I found out about this book in The Novel Cure-the book that claims to have a novel that will cure whatever it is that ails you. Unless it's cancer. Or diabetes, or really any other ailment or sickness that is real and not strictly an emotional or imagined affliction. So I can't even remember what this book promised to cure now that I think about it, it must've been something like "Believing in magic" or "Losing the faith" something along those lines. And technically, the book is so short I think it's actually a novella or short story and NOT a novel, so if we ARE gonna be technical this noveLLA doesn't belong in the "NOVEL Cure" since it's not actually a novel! But I will excuse that part for now.It's basically a story about a small town family, living in a small mining town in Australia, dealing with the usual small town drama; gossip, judgmental people, people being afraid of differences and change. That sort of thing. In one particular family, a little girl has two imaginary friends and one day...they "disappear." This happens at the same time that the patriarch of the family, Rex Williamson, is accused of "ratting" on a man's property (Which is basically the equivalent of stealing) and the whole small town has turned against him. What follows is the story of a family and whole town putting aside their differences, personal judgements and beliefs and coming together to do what they can to help a little girl. It's a pretty cute story, it's so short that it's not the sort of deal where you fall in love with the characters, but even tho it's a quick read it sure pulls at the heart strings. I was a little confused at the end... and a tad bit throughout the entire thing but I may have just been over thinking it all. The little girl with the two imaginary friends (Pobby and Dingan) is 9 years old. In my mind, I couldn't help but think...9 years old?? Isn't that a bit old? This isn't 4, 5 even 6 years old this is NINE years. That's 4th grade for crying out loud! I couldn't help but feel like if a 9 year old girl has imaginary friends that persist beyond an afternoon's playing time then that imaginary friend is most likely be there to stay. So my cynical mind came to the conclusion that the little girl must've had some sort of neurological disorder or disease. (view spoiler)[ Had she lived I may have been able to dismiss it all as some magical little story-which I think was what Ben Rice actually intended. He set it up so we are left to question the possibility of Pobby and Dingan's existence being in some way real. But the fact that even after Pobby and Dingan's "dead bodies" are supposedly found via a trail of unexplained hints Kellyanne doesn't get well, that makes me look beyond the "broken heart" and emotional anguish as potential causes for Kellyanne's decline and death. People don't die of broken hearts. She basically withered away to nothing, first losing all appetite, energy and color, then losing weight and life until she literally lost her life. Poor lil thing. All of that sounds symptomatic of cancer or else something else like that, especially when death is the final outcome. Mix that in with the fact that she was seeing things for a long duration of time...I'd say she had some tumor on her brain that was messing with her neurological functions until it eventually killed her. (hide spoiler)]
In the opal-mining region of Australia, little Kellyanne lives with her dad, her big brother Ashmol, and her imaginary friends, Pobby and Dingan. Ashmol is constantly teasing his little sister about how Pobby and Dingan aren't real and telling her to grow up. He is convinced that his sister is just being a baby who refuses to grow out of her imaginary friend stage. However one day, when Ashmol and Kellyanne's father is suspected of a crime that he didn't commit, and Pobby and Dingan go missing, Ashmol has no choice but to learn to believe in his sister's invisible friends so he can find them before Kellyanne wastes away from grief and clear his father's name.This is one of the saddest, sweetest, most heartbreaking books I have ever read. As a child, I didn't have imaginary friends. Kellyanne's relationship with Pobby and Dingan made me really wish that I had. This girl is just the cutest thing. She has these adorable conversations with them and plays games with them. She constantly tries to convince Ashmol to join her, but he always brushes her off and makes fun of her. He cannot understand how his sister is so convinced that Pobby and Dingan are real, and at first I wasn't convinced that they were real either. But when the two imaginary friends disappear, little Kellyanne is devastated and falls ill. Her condition gets progressively worse each day that they remain missing. By this point, Ashmol will do anything to save his sister--even believe in what he can't see. As Ashmol slowly realizes that Pobby and Dingan are real because Kellyanne believes that they are, so did I. By the end of the novella, I wholeheartedly believed in Pobby and Dingan. I have to warn you, the ending is not a particularly happy one. It left me dangerously close to tears. But I have absolutely no regrets. Seeing Ashmol begin to believe reminded me of Peter Pan. The mantra that I kept hearing in my head was "I do believe in imaginary friends, I do, I do." I loved seeing him become less cynical and more open minded, and was reminded of the wise words of one of my favorite wizards: "Of course it is happening inside your head...but why on earth should that mean that it is not real?”My three-year-old brother has an imaginary friend he calls Michael, and, needless to say, I will never again belittle his friendship with him. All in all, this was a beautiful gem of a book, and I recommend it to absolutely everyone.
Do You like book Pobby And Dingan (2001)?
If I had to use just one word to describe this book, it would be "puzzling." My introduction to it came from one of my favorite songs, "Pobby to Dingan," by the Japanese rock/ska/punk band Shaka Labbits. Even without a translation, the song conveys a subtle sense of drama, mystery and poignant determination that prompts a desire to know its story. So when I dug into the song's title and discovered the book, you know I had to read it. Though its atmosphere is strange and often deeply affecting, I'm not certain what the author was trying to say with it - or even if he knew. It's entirely within the Naturalistic rather than Romantic school of literature - journalistic in its lack of a choices-driven plot and told in an oddly detached voice, like a story told on a front porch about events from the distant past. It chronicles a slow downward spiral that seems implausible, a bit cruel to the main character, and ultimately pointless. The only theme I can distill from the story is perhaps "imagination is as real as truth." Not necessarily a view with which I agree philosophically, but again, it's so vaguely presented that you have to wonder whether that was Rice's actual point.I would only recommend it as a curiosity, mostly for its slice-of-life look at Aussie opal miners. And as a backdrop for Uki and the boys' great little song, of course... .
—Greg
I would never have heard of this book if I hadn't gone to a fancy pants lunch at The Ivy's sister restaurant Sheekey's in 2001 with author David Lodge, a literary agent, a PR guy and a website guy :) It was my prize for winning a 'First Chapter' competition judged by the brilliant author David Lodge (although I hadn't heard of him before, so as my friend pointed out when I was nervous beforehand, he liked me before I heard of him ergo I win)...quite a surreal experience but the literary agent (from Curtis Brown if memory serves) told us about this little book, Pobby & Dingan, and how it was technically too short to be published as a novel; however it was so completely perfect as it was, that they did :) It is a beautiful sweet story...very moving...recommend it to anyone.
—Katrina
Kellyanne has two imaginary friends, Pobby and Dingnan. Ashmol, Kellanne's brother, thinks she should just grow up and forget about her friends. One day Kellyanne's father takes her friends to work in his opal mine with him. When he returns home, she asks where they are. Horrors!! They are lost and presumed dead.Kellyanne starts to wither away from heart sickness and worry. Ashmol concerned for his sister rounds up the whole town to look and try to find his sister's imaginary friends. Ashmol turns his whole attitude around and believes in Pobby and Dingan. Imagine a whole town searching for two imaginary friends :)A charming story
—Dana
