by Tall Poppy Writer Orly Konig
There are books that touch you, get under your skin, and hang on tight for years. MEMOIRS OF AN IMAGINARY FRIEND is one of those books for me.
I read it back in 2014. My son was in elementary school at the time. Interestingly enough, he never had an imaginary friend. I did when I was young though, and, clearly still do (hey, I’m a writer!).
The narrator of the book is Budo, an imaginary friend. I feel in love with him on page one and alternated between smitten and heartbroken, anxious and hopeful the entire book. I’ve not dealt much with autism personally, but as a parent, the worries for your child’s safety and happiness are always present. For months after finishing this book, I couldn’t pull away from the school after dropping my son off without my hands shaking. I still can’t actually.
Everything about this book is brilliant – the unique narrator, the captivating voice, the topics it addresses.
About Orly
Orly Konig is an escapee from the corporate world where she spent roughly sixteen (cough) years working in the space industry. Now she spends her days chatting up imaginary friends, drinking entirely too much coffee, and negotiating writing space around two over-fed cats.
She is the founding president of the Women’s Fiction Writers Association and a quarterly contributor to Thinking Through our Fingers blog and Writers In The Storm blog.
Her debut women’s fiction, The Distance Home, released from Forge, May 2, 2017. Carousel Beach will be releasing May 2018.
