Adventures of Beekle, The: The Unimaginary Friend
Written by Dan Santat
Narrated by Richmond Hoxie
4.5/5
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Currently unavailable
Currently unavailable
About this audiobook
This magical story begins on an island far away where an imaginary friend is born. He patiently waits his turn to be chosen by a real child, but when he is overlooked time and again, he sets off on an incredible journey to the bustling city, where he finally meets his perfect match and-at long last-is given his special name: Beekle.
New York Times bestselling and award-winning author and illustrator Dan Santat combines classic storytelling with breathtaking art, creating an unforgettable tale about friendship, imagination, and the courage to find one's place in the world.
Dan Santat
Dan Santat is a #1 New York Times bestselling author-illustrator of more than one hundred titles, which include The Adventures of Beekle: The Unimaginary Friend, which won the Randolph Caldecott Medal in 2015. He is also the creator of the Disney animated hit The Replacements. Dan lives in Southern California with his wife, two kids, and various pets. You can visit him online at www.dantat.com.
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Reviews for Adventures of Beekle, The
388 ratings34 reviews
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The illustrations in this book were done in pencil, crayon, watercolor, ink, and Adobe Photoshop. This book is about a little imaginary friend named Beekle who always dreamed of having a real friend but he never got picked by anybody, so he went off on his own adventure to find a real friend. He travels around the city in search a friend and finally finds a little girl. The little girl picks him as her imaginary friend and they go on many adventures together. This book is fantasy because imaginary friends aren't real, but the story line was realistic. This book would be appropriate for children ages kindergarten-third grade.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5I'm not the target market. That said, there are some picture books which would garner 5 stars from me, no question. In this case, the art was charming, but the story wasn't all that gripping. This is (from an adult perspective reading to please themself) more of a high 3, but I'm rounding up.
(Note: 5 stars = amazing, wonderful, 4 = very good book, 3 = decent read, 2 = disappointing, 1 = awful, just awful. I'm fairly good at picking for myself so end up with a lot of 4s). - Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Beekle is an imaginary friend who waits a long time to be chosen and meet his friend but sadly after waiting he is not chosen. So he sets upon his own adventure to find his friend. He ends up being found in a tree by a little girl and she names him Beekle and they take on the world together. This is a good fantasy because imaginary friends are in fact imaginary. I would use this for primary students. The illustrations are paint and charcoal textures scanned into photoshop.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Amusing. Didn't quite do it for me fully.
- Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5Note: This book was read as part of the upcoming, Books on Tap, once-per-month, summer event sponsored by our county library system and a local cidery, in which folks compete in answering questions about ten different books and ten different movies available through the library. While the winter events had no competing teams with anyone younger than high school students, the librarian's goal has clearly been to get the whole family to participate by selecting books and movies targeted at various age groups. Thus, this Caldicott Award winner is on the book list. As a former child (no, really) and formerly a father of a young child, I have read (and reread, and reread, and reread) my share of books aimed at young children. Fortunately, no matter how disjointed a book script can be, the best of these books always seem to have great illustrations and a reasonable point to be made for the child's benefit. In this case, those two benefits were required for overcoming its story line. I feel this must have been a weak year for Caldicott Award nominees.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Adventures of Beekle: The Unimaginary Friend by Dan Santat was a artist award winning book about Beekle an imaginary friend who didn't have a friend. He looked all over the city for a friend but could not find one, when he was about to give up, he met a little girl who wanted to be his friend. The moral was sometime things come when you stop looking.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5This fantasy fiction contains beautiful illustrations in mixed media (a little of everything), and follows an imaginary friend who isn't yet imagined as he searches for his special friend who will name him and bring him to real life.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Born "on an island far away where imaginary friends were created," Beekle waited to be claimed by a child out in the real world. Eventually, growing tired of remaining alone, he did the unimaginable, setting out on a voyage to find his child-friend. Dismayed at his first glimpses of the real world - so much grayer and less vibrant than the land of his birth - where no one stopped to hear the music, and "everyone needed naptime," Beekle ends up at the top of a tree, still alone. Still alone, that is, until a young girl named Alice arrives, and the two are drawn irresistibly together. Finally, Beekle has found his friend - and himself...The winner of the Caldecott Medal in 2015, The Adventures of Beekle pairs an engaging tale of a quest for self and connection, with gorgeous illustrations that range from the vibrantly colorful to the subtly gray. The depiction of Beekle's home island is just lovely - intensely colorful, but not garish - but the grayer scenes in the real world also have their charm. The use of varying shades of brown, gray and black, in the city scenes, is marvelously well done - as is the observation that people on the subway need a nap! (many a New Yorker can identify with that...) Perhaps my favorite scenes, visually speaking, were of the tree, with its reddish, star-shaped leaves, and children climbing all over its branches. Santat certainly displays his range here, and the result is a visual delight! The story is equally appealing, capturing Beekle's sadness at being alone, and joy at finding a friend.Read together with two other books about imaginary friends - Imaginary Fred and Leo: A Ghost Story - I am struck by the common threads in the three stories. The sense of longing for an other two whom one can connect, the ways in which this longing is tied to a sense of self - these themes are explored in all three books. That said, of the three, The Adventures of Beekle was my favorite.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Loved the circular ending and end papers!
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Definitely one of my favorites.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Beekle is someone that loves to imagine that he has a friend. He is under water imaging that he undersea friends are being captured so they would go and find friends. Beekle imagine the real world is a perfect pict
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Beekle is the story of an imaginary creature who goes on a quest to find his friend, so that he can fill his purpose to be their imaginary friend. Everywhere he goes, all the kids already have one and don't see him, until one day when a little girl notices him up in a tree and they become fast friends.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5An imaginary friend seeks a human friend. Together they do the unimaginable!
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5This is a fantasy story about a imaginary friend who was born on an island far away waiting to be imagined by a child. He waited for many days, and hoped to be picked and given a name. However, no child ever thought of him. So instead of waiting he travels far to go into the "real world" to look for the child who would imagine him. He looked for a very long time but couldn't find someone, so he waited in a tree. But one day a child came to the tree and saw him. They were a bit awkward at first, but after a short time they realized they were the perfect friends for each other- she even named him Beekle. Together they imagined the unimaginable.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5This is a a great fantasy book about an imaginary friend waiting to become a friend to a human. When no one comes to take him he does the unimaginable and travels to the real world in search of a friend. He searches everywhere. He finally climbs to the top of a tree hoping to see his friend. Finally a little girl arrives and calls out to him. At first they don't know what to do, but then they do the unimaginable together.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Hello! I am Beekle. I am your imaginary friend.The Adventures of Beekle: The Unimaginary Friend by Dan Santat is a picture book about a marshmallow shaped imaginary creature who wants nothing more than to be paired with a child.But poor Beekle sits and sits waiting for someone to imagine him. Everyone else seems to find a home and he's still there, waiting. What's an unimaginary friend to do?Simple.He takes matters in his own hands. If a child won't imagine him, then he will go introduce himself to potential children.It's a good message to encourage children to try things out themselves, rather than always waiting things to be done for them.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5This book is very sweet and tells a story of making friends. I really liked the contrasting colors in this books illustrations and how it well it compliments the story.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Beekle lives on an island but journeys far away in hopes of meeting his imaginary friend. He strikes up a friendship and lives happily ever after. Illustrations are quite nice and are varied.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Most adorable book about making friends with your imaginary friend! Loved the illustrations.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5I gave this book 4 stars just for the rich illustrations alone. The story is cut about an imaginary friend that goes off to a big city to find a real child to be friends with. I could use this book as a mentor sentences book for a grammar lesson. I think my class would love it.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Caldecott Winner 2015Beautiful illustrations, lovely story
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5This is a cute book with fun illustrations. I'm not sure I really understood the plot or overarching theme of the book, though.It would be fun to read this out loud to students and talk about friendship.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Adventures of Beekle is a beautifully illustrated picture book about the importance of friendship. The artwork in the text takes center stage as Beekle embarks on an adventure in search of his unimaginary friend. A really lovely story that primary students will enjoy for it's heart-warming conclusion and intermediate students will love for the riveting illustrations.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5This modern fantasy is about an unimaginary friend who hasn't been imagined yet, so he can't leave the place where all of the imaginary friends leave. Once everyone is gone, he decides to go on a journey and find his friend for himself. The unimaginary friend searches and searches and almost loses total hope, however eventually after searching he finally finds her, and he is names Beekle. This heartwarming tale ends with them being imaginary friends forever.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Finally had the opportunity to read this delightful, touching book.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5This is such a great story and I love the illustrations! Beekle comes from a place far away where imaginary friends are born. He waits and waits, but no friend imagines him. Beekle decides to set out on his own and meets his perfect match. She gives him a name and he helps her be more social.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Beautifully illustrated tale about an imaginary friend who leaves his island home for the city in order to find his one true pal, rather than wait around to be chosen. This book tells a lot with the use of color, from the drab tones of the adult urban world, to the bright, imaginative world of children.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Absolutely wonderful story about finding a new friend.
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Lovely art. The story was a little too short and predictable to appreciate.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5A charming story with imaginative art about an imaginary friend's journey to find their friend. Lovely with themes of loneliness, bravery, hope, determination, and friendship.Suitable for ages 4 to 8.