The Book of Stolen Dreams centres around the plight of two siblings, Rachel and Robert. All books have a certain magic, but the Book of Stolen Dreams is like no other - this book has the power to grant eternal life. Rachel and Robert live in an oppressed city, ruled by an evil dictator, who is unquestionably the best-named baddy that I’ve encountered in a long time - Charles Malstain. Charles Malstain is terminally ill. His reign of terror is coming to an end. And - like all narcissistic bad guys - death is not an option for Mr Malstain. He is desperate to get his hands on the Book of Stolen Dreams so that he can avoid death and continue to rule Krasnia. However, Rachel, Robert and their father, Felix, have different plans. They sneak into the library and steal the book. Unfortunately for Rachel and Robert, their father is captured and imprisoned, leaving them as sole protectors of the book. Esta história é inspirada na família do escritor, nomeadamente uma tia-avó e tio-avô, que conseguiram fugir nos Nazis, na Alemanha. As if sensing what she was thinking, the little man stood beside her at the rail and spoke quietly. A lot had to do with the writing and the set up of the story. This story is written from a third person omniscient point of view as we follow two siblings. I felt so far removed from these characters however. The start was okay, I could feel the love for their parents and especially their father but when it comes to the setting and world, not so much.

We don’t know why this has happened, but Farr immediately sets up a tense and unsettling atmosphere. We are introduced to our protagonists, Robert and Rachel Klein, when they accompany their father to the lending library where he works. This journey is done at night, and nobody is told about it so we know it is dangerous. All we know is that it has something to do with The Book of Stolen Dreams that Felix Klein steals - rumours are that it is scheduled to be destroyed - and charges his children with protecting until they can hand it over to a man called Solomon. The book doesn't focus much on character development. Each character has his/her own strong points that they utilize to their favour when the time comes. And that's kinda it. The magic that was uncovered proved fascinating. I loved its slow introduction in the book and loved learning how it impacted the lives of these children. David Farr integrated it seamlessly into the story and I was engaged in all the different aspects that combined to make this a fascinating and fast-paced story.With a gorgeous cover like that and with the tile of The Book of Stolen Dreams I had high expectations for this adventurous middle grade novel. Unfortunately those were not at all met. Robert and Rachel are the two main characters who happen to be siblings. Their father, Felix, is a librarian who takes them on Rachel's birthday to the library in the quest of an adventure and to find a forbidden book, the book of stolen dreams. They get the precious book but Felix gets arrested by the brutal President Charles Malstains' soldiers and put into prison. The book withholds some secrets that Charles Malstain is after. Now it's up to Robert and Rachel to find the secret of the book and return it to it's rightful owners. But in the process of doing so, they make many friends but enemies too who are also after the book.

The overall atmosphere was fantastic, it was easy to imagine all the quirky clothing, from people having penguin hats to pointy noses that looked like beaks, to legs of dictators that looked like carrots. And then, of course, there is the aspect of a library and a book, and if you're a bookworm, which I believe most of you reading this are, how could you not be interested in a bookish, magical, adventure. Excuse me. I couldn’t help noticing you are alone. Please, my dear girl, you have no reason to fear.” The plot and the characters worked brilliantly. The main aim of the plot was clear and easy to follow and it was made wonderfully intriguing by the misunderstandings, near-misses and scheming from different characters. The underlying commentaries on kindness, family, love and death kept the story interesting and gave me plenty to think about after I'd read it. Na última página, descobrimos que haverá um segundo livro, o que me agradou imenso, pois adorei a Rachel e o Robert. This is a superbly written book that I highly recommend for children who are not put off by a little darkness in the stories they read.

Now the adventure itself is just so well done and wrapped up even better. There's nothing I can say that I didn't like. The pacing was perfect, I could easily keep up and it wasn't as predictable, which I was pleasantly surprised to learn. It felt like we were given a lot of clues, bits and pieces to put together along with our two main characters, and while it wasn't too complex, I had moments where I failed to piece the puzzles. That's absolutely not a bad thing at all. And when you actually finish the book, you get this sense of accomplishment and happiness that you were able to put these things together and come to a conclusion. Oh, my dear Isabella! But it’s an all-too-common story these days. Did he put up a fight? No? It was probably wise of him. You don’t mess with Charles Malstain’s state police. In the days of the Emperor, if soldiers came to arrest you, they offered a polite smile, a bunch of flowers, or a box of chocolate hearts. But these days the police have neither reason nor manners. And there are no chocolate hearts.”