ALA Pura Belpré Winner: The Dreamer

Neftalí’s world is filled with the wonders of nature, sensitivity of childhood, and sheer fascination with life and language. That, however, is a different world from the one his authoritarian father insists he live in – one where the only worthy aspirations are practical ones in medicine and business, and where readers, writers, observers, and dreamers are labeled “fools,” “fanatics,” and “idiots,” believed to be worthless. At first a timid introvert, Neftalí obediently submits to his father’s demands that he abandon his love for books and nature. But the words and the world continue to beckon until Neftalí can no longer ignore their hold on his heart or the yearnings of his literary spirit, and he begins to envision and inscribe his own life as Pablo Neruda, celebrated Chilean poet, social activist, winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature, and lifelong dreamer. Masterfully merging Neruda’s passionate poetry with elements of magical realism and her own lyrical prose, Ryan weaves a compelling fictional biography of Neruda’s childhood. Sís’s engaging and ethereal drawings likewise blend genres to complement the inner and outer worlds that Neftalí experiences. All together, this exceptional novel will inspire readers to follow their own dreams as well.

Grades 3-8

• The Sounds of Language. Ryan’s prose is filled with delightful and unique examples of onomatopoeia: the rain sounds like plip-plip plop bloop, bloop, bloop; Uncle Orlando’s printing press makes a clickety-CLACK, phew-ah sound; and the ocean goes pome shwahhhhhh thissssssssssss. Take students around the school or outside into the community to record the sounds they hear. Then have them try to write those sounds to learn about onomatopoeia or to create unique ones to reinforce their phonemic awareness and phonics skills. (It’s never too late for that!) 
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• Figurative Language and Illustrative Interpretation. Peter Sís has won several major awards for his illustrations of various other books. In The Dreamer, his distinctive style of magical realism is a harmonious match Ryan’s creative blend of literary genres. How does Sís make Ryan’s prose more visually palpable? That is, how does he make Ryan’s and Neruda’s figurative language more “concrete”? Launch an inquiry with students into these questions, and have students try their hand at illustrating excerpts from both the prose and the poetry in The Dreamer. You may also want to examine some of Sís’s picture books for inspiration. Make sure students continually refer to the text to guide their artwork. Collect the images they create into a class portfolio, or display the images throughout the classroom or school.
• Character Study. The Dreamer centers around Neftalí’s growth and development from a shy, insecure boy to a determined young man. This familiar character arc is used by many authors. What makes Neftalí’s character development similar or different from other characters who undergo such transformations? What elements of character (e.g., dialogue, action, description, etc.) highlight important turns in Neftalí’s development, and are there any examples that specifically reveal those turns? Which secondary characters support or hinder Neftalí’s growth, and how? Have students create short monologues that really epitomize Neftalí’s character development and perform them before the class. Other characters in the novel can also make for fascinating character studies: Mamadre, Rodolfo, Laurita, and of course, Father.
• Inspiring Poetic Inquiry. Ryan sprinkles questions about the world that Neruda observed and that parallel her narrative text throughout The Dreamer. Each of these questions takes on a poetic tone with its language, rhythm, and focus. Similarly, Neruda’s famous collection, The Book of Questions, is a list of simple wonderings about the world that he observed, but became works of art when he played with language and put them on paper. Have students collect in a writer’s notebook their own wonderings about life and the world in which they live. Then encourage them to revisit their questions, play with poetic elements such as figurative language and rhythm, and craft their questions into their own poetry. You may even want to compile them into a class book of questions to publish and share with the greater school community.

Critical Literacy