Nina and Ashley are cousins and they don’t get along well. Ash lost her mother three years ago and her father didn’t want to take care of her, so she has been living with Nina’s family. Nina has been having dreams – nightmares, really – and she blames them on Ash, who Nina thinks is a witch.

I thought the book was o.k. I didn’t like it as much as the other de Lint books I’ve read, though. I did like the 80’s music references. Of course, the book was written in 1990, so at the time it was written, those references may have been more recognizable (or to those of us who grew up in the 80s). ( )

June 14, 2011

Ash is a teenage girl who is angry at the world. Angry at her mom for dying and leaving her alone. Angry at her dad for refusing to take her in. And especially angry at her cousin Nina for having everything.

That kind of anger inevitably draws attention. The problem is, the spirit who first noticed Ash's anger is now focused on Nina. Can Ash figure out what is going on and find it in her heart to save her cousin?

This has always been one of my least favorite of de Lint's books. Much as I love his work, I'm usually disappointed in his young adult novels. I love his books for his characters and I never relate to the teens very well. I don't know if it's just me or if he truly doesn't develop them as well. In this case, Ash is a pretty typical troubled teen and Nina is a pretty typical goody-two-shoes. So maybe it is him...

Anyway, there's nothing terribly new here, although it was nice to come across the first references to Cassie and Bones. The underlying hope and faith in human decency that I consider another hallmark of de Lint are also here. The world can always use more stories about forgiveness, love, and the power to change for the better, right?

I wouldn't recommend this to a new de Lint reader, but fans should definitely read it.

Currently re-reading...

2007?

This is one of de Lint's more Native American novels. It's full of teenage angst, but it is more of a young adult novel. Maybe I would have enjoyed it more when I was at that age myself. ( )

Magic pulses within us all, pounding through our veins and quickening our spirits. There are scant other explanations for the soul, for the imagination, or for the power of evil in those who surrender to the dark. Call it what you will if magic doesn’t fit your creed or religious persuasion, but it amounts to the same. Perhaps the reason Charles de Lint’s stories are so appealing rests in his willingness to embrace the idea of magic active in the lives of those open to its possibilities.

[The Dreaming Place], the first book length Newford story penned by de Lint, follows two teenage cousins, Nina and Ash, as they struggle to come to terms with the appearance of magic, both dark and light, in their lives. Ash, bitter over the death of her mother and the disappearance of her father, fends life away with a fierce pose, frightened of more pain creeping into her heart. Nina, on the other hand conforms, aiming to please everyone, either through her appearance or by matching their expectations in her behavior. When a demon from Otherworld, the place of dreams and spirits, targets Nina’s soul to reinvigorate her own, Ash must journey there and learn how to live again, free of fear and anger, to save Nina.

De Lint refuses to define [The Dreaming Place], or any of his other story worlds, in Pollyanna terms. The fairies are edgy, capable of quickly devolving into malevolence and evil intent. The spirits and shamans appear at once both full of madness and full of kindness. And the heroes and heroines are usually troubled, broken souls. But the thread of hope, the possibility of redemption or rebirth runs strong with de Lint, ultimately making the reading experience extremely refreshing.

4 bones!!!!
The book likely would have rated 5 bones but for its target being a teen audience, a market for books which I rarely dip into. So, I would have liked a longer, slightly more complex story. But for those who enjoy the YA realm, especially when it stretches to the upper limits, this one should rank high. ( )

I love Charles De Lint, though I find I had better not read his work unless, to paraphrase someone-or-other, I am prepared to have my mind be a carpet taken up by a strong parlormaid, hung out, beaten vigorously, and finally re-laid and tacked down with a firm hand.
Though it was just as lyrical and suspenseful as I expected, The Dreaming Place was easier on my poor brain than many others, perhaps because of its slim size, but the combination of Native American myth/life and modern urban fantasy was definitely something else. Pieces of his ending were also a surprise, since I have grown to have certain expectations about De Lint. ( )

I really wanted to enjoy this book and fall in love with the characters, as De Lint appears to be just the kind of author I’d enjoy, but all I can say is I did like the book, but nothing more than that really, it certainly had potential but it never seemed to quite catch hold and while the characters were very likable, particularly Cassie and Nina, I couldn’t bring myself to love them like I wanted to.

All in all a decent read, but I do feel it could have been so much better.

Has it put me off De Lint’s work? Not in the least. I’ve got a compendium and one of his longer Newford novels on the way, and there was enough evidence there to suggest that when I hit the right book I will fall in love with his writing and start to eat up anything I can find of his.

Read my full review at:
http://www.bartsbookshelf.co.uk/2008/07/02/the-dreaming-place-charles-de-lint/ ( )