Product Description

Disfigured by a tragic car accident that also killed her dad, Jori has transformed from a popular high school student into a bitter loner. Fatherless, betrayed by her best friend and physically scarred for life, Jori is angry at the world. And now her little sister Lisa has been missing for months. Walking home from school, Jori stumbles upon a strange house and meets Professor DePris, who shows her a magical tapestry woven with dreams. Distrustful of the eccentric old man and his talking spider, she resists entering the dream tapestry until she realises her sister is caught inside. It's up to Jori to go inside the tapestry and rescue her sister from the monstrous creature feasting on her fantasies. How can Jori convince Lisa to leave this fantastic, yet dangerous, world where anything - like reuniting with their father - is possible?

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #2016484 in Books
• Published on: 2006-09-08
• Original language: English
• Dimensions: .65" h x 5.28" w x 7.98" l, .59 pounds
• Binding: Paperback
• 264 pages

From School Library Journal
Grade 9 Up—After a car accident in which Jori is permanently disfigured, the once-popular high school student is now an outcast. She is tormented by her former best friend, Marisa, and a geeky guy named Newt is the only person who talks to her. Her younger sister, Lisa, has been missing for months. The plot veers into fantasy/horror territory when Jori and Newt stumble upon a mysterious house inhabited by the eerie Mr. DePris. Among his amazing objects is a tapestry of stolen dreams, woven by a telepathic spider, Arachnea. Jori discovers that Lisa is captured in it, along with Newt, Marisa, and Marisa's boyfriend, Derek. When Jori enters the tapestry, determined to rescue her sister, the story finally gets moving. She finds Newt and Derek, and the three of them try to outrun the Black River that is killing some of the fantasies, along with the people who are locked in them. Their adventure leads them through several horrific and a few too-good-to-be-true dreamscapes. Jori's rescue mission is only partly successful, leaving an opening for a sequel. The tapestry world is vividly imagined, and the beautiful-fantasies-turned-ugly theme is gripping. However, the writing is uneven, and the story has gaps in logic. Also, Arachnea's change from foe to ally and Derek's transformation from a complete jerk into a hero figure are too sudden to be convincing. This book is a decent effort by a new author for teens who like fantasy-world-gone-wrong stories, but Neil Shusterman's Full Tilt (S & S, 2003) is a better choice.—Martha Simpson, Stratford Library Association, CT
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About the Author
Bonnie Dobkin lives in Arlington Heights, Illinois, and works in educational publishing. Dream Spinner is her first novel.