Dreambender

I would like to thank Albert Whitman & Company + NetGalley for a copy of this e-ARC to review. Though I received this ebook for free, that has no impact upon the honesty of my review.

Goodreads Teaser: "Everyone in the City is assigned a job by the choosers--keeper, catcher, computer. Callie Crawford is a computer. She works with numbers: putting them together, taking them apart. Her work is important, but sometimes she wants more. Jeremy Finn is a dreambender. His job is to adjust people's dreams. He and others like him quietly remove thoughts of music and art to keep the people in the City from becoming too focused on themselves and their own feelings rather than on the world. They need to keep the world safe from another Warming. But Jeremy thinks music is beautiful, and when he pops into a dream of Callie singing, he becomes fascinated with her. He begins to wonder if there is more to life than being safe. Defying his community and the role they have established for him, he sets off to find her in the real world. Together, they will challenge their world's expectations. But how far will they go to achieve their own dreams?"

Beautiful ideas that tempt the imagination while teaching meaningful lessons at the same time. The lessons aren't traditional per se, but rather built into the story and crafted to sink into the reader's conscious and subconscious as they read.

Jeremy is a character most kids will relate to on one level or another. Between his incessant questions and his clear promise of great talent he appeals to younger readers and adults alike. Callie is more of an adult character, though she is a major player in this story, and one of the main instruments through which the life lessons are shared. But her sensation of being trapped in a job she doesn't have any passion for speaks to most adults I'd expect. Her journey is her lesson for readers of all ages.

Though couched in a futuristic story, the ideas shared in this book are valid for readers of any generation. Mr. Kidd does an excellent job of crafting a tale to engage readers, young and old, and building important life lessons into the very bones of the story. The world he created is a beautifully woven mix of reality and fantasy, but not so far out that it becomes difficult to imagine. If anything he's made it to easy to imagine, and that simply makes the messages instilled within that much more powerful. Without a doubt this book should become a core requirement for all middle school reading lists. Indeed every library, both school and public, should have at least one copy; they should plan for multiple copies given how popular it is bound to become!

Callie is a computer in the City. She works with numbers and she shouldn't dare to dream of anything more, especially not singing...but she does. Jeremy is a dreambender in the Meadow. He works in people's dreams, changing them and, in turn, changing the dreamer. The dreambenders maintain order. They keep peace among the people and prevent dangerous dreams from taking hold. Dangerous dreams like singing.

Jeremy also asks a lot of questions. And soon he questions the very idea of dreambending. He has met the singer in her dreams and it doesn't seem so dangerous to him. What would happen if no one patrolled the dreams? What would happen if Callie was allowed to sing?

"Dreambender" written by Ronald Kidd is a dystopian novel reminiscent of "The Giver". The oppressive government (dreambenders) seek to control the City dwellers by manipulating dreams. While the concept is interesting and this world could be incredible, the story didn't quite make it to that level.. Too much time is spent preaching about the morality of manipulating a person for the greater good, leaving the reader to feel as though they are being taught a lesson. Subtlety is not the strong point of this novel, and neither is character development or pacing. The characters feel flat and the story rushed. There are too many big ideas going on with none of them properly developed.

While some may enjoy this book, there are better dystopian novels available for middle-grade readers.

I thoroughly enjoyed Dreambender by Ronald Kidd and it's clever story. There are a lot of post-apocalyptic novels available and a lot of them are pretty similar. On the surface, this novel seems to be another book in that genre. However, Dreambender was different for me. I enjoyed learning about the different jobs in the society and watching Jeremy learn and discover what is important to him. I enjoyed his journey to find truth and peace in a "safe" world. Beautiful writing and beautiful message.

Like a few other reviews, I too would have liked to see more at the end of the novel. It felt rushed. But overall, I enjoyed it and would recommend Dreambender.

Review copy provided by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

“DREAMBENDER,” by Ronald Kidd, Albert Whitman & Company, March 1, 2016, Hardcover, $16.99 (ages 8 and up)

When the Warming came, it changed how people lived. The arts became dangerous, a distraction from the needs of many, and so they disappeared.

Callie Crawford is a computer. Not a computer in the sense we know them now, but what they are in the future — someone who works with numbers. Everyone in the City has a job — keeper, catcher, computer. It’s what they’ve been assigned, and most people are happy in their work. Callie knows what she does is important but wonders if there’s something more.

Jeremy Finn is a dreambender. As the title suggests, his job is to adjust, or bend, people’s dreams. When people dream of violence, those thoughts are quietly twisted away. The same goes for thoughts of music and art. People in the City must never become too focused on feelings; that’s how the Warming came in the first place.

You’d think that once a dream was altered, the original would disappear, but not for the dreambenders; they keep hold of those dreams and can relive them whenever they choose. The problem is Jeremy thinks music is beautiful, and when he visits a dream in which Callie is singing, he wants her to be able to relive it, too.

Fascinated with a girl he’s never met, Jeremy defies the rules and sets out to meet Callie. But no one in the City knows about the dreambenders, and meeting Callie sets off a chain of events that will challenge everything people have come to know and count on.

“Dreambender” is dystopian without the violence or hopelessness that often accompanies the genre, making it more suitable for middle readers. Although, author Ronald Kidd’s prose adds a sophistication that YA readers will appreciate. At 256 pages, the book is relatively short and its pacing makes it a fast read overall.

Of the two main characters, Callie is the more refined, but Jeremy is infinitely more interesting. I found his overall story arch to be more thought provoking and his questioning nature more realistic. He’s someone I’d actually want to spend time with in real life.

“Dreambender” is a self-contained novel — something that should happen more often. Because of that treatment, it has a tighter, more polished feel. Every word and action has a visible purpose, making for a more enjoyable reading experience.