from this age range that I've felt a compelling need to read!

FYI the hardback edition will make a really lovely gift! Just saying!