Imaginary Friends

Confessions of an Imaginary Friend as told to Michelle Cuevas

Let me start by saying that I'm enjoying books and short stories about imaginary friends. They remind me of my childhood and my imaginary friend Libby, the 17-yr-old boy who lived in our oven. I have no idea why he lived in the oven, but Mom cooked him one evening when she made nachos. Were my parents tired of my demands for a place setting for Libby at the table (well, bar; we ate at the kitchen bar)? Were they tired of me sitting on one half of my seat saving the other half for Libby? Or were they just oblivious? No matter what, Libby disappeared, and I moved on.

But Jacques is an imaginary friend who isn't quite sure he's imaginary. When he discovers he's not real, he finds a support group for imaginary friends and quickly learns how to cope with his imaginary life. His journey (because this is a hero's journey) takes the reader into the world of the imaginary friends, and it makes us second-guess our own realities at some points. The lesson we learn in this book is that everyone has something special in them. We just need to tap into that magic. We also learn that computer algorithms for applications are pretty inane.

For a fun romp through the imaginary world and for a feel-good story, pick this book up at your local library.