Imaginary Enemy

by Julie Gonzalez

Jane White goes by the pen name Gabriel when she writes letters to Bubba, her imaginary enemy. She’s been writing to Bubba (short for Beelzebub) since second grade, blaming him every time something in her life goes wrong. It’s never her fault! She doesn’t want to admit that her impetuous behavior and smart-mouthed comments often land her in trouble. And now that she’s a teenager, Jane’s slacker ways exude an I-don’tcare attitude. But Jane does care. She cares about fitting in at school; she cares that Sharp deMichael and his brothers next door think of her as normal and start excluding her from their offbeat plans; and she definitely cares the day she receives a letter from Bubba. How can an imaginary enemy write back? Just as the time comes for Jane to face her lifelong foe–she must also decide whether or not to assume responsibility for her actions.


From the Hardcover edition.

Genres: Young Adult, Realistic Fiction, Middle Grade, Romance, Teen

256 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2008

Reviews

[Sadgurl_13 · Rating 5 out of 5]

i love that she ends up with the boy next door :)sharp is sexy =)

[Nancy · Rating 5 out of 5]

You. MUST. Read. This. Book.

I’m serious. I’m so in love with this book that directly after finishing it, I picked it back up and started re-reading from the first page. (What can I say? I had a lot of time on my hands.) Even the beginning was good, which is hard to say for most books I read. It has an original take, and its structured like each chapter is for a certain age (from elementary to high school) which makes it so good.

Jane’s been writing to Bubba, her imaginary enemy, since elementary school. Bubba is the one who’s constantly getting Jane into trouble—it’s not Jane’s fault if Bubba makes her get bad grades or do terrible things like put dish-washing soap into the neighbor’s lily ponds. One day, however, she receives a letter from Bubba, who claims that he’s sick of taking responsibilities for Jane. How can an imaginary friend exist? And isn’t it just about time that Jane stop blaming her problems on others, but herself?

Despite her many faults, Jane is charming, witty, smart and dumb at the same time, and laugh out loud hilarious. If I were ever invited to one of those dinner parties where you had to take a fictional friend along, Jane would be my choice. She’ll most likely end up ruining the dinner party with her antics and attitude, but at least I’d be amused the entire time. The book is completely relatable, yet completely outrageous at times, but that balance is what makes it so good. Most of the time, I find myself nodding in agreement, and other times, I’m thinking, “Damn, I’m so glad I’m not Jane!” or “Uh oh. This doesn’t look so good,” when I know Jane’s about to do something stupid. In the end though, it’s also a balance of oh, I love and hate this character at the same time. Because you’ll hate Jane for being such a brat and a troublemaker, but love her for her wit and how she has matured in the end. It’s definitely one of the most entertaining and delightful reads I’ve had in a long time.

[Koelbel TAB · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really really enjoyed this book. And I loved learning and growing up with all the characters including the narrator, Jane. The plot of the story is about a girl writing note to her imaginary enemy, who she blames all of her problems on. It is about coming of age and accepting responsibility and knowing when you did wrong. Jane and her crazy family reminds me much of mine and their eccentric neighbors sound fantastic! The story is very interesting and I love the unexpected turn when her imaginary enemy, Bubba, writes back. The whole book is filled with interesting dialog between characters and is also always left me intrigued and wanting more. The end is great as well the prank Jane and her two neighbors, Chord and Sharp, play on their younger sisters, Harmony and Carmella. Over all a great book that is very sweet and cute.

[Erin Sterling · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jane writes a letter to an imaginary enemy Bubba every time something goes wrong in her life, usually because of her impetuous and smart-alecky behavior. She likes to act as if she doesn't care what people think of her, but she actually does care. Sometimes you're rooting for her, like when she raises a flag at school of a not favorable portrait of a boy who insulted her best friend, and sometimes you just want to give her a push because you know she's capable. There's a little bit of her in all of us and it's what makes the book fun.

[Asma Konj · Rating 5 out of 5]

The only thing I didn’t like about this book was that it ended 😭😭 as I was nearing the end of the book I felt such a sense of dread. I felt like I was a part of Jane’s life, I wanted to experience more of her life. I loved that the author kept her snarky attitude till the end of the book (unlike some contemporary novels), I loved how she knew all her faults and tried (failed sometimes) to fix it. I’ve never really read about a ‘lazy’ main character, so seeing her procrastinating on work made it sooo much more relatable. Seeing her grow up from 6 yrs old —>19 made me feel like I was her sister 😭 it felt like I was growing up with her.

NOT ONLY THAT BUT THE WRITING WAS SOOOO AMAZINGGGG I LOVED EVERYTHINGGGG , ugh I could ramble about this book for FOREVER the author did such an amazing job, I will forever recommend this book to everyone!!!!!!

[Jennifer Wardrip · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reviewed by Sally Kruger aka "Readingjunky" for TeensReadToo.com

Looking for a fun book? This one is for you. Many people grow up having had at least one imaginary friend. Jane White has an imaginary enemy.

It all started in second grade when Jane began writing to Bubba. Whenever life would throw her a curve ball to upset her or embarrass her, she would sit down and write Bubba a letter to complain. Bubba was always there to collect the blame or abuse Jane tossed in his direction. Imagine her surprise when one day she received a letter addressed to her from Bubba.

Named after an eccentric aunt, Jane hates her name, and finds herself constantly battling her strange family and friends. There is the half-brother who suddenly decides to leave his mother's house and move in with Jane's family. There are younger siblings who constantly annoy Jane. The family's father figure suffers a mid-life meltdown only to quit his job and begin a new career. Add to all that a bunch of odd neighbors who home-school their children and “collect” sounds. Jane's problems are actually quite typical, but her creative way of dealing with them makes her story well worth reading.

Author Julie Gonzalez expertly combines all this in a fast-paced story that will hold the attention of middle grade and teen readers, as well as any grownup who remembers their own roller-coaster ride to adulthood. This comic novel is a fine addition to any individual or library collection.

[Lily · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was amazing! I read it in one day! I was home during Christmas vacation. Before I left for home, I checked this book (along with 4 others) from the school library. This one, by far, was the best! The other four I ended up not reading since this one was so addictive! I've just recently checked it out again so that i can read it once more. It was written wonderfully; it painted a picture in my mind. All of the questions were wrapped up at the end, and it was full of life-lessons. Not only that, but there were little specks of mini-romances, too, with people you really wanted to like each other...and people you didn't. Such as, in Harry Potter, everybody wants Ron and Hermione to go out, but not Harry and Hermione since that would be just weird.


So, please, if you have any sense in your body, CHECK OUT THIS BOOK! Better yet, buy it! its totally worth it!

[Goldie Marie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read the first half of this during my shift at work where I picked it up. I LOVED it. The concept of the whole book is fa nominally original and creative. You often read books where the character leaves ou chunks of the history and has flashbacks, not the case here you read and get all the info from the very beginning, which I loved! I couldn't get over Janes' personality, most authors make their characters into a bright, over-achieving, smart-ass character, but not Jane. She is slightly dim-witted in her own right and has little or nearly no initiative witch is exactly what makes this such a wonderful read.

[Colin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Throughout the book Jane has a very slacker does not care attitude she blames all of her problems on her imaginary enemy and takes very little to no responsibility in her life. As the book progresses she starts to learn and accept her and her family's problems. When her imaginary enemy starts to write back this expands even further on this, the imaginary enemy writes her back at starts explain what what she has been blaming him for. Toward the end of the book Jane starts to reflect more heavily on her life decisions and begins to fix her and her family's problems. I made a text to self connection with the book to Jane because i also struggle with slacking off in and out of school.

[Extreme · Rating 3 out of 5]

A simple and light read sprinkled with salt. There are many moments when I cringe or shake my head at some of Jane's over-the-top decisions but there are also times when I want to give her high-fives. Though I do not like Jane much, I as a fellow slacker and occasional troublemaker can relate to her. In addition, Elliot and the DeMichaels were a joy to read about. Though Bubba's reply was long-awaited, I was satisfied with the outcome and the ending.

[Megan · Rating 3 out of 5]

For me this was more of a 2.5. There were funny moments and promising parts, but I'll admit that I was underwhelmed. Perhaps this was because the book was a lot different than I expected. For instance, I didn't anticipate such a heavy emphasis on her younger years. This might mean that this book was just not right for me rather than that there were flaws with the book itself.

[Sandra McLeod · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved the idea of the imaginary enemy--I thought this was quite an original concept. I also loved the quirky family next door with their passion for music, and I loved Jane's friend Emma. I think Jane's character could have been more fully developed, and some of the plotting seemed a bit contrived, but overall it was a fun read.

[Marlene Scholfield · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this book... I could totally relate to the main character Jane and writing to her imaginary enemy. I think I spent a lot of time talking to my teddy about all the wrongs that had been done to me as a child. I may have been the main character throughout my childhood... loved this book it was fun to read and the ending threw me for a loop. Thanks for writing this!

[Monica · Rating 3 out of 5]

Strange structure. Follows one girl from childhood to eleventh grade. I think its probably best for middle school students.

I think this could work for fans of Stargirl. Its got the same kind of light touch.

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good story about the struggle through life through the eyes of a little girl, Jane. I really connected with the problems she faced and the love she found. Simple writing and story, but, sometimes, that's exactly what you need.

[Natalie · Rating 2 out of 5]

While some young adult fiction contains themes that can apply to older generations, this book is not one of them. I would say if you've graduated high school then you've probably moved beyond the age where anything you can learn from this book would be applicable. A mediocre read for youngsters.

[Charlotte · Rating 5 out of 5]

I feel like the girl in this book. Always getting in trouble, and getting used to it lol. This book is great and super funny, I didn't think it was going to be that good, but I was wrongm, because it's one of my favorites :)

[Dolores Zendejas · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed reading this book. It's funny. Jane is an interesting character. It is about Jane White, who has to be interesting and normal to counteract her boring name. She ends up learning about herself and about others.

[Jessica B · Rating 1 out of 5]

Main character was a brat, there was am elaborate and dumb prank that the reader's not in on which only causes confusion, the first half of the book was recaps and flashbacks, stiff writing, didn't highlight the interesting aspects of the book nearly enough. This book was a mess.

[Ayah Abdul-Rauf · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book actually turned me off to reading entirely for about a year. And I'm a writer. To this day, it is among the worse books I've ever read. The most interesting thing about this book is that it has a male character named "Sharp."

[Andreea Cretu · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's like she was exposed to the perfect childhood: musical neighbors, awesome family, friends. When I read Imaginary Enemy, I wanted to trade places with Jane. I wanted to experience her life. I loved this book, really.

[Tamara]

Sucked in by the cover.

[Grace Hong · Rating 4 out of 5]

to be nice to your imaginary enemy.

[Katie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Really not fond of the protagonist and the resolution was clear by page two.

[Jerjonji · Rating 2 out of 5]

Third book by a Delacorte first time writer of YA and while I found the story worth while- it is far from what I write about. Is that a good or bad sign? I don't know!

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought it was a worthwile book. Some parts I love and could not put the book down. But at times I hated it.

[Avi · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked this book for it is very detailed, descriptive, and hilarious.

[Elizabeth]

Wonderful book. It hits the spot after reading a bunch of deep and mindful books...:)

[Sana · Rating 3 out of 5]

Predictable, but cute.

[Ollie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely love this book! Don't judge by the cover..