The Dream Merchant (Works in Translation) [Hardcover]

Isabel Hoving (Author), Hester Velmans (Translator)

Book Description

Series: Works in Translation | Publication Date: October 11, 2005

Winner of the Netherlands' most prestigious children's book award, this epic adventure quest draws readers deep into a collective dream world — and sweeps them along on a riveting journey through a reimagined past.

"They're going to send you on a sales trip and it'll be the death of you — I know what's going on at Gippart. You're their guinea pig."

Josh Cope is a bit of a dreamer . . . who sometimes steals things. Otherwise, he's just your average boy. So why is an international corporation calling him in the middle of the night, insisting that he come and work for them? Why would they be so convinced that Josh is the key to conquering their new market — the past? Drawn into this astonishing, whirlwind adventure, Josh soon finds himself in the middle of a nightmare, caught in a place between dreams and reality. For Josh and his friends to find their way back, they must follow a trail that takes them right into the very heart of the human imagination — and to the furthest ends of time itself.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 8 Up–Josh Cope, a dreamy, gadget-obsessed 12-year-old, is chosen, with friend Baz, to work at an old company called Gippart. The boys are teamed up with Theresa, and the three enter its trading zone, called umaya. Umaya is the collective unconscious of humankind, and Gippart has discovered the secret of physically entering it and selling fantastic goods and concepts. The three young people are soon trapped in there, which starts a multilevel, action-crammed plot. They are hunted by a ghost-made-flesh and her accompanying guardian angel. Two Gippart employees who also want to use them for personal gain track them. Josh and friends are stuck in a repeating pattern so that whenever they fall asleep, they travel backwards in umaya time. They realize their actual goal: to right an ancient wrong committed by company founders. This is a lengthy tale with an extremely complicated setup. Readers who commit themselves to it will be well rewarded; the intricate plot is deep and gratifying. Despite the sprawling, fast-paced action, it's a personal story; nightmarish monsters plague the heroes, and each one must make a momentous decision or slay a private demon before returning home. This novel speaks to the art of storytelling, the conflict-filled history of the world, and the nature of greed and selfishness. While the ideas translate beautifully from the Dutch, dialogue is occasionally stilted. This book may require some hand-selling, but it's worth the effort.–Sarah Couri, New York Public Library
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Review

"An epic fantasy, original and fresh. Here's the evidence we should be publishing more books in translation. Brilliant." — Michael Morpurgo, Britain's Children's Laureate — Quote

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 12 and up
  
• Hardcover: 640 pages
• Publisher: Candlewick; First U.S. Edition edition (October 11, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0763628808
• ISBN-13: 978-0763628802
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.9 x 2.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,551,700 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Captivating, complex, and original, November 17, 2005

By 

Teenreads.com (New York, NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Dream Merchant (Works in Translation) (Hardcover)

Josh Cope is an ordinary boy, except for four things: he is a collector of strange and unusual objects, he can fall asleep whenever and wherever he wants, he can always remember his dreams, and he is a thief. These skills draw the attention of Gippart International, an organization that has made its fortune selling the most innovative new products for over a thousand years. After answering the simple question "How does one get into, or out of, a dream?" Josh is recruited to help Gippart explore their newest sales territory, umaya, a dream world through which Gippart hopes to unlock the secrets of time.

Umaya is described as being "the collective dream-world of all mankind, made up of the collective dreams and memories of the entire human race." Josh is sent to umaya along with his friend Baz, a drummer, and Teresa, an exceptional teller of tales. Initially, they believe they are there to sell wooden birdcalls, but come to find that Gippart is using them as guinea pigs for an experiment in time travel. After becoming trapped in umaya, the only way they will ever get home is to travel to the "end of time" and make peace between the two legendary founders of the mercantile trade.

THE DREAM MERCHANT, translated from the Dutch, is not a straightforward narrative. The book is long, and takes a winding path to its final destination. This may challenge less patient readers, but rewards those who like a detailed exploration of fantastic worlds. The story is captivating and complex, presenting an original vision cobbled from history, nightmares and imagination.

Philosophical, dream-like, and full of unexpected characters and adventures, THE DREAM MERCHANT will appeal to readers who have enjoyed Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials series, or Philip Reeve's MORTAL ENGINES. Even with a satisfying ending in place, the book asks more questions than it is able to answer, leaving readers thinking about the ideas it presents long after the adventure is finished.

--- Reviewed by Sarah A. Wood

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A beautiful, original read!, March 24, 2006

By 

Toni Masters - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Dream Merchant (Works in Translation) (Hardcover)

This captivating book of Isabel Hovings, displays a whole new era of modern fairy-tale. The magic and adventure in it is beyond words and the characters and plots are well blended in the story. For a long book, every page has depicted a beautiful and interesting, intriguing story half modern-half fairytale.

Josh is an average 12 year old boy who is good at sleeping whenever he wants to too, and stealing items from other people. But when one night the phone rings, Josh gets up to get it, and is thrown into the magical-trading industry of Gippart where he is forced to venture into dream-worlds (umaya) and find the magical tembi- who live in the dawn of time.

This magical book was a captivating read and I reccomend it to all fairy-tale lovers.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars lovley!, December 14, 2007

By 

gaara88 "j" (Pr) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Dream Merchant (Paperback)

i cant believe nobody has reviewed this book. this book is an epic adventure, i guarantee you wll never regret reading this book! filled with suspense, drama, and hours passing like the wind!

this book is beautiful and inspiring.