Crenshaw

Starred review from June 22, 2015
Although he is “not an imaginary friend kind of guy,” rising fifth-grader Jackson recognizes Crenshaw immediately. The cat, who walks on two legs and likes purple jellybeans, first appeared to Jackson three years ago when his family was living in their van. Although life has been stable since then, Jackson notices “Big piles of bills. Parents whispering. Parents arguing. Stuff getting sold.” When he asks his parents if they have “a plan for making everything okay,” they respond with evasive answers like “maybe they could plant a money tree in the back yard.” Newbery Medalist Applegate (The One and Only Ivan) poignantly conveys Jackson’s memory of hunger and homelessness and his realization that both threaten his family again. Certain that he has outgrown Crenshaw, Jackson feels both dismay and wonder that his friend has returned, with his playful, attention-getting antics (taking bubble baths, doing cartwheels and handstands) and thought-provoking answers to Jackson’s questions. This accessible and moving novel demonstrates how the creative resilience of a child’s mind can soften difficult situations, while exploring the intersection of imagination and truth. Ages 10–14. Agent: Elena Giovinazzo, Pippin Properties.

July 15, 2015
Applegate tackles homelessness in her first novel since 2013 Newbery winner The One and Only Ivan. Hunger is a constant for soon-to-be fifth-grader Jackson and his family, and the accompanying dizziness may be why his imaginary friend is back. A giant cat named Crenshaw first appeared after Jackson finished first grade, when his parents moved the family into their minivan for several months. Now they're facing eviction again, and Jackson's afraid that he won't be going to school next year with his friend Marisol. When Crenshaw shows up on a surfboard, Jackson, an aspiring scientist who likes facts, wonders whether Crenshaw is real or a figment of his imagination. Jackson's first-person narrative moves from the present day, when he wishes that his parents understood that he's old enough to hear the truth about the family's finances, to the first time they were homeless and back to the present. The structure allows readers access to the slow buildup of Jackson's panic and his need for a friend and stability in his life. Crenshaw tells Jackson that "Imaginary friends don't come of their own volition. We are invited. We stay as long as we're needed." The cat's voice, with its adult tone, is the conduit for the novel's lessons: "You need to tell the truth, my friend....To the person who matters most of all." Though the lessons weigh more heavily than in The One and Only Ivan, a potential disappointment to its fans, the story is nevertheless a somberly affecting one. (Fiction. 7-11)

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Starred review from August 1, 2015

Gr 4-6-In her first novel since the Newbery-winning The One and Only Ivan (HarperCollins, 2012), Applegate tells the story of a 10-year-old boy whose imaginary friend helps him cope with a family crisis. Jackson, his parents, and his five-year-old sister once again are staring down the barrel of an impending eviction notice. What frustrates Jackson isn't just the lack of money: it's his artistically minded parents' tendency to gloss over their woes with humor and cheer rather than acknowledging the reality of their situation. It's understandably a shock to Jackson when an old friend reappears: Crenshaw, a seven-foot-tall talking cat, who first came into his life several years ago when the boy and his family were living out of their car shortly after his father was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. Skeptical Jackson tries to dismiss Crenshaw as a figment of his imagination, but the cat's words of wisdom start to resonate with him. Employing sparse but elegant prose, Applegate has crafted an authentic protagonist whose self-possession and maturity conceal relatable vulnerability and fears. While sardonic Crenshaw may not be the warm and cuddly imaginary friend readers are expecting, he's the companion that Jackson truly needs as he begins to realize that he doesn't need to carry the weight of the world upon his shoulders. Though the ending wraps up a shade too neatly, overall, children will appreciate this heartbreaking novel. VERDICT A compelling and unflinchingly honest treatment of a difficult topic.-Mahnaz Dar, School Library Journal

Copyright 2015 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

September 1, 2015
Grades 3-6 Soon-to-be fifth-grader Jackson goes for facts and sciencethings that are real and trueand having a giant, talking cat around doesn't fit the bill. It has been years since his imaginary feline friend Crenshaw was on the scene, and Jackson can't figure out why he is back or how to make him go away. It soon becomes apparent that all is not well in Jackson's home. Though he has a loving family, money is tight. Jackson can't help remembering back to when they had to live in a minivanthat was when he first met Crenshawand he fears that might happen once again. Newbery winner Applegate (The One and Only Ivan, 2012) uses gentle humor, embodied by Crenshaw, to explore the topic of homelessness. Jackson's anxiety is central to the narrative, and his concerns will resonate with readers who have been in stressful situations. Though the story is weighty, it is a quick read that encourages people of all ages to be honest with one another and value family and friends (real and imaginary!).(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2015, American Library Association.)

Starred review from September 1, 2015
Jackson is a scientist, a skeptic, and nobody's fool. He's the resilient fifth-grader (the most grown-up one in the house ) in a dreamy, overwhelmed family that has fallen on hard times. But sometimes even the hyper-competent need help, and when Jackson's family faces homelessness once more, his former imaginary friend, a giant cat named Crenshaw who's visible only to Jackson, makes a reappearance. Crenshaw is neither cute nor obviously supportive. He takes bubble baths, constantly asks for purple jelly beans, and makes gnomic pronouncements ( You need to tell the truth, my friendTo the person who matters most of all ). Jackson tries to banish him, but Crenshaw insists that he has been summoned. Applegate walks a tightrope through this whole robustly sweet narrative. Crenshaw is both real and imaginary. Jackson's family is loving, optimistic, and functional in its way, but the tenuousness of the family's situation and Jackson's lack of control over his own fate are stressful. Were we going to have enough to eat tomorrow?Were we going to be able to pay the rent?Would I go to the same school in the fall?Would it [homelessness] happen again? The tone is warm and, occasionally, quirkily funny, but it doesn't sugarcoat the effects of hunger and vulnerability. This novel adds a middle-grade perspective to the literature of imaginary friends and paints a convincing and compassionate portrait of a social classthe working poorunderrepresented in children's books. sarah ellis

(Copyright 2015 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)