Through the Looking Glass Children's Book Reviews
Pingo
Illustrator: Brandon Dorman
Picture Book
For ages 4 to 7
Shadow Mountain, 2009 ISBN: 1606411098
Chad has an imaginary friend called Pingo, and together they have all kinds of delicious adventures battling ninjas, mixing magic potions, and turning Chad’s room into a zero gravity chamber. All is going well until the day when Chad starts to grow up. His friends tease him for having an imaginary friend, and Chad decides that “it’s time to stop pretending” that Pingo is real. Pingo is incensed by this. Chad expects him to just “disappear,” but Pingo has other ideas. With great determination Pingo does everything he can to make Chad’s life as difficult as possible.
Readers who have, or have had, an imaginary friend will love this story. Not only does this imaginary friend behave in a delightfully outrageous way, but he also manages to get what he wants- in the end. With a charmingly surprising ending, this is a picture book that readers of all ages will appreciate, and the vibrant and often funny artwork is sure to resonate with readers who
