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The Book of Stolen Dreams (The Stolen Dreams Adventures #1)
Current price:
$18.99
Publication Date: May 2nd, 2023
Publisher:
Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
ISBN:
9781665922579
Pages:
384
Usually Ships in 1 to 5 Days
Description
An exhilarating, wondrous middle grade debut about a brother and sister on a quest that “swoops from thrilling to terrifying to heartwarming and back again” (BookPage) to defeat a tyrannical ruler and protect a magical book. “[W]ill appeal to readers of Kelly Barnhill and Lemony Snicket” (Publishers Weekly).
Rachel and Robert live a gray, dreary life under the rule of cruel and calculating Charles Malstain. That is, until one night, when their librarian father enlists their help to steal a forbidden book.
Before their father is captured, Rachel and Robert are given one mission: find the missing final page.
But to uncover the secrets of The Book of Stolen Dreams, the siblings must face darkness and combat many evils to be rewarded with the astonishing, magical truth about the book. Nevertheless, they resolve to do everything in their power to stop it from falling into Charles Malstain’s hands. For if it does, he could rule their world forever.
Praise for The Book of Stolen Dreams (The Stolen Dreams Adventures #1)
"With nods to both His Dark Materials and Lemony Snicket, the narrative spins a tale of good and evil, all the while interposing snippets of humor to keep things just a bit sardonic. As the siblings navigate the mystery of the book they have been given and learn its secret, they encounter new worlds and both brave and cowardly people. While an effervescent adventure, the story never loses sight of its timely theme: the essential need for a moral compass...[s]parkling and timely."
— Kirkus Reviews
"Farr’s beautifully crafted, thought-provoking story isn’t an easy-breezy read, but Farr is intimately acquainted with its stakes: The Book of Stolen Dreams was inspired by his own German Jewish family’s escape from Nazi Germany between 1935 and 1938. The novel grapples with tough, weighty questions: Is happiness possible under government oppression? When is a risk worthwhile? What do we owe our fellow citizens?
Farr’s characters experience fear and grief right alongside delight and wonder. As his omniscient narrator observes with the mix of hard-won acceptance, hope and love for humanity that echoes throughout The Book of Stolen Dreams, 'Such is life, my friend. There is no joy without accompanying sorrow. There is no despair so dark that a sliver of light cannot abate it.'"
— BookPage
"Farr’s action-packed adventure will keep you on your toes as readers get both Rachel’s and Robert’s points of view with whimsical narration...a hopeful tale of bravery and resilience."
— Booklist
"Alternating between the siblings’ perspectives, third-person narration breaks the fourth wall, leavening fittingly dark matter with humor and whimsical details that will appeal to readers of Kelly Barnhill and Lemony Snicket."
— Publishers Weekly