Just Imagine

by Pat Lowery Collins

Mary Francis’s world is split in two when her father loses his job in California during the Great Depression and finds another one in Hardenville, Massachusetts. Unwilling to give up her dreams of a film career for her son, Leland, Mary Francis’s mother refuses to leave their home in Beverly Hills. So, Mary Francis, her father, and grandmother go on to New England without them. Determined to keep an eye on the other half of her family, Mary Francis works on her “gift,” the ability to have “out-of-body” experiences. She hopes to get so good at it that she’ll be able to “travel” to California to check on her mother and Leland. While Mary Francis practices her developing talent, her parents become more estranged, and she begins to fear they’ll never all be living in the same place again.
Quirky but believable characters and a look at the early days of the movie industry send this story off in funny, poignant, and unexpected directions.

Genres: Historical Fiction

224 pages, Hardcover

First published March 26, 2001

About the author

Pat Lowery Collins is the author of many acclaimed novels and picture books. She was inspired to write HIDDEN VOICES when she learned that Antonio Vivaldi wrote countless concertos to showcase the talents of orphan girls — and snare husbands for a lucky few. She lives in Gloucester, Massachusetts.

Reviews

[Charlie K. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Just Imagine, by Pat Lowery Collions, tells the likeable tale of young Mary Francis during the Great Depression. Mary Francis has a unique gift which allows her spirit to leave her body and travel anywhere in the world. She hopes to find it useful when she along with her father and grandmother leave for New England when a job offer strikes. Her little brother and mother stay in their former home to pursue an acting career, which provides many struggles for our protagonist, who is split between two worlds.

This novel is has quirky characters and a (mostly) realistic plotline. The tale provides some background on the time period, plus interesting bits of 30’s cinema trivia. You can’t help but feel Mary Francis’s pain in the separation from her charming younger brother.

Personally, I would have preferred the exclusion of Mary Francis’s unusual talent. In addition, the story felt unrealistically rushed at the end, but sluggish during the rest of book. I think it needed about ten more pages to fully flush out the end out. Overall, Just Imagine was forgettable, just another ticket to passing time. But perhaps anyone with a particular interest in stories with paranormal events would enjoy it more.

[Miss Amanda · Rating 2 out of 5]

gr 6-8 216pgs


Great Depression, Hollywood and NYC. 12 year old Mary Francis feels like she is being torn in two when her father takes a job in NY and her mother decides to stay with her younger brother and work on his acting career. Mary Francis longs for the ability (but doesn't seem to have it) to travel out of her body and visit her mother and brother. As time passes, Mary Francis wonders if her family's separate will become permanent or if there's some way she can reunite them.

Has some information about the time period, but the focus of the story is the family being separated.

[Krista the Krazy Kataloguer · Rating 3 out of 5]

This story, which took place during the Depression, was well-done in its depiction of a family split apart, physically as well as by its goals. I liked the period detail and the characters. However, I'm not sure what purpose the "out-of-body" experiences served, except maybe to show the main character that she couldn't rely on supernatural fixes to her problems. I'd have given the book 4 stars except for that. Interesting nonetheless, and recommended for its depiction of life during the Depression.

[Koqua · Rating 3 out of 5]

this book was okay so far. i just started so i hope it gets better as i continue to read.