The Girl Who Could Not Dream

I don't know who picked the coverart but they ought to be fired. It looks like it belongs on an infantile picture book about a middle-aged woman with a purse, her surly teenage offspring and a furry, streamer-wearing chinese dragon. I had a grear deal of difficulty taking this book seriously as a result.

That being said, this book got better as it went along and by the end, was pretty awesome. Monster is a totally charming character and so wonderfully drawn that all the other characters seem flat and lifeless (like watching Ellen Page on Trailer Park Boys, it's very discordant.) The plot was innovative with plenty of twists and the pacing fairly even once the action started. Overall, a good read. If you can get past the cover.

Many thanks the Houghton Mifflin for the ARC.

I received an ARC version of this book through Goodreads Giveaways.

I LOVED this. The magical premise of this book is really creative and I applaud the author so much. The characters are complex and humorous. I especially admired the relationship between Sophie and her parents that we are introduced to in the exposition of the book. Monster is amazingly witty and intelligent and by far my favorite character. The climax - no spoilers - moved me almost to tears.

The only issue I had with the story was that the I found the plot twists to be a bit predictable, and I had so much hope for this story that I found myself wishing they were red herrings. But, hey, let's not judge too much; it's a middle grade novel.

To sum up, The Girl Who Could Not Dream is overall interesting, hilarious, and lovable. I would recommend this to any fan of friendship, dreams, and clever banter.