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The Dreamer
Pam Mu￱oz Ryan (2010) , 384 pages
Neftali lives in Chile with his family. His overbearing father is gone a lot with his job. He is always trying to get Neftali outside to toughen him up and he tells him to stop reading so much. Neftali loves words and keeps the drawer full of slips of paper with certain words he loves. He takes little trips in his mind to escape his home life when his father is there. One summer the family goes to the beach and Neftali and sister are forced into the ocean everyday to learn to swim. Neftali befriends a swan and a local librarian who gives him many books to read. As Neftali gets older and wants to go to University to write poetry, his father says he will not pay for that. Neftali needs to become a man in a profession where he can earn a living. So, Neftali writes under a pseudonym, Pablo Neruda, and becomes one of the most famous poets of all time. Told in magical realism style, with beautiful illustrations by Peter Sis, this is a stunning story about pursuing your dreams.
Reviewed by Kristi