“Greta abides by the reasonable philosophy that there is nothing in the universe more boring than someone else's dreams.”
― Elan Mastai, All Our Wrong Todays

When a writer is famous and beloved enough, the old saw goes, they can publish their grocery list and people will buy it. Roz Chast seems to be putting that to the test with this jumble of random thoughts about dreams and recreations of dreams from her dream journals and personal correspondence. And that her book has ended up on several lists as one of the best graphic novels of 2023 (see below) puts me in mind of another old saw, ""There's a sucker born every minute."

(Best of 2023 Project: I'm reading all the graphic novels that made it onto one or more of these lists:
• Washington Post 10 Best Graphic Novels of 2023
• Publishers Weekly 2023 Graphic Novel Critics Poll
• NPR's Books We Love 2023: Favorite Comics and Graphic Novels

This book made all three lists.) ( )

Not the funniest of Roz's, although still quite amusing, but it came with a sleep mask that says "I Must Be Dreaming" which I couldn't resist. ( )

Roz Chast is talented and funny. She has a definite style to both her cartoons and her humor. After reading this short “graphic novel” I have to admit that I didn’t wholeheartedly enjoy it. The comics at the beginning of the book are funnier than the later ones. I’m not sure if she ran out of material, or there just isn’t that much humor to be found in her personal dreams.

This is a book that might resonate more with some people than others, especially if your dreams are similar to Chast’s.

If you’re a Roz Chast fan, you could just take a look (while browsing in the bookstore or the library), and unless you insist on owning every copy of her published works, a quick read will suffice. ( )

Roz Chast ignores the old adage that everyone hates listening to details about the dreams of others, and convinces us that not only are hers the best dreams, but that we're so very lucky that she chose to draw and to describe them in such hilarious detail! There are recurring dreams, celebrity dreams, food dreams, body horror dreams, and, best of all, many insouciant birds. And there's basically a New Yorker cartoon on every page, even ones that were rejected. About as much fun as you can have while awake. ( )

#1 New York Times bestselling, award-winning New Yorker cartoonist Roz Chast's new graphic narrative, exploring the surreal nighttime world inside her mind-and untangling one of our most enduring human mysteries: dreams.