The Dream Stealers by Stuart Beard

What worked:

Josh’s story is the most entertaining when he awakens in the middle of a forest with no idea how he gets there. He’s transported into a fantasy world where he immediately meets an unusual pirate driving a huge vehicle called The Marvellous Contraption. Zephaniah is a collector of oddities and he’s used his ship to explore different dimensions. They’re joined by a lizardman named Crumplehorn who agrees to help Josh return home. Crumplehorn is an amazing inventor and Zephaniah has unbridled enthusiasm and imagination so there’s no way they can be stopped.

Other sections of the book describe a malevolent character posing danger to young children everywhere. The Raggedy Man uses a bone-carved flute to mesmerize his targets and control his army of giant stag beetles, spiders, and other terrifying creatures. The author includes song lyrics the Raggedy Man sings to his victims as well as lyrics sung about him. These lines of poetry provide a different writing style to the story and a level of creepiness. An evil demon is scary enough but it’s even worse when he starts spouting rhyming verses. It makes it feel like he’s playing with the helpless characters so their demise is inevitable.

Young readers will enjoy the author’s sense of humor. Zephaniah’s positivity seems out of place in dire predicaments but it creates light-heartedness. His responses to threats are rarely what readers will expect. The Marvellous Contraption is an impressive vehicle but readers won’t know what strange things characters might find stored in boxes and compartments. Crumplehorn’s assistant is a robotic hedgehog named Norman who speaks like an English butler. Readers will be surprised when bananas prove to be effective weapons and who would expect to find a princess living in the middle of a swamp, or is it a marsh?

What didn’t work as well:

The plot covers multiple settings and they’re not clearly connected in the beginning. This is a problem as readers are trying to make sense of the events to understand what’s happening in the plot. The opening scenes describe a young girl being attacked by the Dream Stealer but it’s not necessary. The other scenarios, especially Josh’s story, clearly establish the threat and conflict.

The final verdict:

The author creates a fun-filled adventure that will appeal to many middle-grade readers. Zephaniah is the book’s highlight since his comments and actions are often out of the ordinary. While the plot’s conflict is resolved, readers should anticipate a sequel sometime in the future. I recommend you give this book a shot.