Product Description

Theo and her young, irresponsible mother seem trapped in their miserable, poverty-stricken life. Theo dreams of belonging to a "real" family, and her dream seems to come true when she is mysteriously adopted by the large, warm Kaldor family.

But as time passes, the magic of Theo's new life begins to fade, and soon she finds herself back with her mother. Were the Kaldors real or just a dream? And who is the shadowy figure who haunts Theo's thoughts?

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #124916 in Books
• Published on: 2007-09-01
• Released on: 2007-09-04
• Original language: English
• Dimensions: .70" h x 4.10" w x 6.80" l, .55 pounds
• Binding: Mass Market Paperback
• 240 pages

Books in Canada
Some plots do not summarize gracefully. Those little twists that make for lively reading can look very strange indeed when squashed into less than a hundred words. This is certainly the case with Awake & Dreaming. In this book, a neglected nine-year-old, Theo, sustains herself with the fantasy of belonging to a kindly, middle-class family. Her single mother decides that Theo must live with an aunt she cannot remember. On the Vancouver Island ferry, under the gaze of a strange-looking older woman, Theo sees her fantasy family. In her misery, she wishes to be part of the family, and somehow the wish comes true. At first, Theo is perfectly happy, but gradually the plot unravels, and finally she awakes to discover herself back on the ferry with her mother. In Victoria, Theo adjusts to her kindly but prim and beleaguered aunt. Then she stumbles onto the family of her fantasy. Through them, she learns that the ghost of a children's writer named Cecily Stone has been watching her. Theo's long dream was the plot of a novel Cecily had wanted to write before she died. Finally, through Cecily, Theo catches a glimpse of a better life.

If this sounds like the plot of a really bad novel, that shows how little plot counts in the hands of a gifted writer. Because Awake & Dreaming is one of the best books I've read in the last year, without using qualifiers like "young adult". Pearson's portrait of a neglected child is at once hard-nosed and sensitive. Theo's mother Rae is a poor mother in every sense of the phrase. Only sixteen when Theo was born, she struggles to keep off welfare, but seems less mature than her daughter. Theo is left alone while her mother works nights; she needs shoes, has to panhandle, and is usually too hungry to concentrate in school. Rae is immature, even downright unkind, but not evil. We see her as someone expected to assume far more responsibility than she can handle.

Pearson deftly plays with the contrast between what Theo wants from life and what is possible, by introducing the ghost of Cecily Stone. The confluence of her desire to "write" her unfinished book in Theo's imagination, and Theo's need for security creates a world that ultimately falls apart because it is too perfect. As she discovers who Cecily was and meets the ghost, Theo's life gradually resolves itself. Her mother returns to reclaim her, and live closer to the older sister who took Theo in. Cecily is no longer earth-bound by her desire to write her final book. While it is wrenching for Theo to let go, she learns through Cecily that she has the makings of a writer.

Magic is like gold: splash too much around and the result is tawdry. Pearson's delicate hand touches this book with mystery more often than outright enchantment. The result is spellbinding. This is one book that must be read to be believed. Janet McNaughton(Books in Canada)

From Publishers Weekly
The combination of her own desperate wishes and a dead writer's fantasy propel the nine-year-old heroine into a dream worldAor does it? Ages 8-12.
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal
Grade 4-7. Wishes can come true, temporarily at least. Nine-year-old Theo desperately wants to be out of her gray, loveless existence and into the middle of a large and happy family like the ones she reads about in her wonderful library books. Often neglected by her young and immature mother, she is still reluctant to leave their Vancouver apartment and go to live with her aunt in Victoria. On the ferry trip, Theo makes a wish on the new moon and is amazed when it comes true. She wakes up as part of the perfect family, with nurturing and always happy parents and four caring siblings. Now she doesn't have to dance for money on the street or worry that her mother doesn't want her. But of course, it is too good to be true, and the magic doesn't last. While her real life isn't perfect like when she was "awake and dreaming," things are changing for the better and Theo is learning to be happy. Pearson deftly weaves fantasy and reality together into a charming novel much like Sylvia Cassedy did in Behind the Attic Wall (HarperCollins, 1983). Even minor characters are well developed, and this story is intriguing from start to finish. A mysterious ghost is carefully woven into the plot and into the resolution, but the focus of the book remains on Theo's very real concerns and emotions. As readers cheer for the child's happiness, they may also learn from her determination.?Leigh Ann Jones, Carroll Middle School, Southlake, TX
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.