Dream a Little Dream

“[A] fantasy adventure that uses the quixotic nature of dreams as a background for a modern-day pilgrimage of hope.” —Library Journal   Nola and Tina are both girls with problems. They don’t know each other yet, but they will, because each is a Creator, with the magical ability to turn dreams into reality. It would be a great gift and a great power—if either knew she had it. But this world is hard on dreamers, whether they dream true or not.      Nola is trapped in a terrible, abusive relationship with a man she once loved; Tina is an orphan who makes her living on the street. All their dreams are slowly being ground into dust.  It’s a common enough tragedy, a sorrow and a grief and a shame upon the world, no matter whom it happens to. But when dreams themselves die, when the great dreamers stop dreaming, whole universes of imagination are lost. And the land of Nola and Tina’s dreams is fighting back. Into their miserable everyday world soars Esprit, a winged unicorn dark as the space between the stars. He is the vessel of Nola’s dreams, come to aid her in her battle with sordid reality. Following after him comes Prince Michael, whose quest it is to find the human dreamers who can save his land from ruin.

From Publishers Weekly

Bestselling fantasist Anthony teams up with another first-time author (as he did in Quest for the Fallen Star, Forecasts, June 8) for this story of a fairy tale world called Kafka, born of the dreams of humans known as "Creators." Nola is one of the Creators, a battered woman whose only solace is the beautiful, so-very-realistic sleep visions through which she travels with a black winged unicorn named Spirit. When Kafka is threatened by the cruel and "noxious" creatures known as the Fren, King Eric Edward sends his only son, Mitch, to find Nola and bring her to Kafka to help save the world. Together with Spirit and a cast of assorted creatures including Misty ("the resident friendly ghost"), lisping carnivorous worms, telepathic dogs, flighty wood nymphs and a "stareless" basilisk named Snort, Nola and Mitch set off on the dangerous journey to the land of the Fren, ruled by a king who will stop at nothing to destroy them. The story jumps awkwardly between Kafka and Earth, with little lift supplied by the cardboard characters and weak plotting. In spite of positive messages about self-esteem and self-reliance, the novel is a downer. Admirers of Anthony's popular Xanth novels will look in vain for the pun-laden humor so prevalent in those tales, while others will be put off by the haphazard execution and precious tone. Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Retreating from the abuse and misery that characterize their everyday existence, Nola and Tina seek refuge in a world of lucid dreams only to find that their dream world lies in peril from those who would crush all hope. Veteran sf and fantasy author Anthony and first-time novelist Brady collaborate in this fantasy adventure that uses the quixotic nature of dreams as a background for a modern-day pilgrimage of hope. For large fantasy collections.Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Kirkus Reviews

Independent fantasy from the prolific Anthony (most recently, Zombie Lover, p. 1075) and newcomer/collaborator Brady. Trapped in an abusive relationship with her rape/violence-prone partner, Nola Rollins takes refuge inside her serial, lucid dream s, where she visits an elaborate dreamscape called Kafka. Complete with the usual fantasy trappings, Kafka does however lack cockroaches, castles, trials, and whatnot. Unknowingly, Nola is a Creatorshes actually dreamed certain aspects of Kafka into exist ence. But now evil creatures called Frens, led by their baneful wizard King Reility, have dammed the River of Thought (it's composed of human dreams: Kafka's inhabitants can't dream) with indestructible dreamstone, and all of Kafka will die. Only Creators can dissolve dreamstone. So Mich, son of King Erik, travels to Earth along with Esprit, a winged black unicorn (Nola's dreamed both Mich and Esprit) to obtain Nola's help. Once she accepts the fact of Mich and Esprit being real, Nola agrees to travel to Kafka and help remove the dam. After various adventuresthings don't go entirely according to planthey return to Earth to add Tina to their group: a down-and-out street kid, Tina has also Created part of Kafka. Once back in that land, they learn that King Erik has vanished and the situation is getting worse. All Nola has to do is believe in Kafka and disbelieve in the Frens and their dreamstone dam. Of course, what with the will-they won't-they Nola/Mich romance, it's not as easy as that, and various compl ications ensue. Conventional ideas given a breezy, well-rounded workout: standard fare for Anthony fans. -- Copyright ©1998, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

About the Author

Piers Anthony is one of the world's most popular fantasy authors, and a New York Times bestseller twenty-one times over. His Xanth novels have been read and loved by millions of readers around the world, and he daily receives hundreds of letters from his devoted fans.In addition to the Xanth series, Anthony is the author of many other best-selling works. Piers Anthony lives in Inverness, Florida.

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