Dreamology

Gr 8 Up—Alice Rowe has a wonderful relationship with her boyfriend, Max. They do fun and exciting things and go to unusual places around the world. There's just one catch—Max exists only within Alice's dreams. In the waking world, Alice is dealing with family issues, a move to Boston, and a new start at a private school. As she sits in class on her first day at Bennett Academy, she is completely amazed when Max, the boy of her dreams, walks through the door. Getting to know Max in real life, however, is surprisingly complicated, even when he admits that he also dreams about Alice and they find that they have a shared history involving the Center for Dream Discovery. Eventually, the two realize that they need to end their dreaming relationship in order to move forward with their real lives, but they now face the challenge of forging a relationship in the real world. This is a sweet, quirky romance with appealing characters and loving descriptions of Boston landmarks, but there are serious notes as well; Alice's mother has essentially walked out on her and her father in order to pursue research projects, and Max has a troubled relationship with his parents because of his sister's death in an accident. Keating is particularly good at capturing the surreal nature of dreams in her detailed depictions of dream settings and events.