My Best Friend and Other Illusions

Charlie, a budding acrobat, is desperate to attend a gymnastics camp that will qualify her for a spot in the renowned travelling circus Circo Circo. But her mom can barely make ends meet and Charlie knows she must find a way to earn the money on her own.

The solution seems to come when the perfect gymnastics partner mysteriously appears and they can put on shows. There’s just one small thing though . . . this perfect partner is someone Charlie knows well. He’s Rudy, her imaginary childhood friend — only this time he’s real. The problem with imaginary friends is that they know things about you . . . things that can jeopardize not only Charlie’s acrobatic dreams, but also threaten to tear her family even farther apart.

This truthful and often funny story is the mark of a rising new voice in Canadian children’s literature, and a moving exploration of how to reconcile memory, family, forgiveness and the search for belonging.