Compelling and heartbreaking story about grief and loss. Applegate's writing is, as always, accessible to young readers without talking down to them. The characters are charming and will stay with readers long after they close their book.

Applegate writes a wonderful mystical realism novel, perfect for any young to middle grade novel reader who loves imagination and animals. Jackson deals with some difficult family issues and faces the possibility of living in their van again. Crenshaw, his childhood imaginary friend returns in all his glory to help Jackson grapple with these hardships in a way that young readers will understand. Would recommend to grades 3 and up.

When the Cat's Away....

I admire ambitious books. I particularly admire, appreciate and enjoy Applegate's writing - she has a fine touch with dialogue, internal monologues, and the charming or arresting aside or casual observation. Her pacing is terrific and her eye for the telling and authentic detail is unmatched.

But, this book has what I think of as the Polly Horvath problem - fine intentions, superior writing and craftsmanship, and unrealistic and muddled tone, plotting and message. Our hero, Jackson, is implausibly and unnervingly mature. His parents are childishly whimsical and irresponsible. The family's descent into homelessness feels like a device, the tone is uneven, and the crisis is too big and yet too shallowly developed to deliver any message apart from feeling sorry for Jackson. As between Jackson having an imaginary friend and Jackson's parents living in an imaginary world, I couldn't shake the feeling that the parents were the ones with the bigger problem. And that's just an unnecessary distraction. (Actually, putting aside the homelessness issue, I thought that the more interesting angle was Jackson's suppressed anger at his parents for not coming fully to grips with reality. This struck me as the more penetrating and dramatic aspect of the story, and a topic that is rarely even suggested in middle grade fiction.)

That said, I was happy mostly just to enjoy the very appealing and engaging voice of Jackson, and to follow his connection to his sister and his interactions with the too infrequently featured Crenshaw. When you are so good at the small and authentic it seems unnecessary to try to go big and timely, unless you're willing really to commit to that big issue. Indeed, I would have been happy to have taken a clue from the book cover and just sat Jackson and his friend on a park bench and let them talk about the world at large in a "My Dinner With Crenshaw" way. The One and Only Ivan could have joined them.

So, at least for me, it's beautifully written, it features a remarkably engaging hero, it at least introduces a timely topic, and it's a bit muddled in its intentions and tone. This is certainly an intriguing choice for a confident, ambitious younger reader.

(Please note that I received a free advance ecopy of this book without a review requirement, or any influence regarding review content should I choose to post a review. Apart from that I have no connection at all to either the author or the publisher of this book.)