''The Imaginary'' is a 2014 British children's novel written by A. F. Harrold and illustrated by

Emily Gravett Emily Gravett (born 1972) is an English author and illustrator of children's picture books. For her debut book ''Wolves'' published in 2005 and '' Little Mouse's Big Book of Fears'' published three years later, she won the annual Kate Greenaway M ...

. It is about a small girl, Amanda, and her imaginary friend, Rudger. An

anime is Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside of Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, in Japan and in Japane ...

film adaptation by

Studio Ponoc is a Japanese animation studio based in Musashino, Tokyo, Japan. The company was founded in April 2015 by Yoshiaki Nishimura, former lead film producer of Studio Ghibli. Its first feature film, ''Mary and The Witch's Flower'', was released on Ju ...

has been announced. Initially set for a Q3 2022 release, it was later delayed to Q1 2023 due to production issues.

Reception

A review in the ''

Booklist ''Booklist'' is a publication of the American Library Association that provides critical reviews of books and audiovisual materials for all ages. ''Booklist''s primary audience consists of libraries, educators, and booksellers. The magazine is av ...

'' of ''The Imaginary'' wrote "Though not quite as innovative as it might be, this is nevertheless a winningly whimsical celebration of the imagination, beautifully enhanced by both black-and-white and full-color illustrations by Kate Greenaway Medal-winning Gravett." and, in a starred review, ''

Kirkus Reviews ''Kirkus Reviews'' (or ''Kirkus Media'') is an American book review magazine founded in 1933 by Virginia Kirkus (1893–1980). The magazine is headquartered in New York City. ''Kirkus Reviews'' confers the annual Kirkus Prize to authors of fic ...

'' found it "Wonderfully entertaining." ''The Imaginary'' has also been reviewed by ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'', the ''

School Library Journal ''School Library Journal'' (''SLJ'') is an American monthly magazine containing reviews and other articles for school librarians, media specialists, and public librarians who work with young people. Articles cover a wide variety of topics, with ...

'',

The Horn Book Magazine ''The Horn Book Magazine'', founded in Boston in 1924, is the oldest bimonthly magazine dedicated to reviewing children's literature. It began as a "suggestive purchase list" prepared by Bertha Mahony Miller and Elinor Whitney Field, proprietres ...

, ''

Publishers Weekly ''Publishers Weekly'' (''PW'') is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers, and literary agents. Published continuously since 1872, it has carried the tagline, "The International News Magazine of B ...

'', ''Library Media Connection'',

Common Sense Media Common Sense Media (CSM) is an organization that reviews and provides ratings for media and technology with the goal of providing information on their suitability for children.

, '' Reading Time'', ''

The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books ''The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books'' is an academic journal established in 1945 by Frances E. Henne (Graduate Library School, University of Chicago).Wedgeworth, Robert. ''World Encyclopedia of Library and Information Services''. Ch ...

'', the ''

Financial Times The ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') is a British daily newspaper printed in broadsheet and published digitally that focuses on business and economic current affairs. Based in London, England, the paper is owned by a Japanese holding company, Nik ...

'', and ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'' (child review). It was nominated for the 2016 Carnegie Medal, the 2016

Kate Greenaway Medal The Kate Greenaway Medal is a British literary award that annually recognises "distinguished illustration in a book for children". It is conferred upon the illustrator by the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals (CILIP) ...

, and won the 2015 British Book Design and Production Awards Children's Trade Book Award, and the 2015 British Book Design and Production Awards Book of the Year Award.

References

External links

Library holdings of ''The Imaginary''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Imaginary The 2014 British novels British children's novels Bloomsbury Publishing books