I’ve been a fan of Chris O’Dowd for years and have only been able to see one episode of the television series this book is based upon. The book is a fun story of a young Irish boy, Martin, who is bored and determines that he needs an imaginary friend (IF) in addition to his realsie friend (who is busy all summer on the family farm.
Martin is cursed with three older nasty sisters who like to make his life miserable, so he is looking for some male companion. The road to friendship is paved with nettles (unless you take the primrose path) and Martin ends up wondering why he thought an IF would be a good idea. He eventually ends up with a companionable sort of IF. Along the way, he has to deal with mean sisters, bullies, crazy IF stuff, and did I mention mean sisters? As I am a sister myself, I can affirm that some are not mean, but I had two older sisters who confirm the opposite.
The book is written in an amusing style that should appeal to children 10 and older. Some of the humor (especially in the footnotes) may sail over their heads. I think it was also amusing for adults who can remember what it was like to be a child or maybe just those who like Chris O’Dowd’s style of humor.
I received a complimentary copy of this book via the publisher.
