Dream Away

by Julia Durango, Katie Belle Trupiano, Robert Goldstrom (Illustrator)

Overview

Dream away, dream away, sleepyhead, love
Set sail for the ocean of stars up above.
You be the captain and I'll be your mate.
We'll journey together, the heavens await.

From author Julia Durango and new illustrator Robert Goldstrom, a story of the dreams that are possible as you drift to sleep. A father and son venture into a dream and encounter some new and familiar faces and along the way discover the possibilities the universe can hold.

Accompanied by Robert Goldstrom's sweeping paintings, Dream Away is the perfect combination of dreams and reality.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781439160213
Publisher:	Simon & Schuster Books For Young Readers
Publication date:	07/12/2011
Sold by:	SIMON & SCHUSTER
Format:	eBook
Pages:	32
File size:	71 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

Julia Durango resides in Ottawa, Illinois, where she wrote a weekly book review column for children. She is the mother of two sons and is the author of Dream Hop, illustrated by Jared Lee,  as well as Pest Fest, illustrated by Kurt Cyrus. Her work also includes Go-Go Gorillas, a sequel to Cha-Cha Chimps, both illustrated by Eleanor Taylor and Dream Away, illustrated by Robert Goldstrom. Her first novel The Walls of Cartagena was a Junior Library Guild Selection. Her most recent novel is entitled Sea of the Dead. She is a contributor the Three Silly Chicks blog and lives in Ottawa, Illinois.

Katie Belle has been writing music since she was eighteen. Now the mother of two young sons, Katie Belle spends her time teaching yoga and writing music for audiences of all ages. She lives in Ottawa, Illinois

Robert Goldstrom is an artist that has won a Silver and Gold medal from the Society of Illustrators. His paintings are often presented in series, following an idea until it plays out. This is his first picture book. He lives in Brooklyn, NY.
Robert Goldstrom is an artist that has won a Silver and Gold medal from the Society of Illustrators. His paintings are often presented in series, following an idea until it plays out. This is his first picture book. He lives in Brooklyn, NY.

Editorial Reviews

First-timer Goldstrom's richly imagined paintings of flight among the stars enhance this fanciful lullaby from Durango (Go-Go-Gorillas) and newcomer Trupiano. "Dream away, dream away, sleepyhead, love./ Set sail for the ocean of stars up above," they write, as a boy falls asleep while his father reads; he dreams of sailing off into the sky with a crew of pets and fairy tale creatures. They float through the solar system and beyond, encountering a great bear who throws a comet like a baseball, a dragon who waves goodbye, and other creatures of the zodiac, each translucent, gauzy, and lit with a chilly stellar glow. Full spreads have genuine grandeur, while round spot illustrations echo the shapes of planets and galaxies. In one spread, the boat on the right-hand page tows the moon-as-balloon at left, the line taut between them; in Goldstrom's hands, the scene looks pleasingly believable. While Durango and Trupiano's words sometimes seem shoehorned into the meter ("In a dream we did float on an old paper boat"), they contribute a rocking rhythm to this nautically themed tale. Ages 4–8. (July)

Publishers Weekly

PreS-K—A lullaby that a father sings to his son is literally depicted as they sail off together through the blue night sky in a paper boat. Their crew consists of "two pixies, one cur, a winged horse in flight, and a wandering knight." The Moon is shown as a giant yellow balloon and the sailors soon grab its string. The ride through space shows the planets up close and the constellations as blue creatures playing a ball game. Father and son take a ride on the white-winged horse. "Dream away, dream away, sleepyhead, love./Set sail for the ocean of stars up above./You be the captain and I'll be your mate./We'll journey together, the heavens await" is the repeated refrain. The illustrations are oil paint on cotton. They convey a soothing, ethereal atmosphere, but in the very crowded field of bedtime books, Dream Away is nothing special.—Ieva Bates, Ann Arbor District Library, MI

School Library Journal

A dreamscape unfurls as a dad reads a bedtime story to his son.

The red-haired boy is in bed, still wearing his paper hat, while his red-haired dad reads to him (the illustration in the book dad holds is the same one readers see). "In a dream we did float in an old paper boat," and off they go to the heavens, deep blue with a yellow moon-balloon to pull them along. They float past constellations embodied, planets and UFOs, accompanied by winged pets, a Pegasus and cloud shapes that morph amazingly. When they return to the last couplet, just like the first—"Dream away, dream away, sleepyhead, love. / Set sail for the ocean of stars up above"—the boy's bedroom vista expands so readers can see his cats, the dog, his fish, his mobile of the planets and the framed photograph of three red-haired guys of three generations that peopled his dreamtime, albeit in somewhat different shape and form. The pictures were made in oils on cotton, and one can see their rich texture, but the overall effect is smoothed over and out like computer art. The colors are strong, and in the final image the big full moon morphs back into the winsome face of the yellow balloon.

Odd but pleasant, and the pictures give readers lots to return to even if the verse wears a bit. (Picture book. 4-8)

Kirkus Reviews