The Moonlight Dreamers

By Author / Illustrator

Siobhan Curham

Genre

Adventure

Age range(s)

11+

Publisher

Walker Books Ltd

ISBN

9781406365825

Format

Paperback / softback

Published

07-07-2016

Synopsis

An unforgettable story of friendship, self-belief and love. Amber, Maali, Sky and Rose are not like everyone else and they don't want to be. Becoming friends gives them the courage to be themselves.

An inspirational, heart-warming book about four girls trying to find their place in the world. Siobhan Curham celebrates very different but like-minded friends in this captivating novel.

Amber craves excitement and adventure. Instead, she's being bullied at school for having two dads, and life at home isn't much better. Inspired by Oscar Wilde, Amber realizes that among the millions of people in London, there must be others who feel the same as she does; other dreamers - moonlight dreamers. After chance encounters with Maali, Sky and Rose, Amber soon recruits the three girls to the Moonlight Dreamers. It's high time they started pursuing their dreams, and how better than with the support of friends?

Reviews

'On the night it began, a full moon hung over Brick Lane.' Amber is an original. She has different ideas, different inspirations and a different image from those around her. Bullied at school and inspired by Oscar Wilde, she decides to create 'The Moonlight Dreamers'- a secret society for like minded girls. And so Amber, Maali, Sky and Rose join together to follow their dream of being different and yet belonging somewhere. This is a truly inspirational story about friendship, life and finding your place in the world. Whatever their role, each character in this book is so well developed that you are completely drawn into the story, finding yourself cheering the girls on each step of the way. The complexities of family relationships are explored sensitively and with understanding. The girls contend with a range of problems -some minor, some more significant - but each is taken seriously through the course of the novel. It is so refreshing to find a novel modelling possibilities to young girls - follow your dreams, find friends, make things happen - and one showing real friendship between very different personalities. I loved reading this book and would whole-heartedly recommend it to anyone! Beauty revels in its imperfections. 352 pages / Ages 12+ / Reviewed by Sue Wilsher, teacher.