Writer: Scott Christian Sava
Publisher: Blue Dream
The Set-Up
I like fantasy. I mean, I really like fantasy. I think that an author who doesn’t use even a little bit of fantasy is far more constricted to try and weave a story that’s interesting than those who do. You also need to know that I have a 10 year-old girl and a 3 year-old boy who love to have me read to them and watch cartoons with them. That being said, I’m always looking for things that we can experience with them. I have found that in very few stories, except for The Looking Glass Wars and The Dreamland Chronicles!
I will have to admit that I tried to read the daily webcomic available at www.thedreamlandchronicles.com, but I just couldn’t get into it. But…the TPB is awesome!!! The story begins with Alexander (our human hero), Nastajia (the beautiful elven princess), Kiwi (the fairy) and Paddington Rumblebottom (the rock giant) flying through Dreamland and saving a village full of teddy bears from a Cyclops giant. Alex then finds himself in an enchanted cave with the ever-popular magic sword guarded by a very powerful dragon named Nicodemus.
Eight years have passed since that fateful day, Alex and his brother, Daniel, are in college. Mom sends the twins (fraternal twins) a package from home that has Daniel’s record of Alex’s adventures in Dreamland, some baseball cards, a teddy bear and a necklace with a small sword amulet on it. When Alex puts on the necklace and goes to sleep, he begins to dream like he hasn’t in years and is transported back to Dreamland as the only “adult” human there.
Without giving away the ending, both Kiwi and Paddington Rumblebottom are ecstatic to see their slightly amnesiatic friend after all those years. It seems that the years have continued to pass and that all of them have had to go about their lives without him. It seems that Nastajia has changed the most during his absence, mainly because of the pain his leaving caused her. We are re-introduced to Nicodemus and that old sword necklace becomes that old sword from the cave…
Critique
To be completely honest, for an adult, the story was kind of predictable, but for my kids, they’ll love it! My kids are pretty sharp, but there’s enough to keep them guessing throughout this book.
The artwork was superb. The book is produced in digitally after being rendered from artist sketches. The colors are vibrant, the characters sincere and believable as individual characters, and the landscapes are breathless.
I had run across this story, and indeed the comics, on their website at www.thedreamlandchronicles.com, but I just couldn’t get into them like I did when reading the collected panels. This book, hopefully one of many to come, is definitely a great read and worth the cost!
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