Ebony-Grace lets her forceful imagination take over reality, and the conflict between the two spaces—her “imagination location” and the material world she inhabits—forms one of the story’s key themes. For most of the book, Ebony-Grace’s imagination and reality are irreconcilable, with Ebony-Grace using the former to control the latter as a means of coping with life changes and challenges. It’s like they’re nations at war, and only one country can win. On the plane to New York City, Ebony-Grace says, “[I] search all around my mind—my ‘imagination location,’ as Granddaddy calls it—for a new name for this planet” (12). Though she’s not even there yet, she’s already twisting New York into her outer space drama. It becomes “Planet No Joke City,” her dad turns into “the imperious King Sirius Julius” (16), and the kids in the neighborhood are “his nefarious minions” (27). Save for Bianca, Ebony-Grace makes New York City and the people in it her enemy. By doing so, she turns Bianca against her.

The children can be mean to her—Calvin calls her “ugly,” and Monqiue labels her an “ice cream sandwich”—but Ebony-Grace isn’t a victim. Her imagination can make her unkind and judgmental. She repeatedly refers to the Nine Flavas as “minionettes,” even though Bianca is a member, they’re her friends, and the group tries to include Ebony-Grace.