Dream Rescuers

Volume XXVIII / Issue 29 - April 1 / 2022
Dream Rescuers
Dream Rescuers
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Dream Rescuers

Author: 
Jennifer Lloyd
Illustrated by: 
Eden Cooke
Vancouver, BC: Simply Read Books, 2021
82 pp., hardcover, $21.95
ISBN: 
9781927018927
Grades: 
Grades 2-4
Ages: 
Ages 7-9
Review by: 
Karen Rankin
1
Excerpt: 

“Dream rescuers fly down to the houses of human children. They help children who are having nightmares. They solve their dreams for them, so that they can sleep peacefully again,” explained Oscar.

“Why do Dream Rescuers have to solve the children’s dreams?” asked Mighty. “Why don’t they just wake them up instead?”

“It’s not that simple. If you just wake up the children, the next time they sleep, they will have the same nightmare all over again. You have to fix it for them, so their nightmares will go away,” answered Oscar.

“How do Dream Rescuers get into a child’s dream to fix it?” asked Ralph.

“Did you know that dreams are really giant bubbles? The bubbles float above humans’ heads while they’re sleeping,” explained Oscar.

“I never saw any floating bubbles when I was trying to do tooth pick-ups,” said Ruby.

“That’s because you weren’t wearing Dream Rescuer goggles.”

Oscar went to a cupboard and pulled out a pair of funny looking glasses with stretchable bands attached.

“Awesome! Can I try on a pair?” asked Ralph.

“Yes, of course,” Oscar said. He opened the cupboard wider. There, in extremely neat rows, sat dozens of Dream Rescuer goggles. Oscar picked out two more.

Mighty pushed in front and took his pair first. He held up the lenses to the light, as if trying to figure out how they worked.

Ralph grabbed the next pair. He stretched the band and tried to fit it over his head, but it got stuck on his antlers. He pulled harder.

“Careful. Those goggles are fragile!” said Oscar.

At last, Ralph got them on. “I don’t see any dream bubbles,” he said. He started prancing around the room, looking up and then looking down.

Ruby has gotten another F – for ‘fail’ – and lost her job as a Tooth Fairy because she hasn’t collected a single tooth. On her last Tooth Fairy mission, a dog beside the child’s bed had awoken. Ruby had heard that dogs might bark, jump, even nip. So, “Without retrieving the tooth, she had backed away from the bed and the sleeping boy in a hurry. Once more her fears had gotten in her way.” After reading the Cloud 98 News “Help Wanted” section, Ruby applies for the only job advertised: Dream Rescuers. Two others have applied for the same position: Ralph, a fidgety reindeer fired by Santa Claus, and Mighty, a diminutive Super Hero whose former co-workers never gave him a chance because of his size. If Ruby, Ralph, and Mighty can prove that they’re able to work together and vanquish the dragon in young Emma’s nightmare, then Oscar – head of Cloud 98’s Department of Dream Rescue – will give all of them jobs. After vanquishing the dragon and reporting back to Oscar, Ruby is rewarded with an F – for Finished a Mission.

While Dream Rescuers is full of imaginative ideas, character development is sorely lacking. Ruby, the story’s protagonist, is easily frightened. Readers are told that Ralph is fidgety. Mighty is small but loud and possibly brave. Why Ruby is so fearful in the first place remains a mystery, and her main attempt to deal with her fear (during the one dream rescue the trio execute) is unconvincing. Although readers see Ralph occasionally trying to still his twitching hind legs, there is similarly no character development for him, the tiny Super Hero, or their would-be boss, Oscar. Consequently, this reader did not feel any attachment to the characters while reading on to the story’s predictable conclusion. Two-tone illustrations by Eden Cooke may occasionally help readers follow the plot.

Not recommended
Reviewer: 

Karen Rankin is a Toronto, Ontario, teacher and writer of children’s stories.