The Unimaginary Friend

I rarely reread a book, but when I do it is usually because I really enjoyed it, wanted to find something I missed or forgot I had read it before. The Adventure of Beekle: The Unimaginary Friend falls in that last category.

I do not think I had an imaginary friend as a child. I know that I had an imagination and had “playmates” but none “stuck” as being the imaginary friend. Maybe that is why I always look at books about imaginary friends with wonder. And I wonder about Beekle. Instead of being a proper imaginary find and wait for his child to imagine him, he goes off in search of their child. The adult will see the child’s journey of self-discovery and the child reader will see a character trying to make that special best friend.

The art of Dan Santat is very much his style with the humor and bright colors. The story of imagination and friendship is told in a fresh manor as well. However, the second reading only made me remember why I had forgotten that I had read it in the first place. I am not the reader for this book. So, who is the reader for this picture book? The reader is anyone who likes a story about finding yourself. The reader is anyone who like fun stories. The reader is anyone who likes unique and colorful illustrations. The reader is someone looking for something just a little bit different, but still has familiar themes.

Beekle wants to be your friend and I do think we all should read this and see if Beekle is the right book friend for us.