Customer Reviews

Past the Size of Dreaming (Red Heart of Memories)

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I loved this book. I'd been looking forward to it for a long time and it lived up to my expectations. Filled with transformations and strange magic, Past the Size of Dreaming continues the story begun in A Red Heart of Memories. Having found Edmond's friend Suki and settled (temporarily) in the magical, sentient house which served as the safe haven for Edmond and his friends during their adolecent years, Edmond and Matt attempt to locate Julio and Deirdre. Matt learns of the events that helped to drive the four friends apart fifteen years earlier through dreams which the magical house sends her. When Edmond tries to find Julio with magic he fails. Leaving Suki and her ghostly boyfriend Nathan (who is trapped in the house except on Holloweens and seances) to keep the house company, Matt and Edmond go in search of Deirdre, who is relatively easy to locate. A drive to the desert finds her ensconced as a small-town, small-animal vet. She is happy to see Edmond but reluctant to return with him to the house. Using their very different magics (Edmond can communicate with the natural world, whereas Matt can communicate with human-made objects) and some common sense, they end up finding everyone, including the twin witch sisters Tasha and Terry and the person Julio has become. Everyone has changed, some more than others. As the friends get to know each other anew, an old enemy begins to move against them. I don't want to give away what happens next, as this book is filled with many fantastic surpises. The writing is supurb and fans of Ms. Hoffmans earlier work will not be disappointed. Be prepaired for an engrossing, beautiful read.

Thanks to Matilda "Matt" Black, a witch with the ability to talk with inanimate objects and see into people's dreams, Edmond has regained his memory. Edmund, a passable witch, and Matt go back to House, a living entity, to see their old friend Nathan the ghost. Obtaining House's blessing, Edmund also brings his childhood friends there for a visit.

Most people on intimate terms with House have been transformed into beings with magical abilities that ultimately attract the attention of an evil sorcerer. He wants to bind this group to him. While the witches fight off the magical attack, Houses confesses that it purposely brought them together to defeat for reasons of its' own.

PAST THE SIZE OF DREAMING, the sequel to A RED HEART OF MEMORIES, is a beautiful story where evil tries to triumph over good. Nina Kiriki Hoffman is a wonderful storyteller who makes the written word sing. The characters, including House, drive the story as the motley crew wins the hearts of readers who will anxiously await the next installment in this fabulous series.

Harriet Klausner

When a house of witches is threatened by a greater power, the group must call in reinforcements from the past and form an even tighter band in order to survive. While familiarity with Hoffman's past titles on the theme will lend a quicker appreciation for the setting here, her fine story will engross even newcomers, filled with imagery and strong characters.

Nina Hoffman is a remarkable writer. Her world and characters will keep you surprised, amazed, and reading. PAST THE SIZE OF DREAMING is a worthy follow-up to A RED HEART OF MEMORIES. Readers who have wondered about Matt and Edmund since the first book will be delighted to find out more; those who have not yet met them will be delighted, too.

I recommend ALL of Hoffman's work. She's one of the most innovative fantasists writing today, and her work has appeal to both adult and teenaged readers, which is no mean feat.

The trilogy following Edmond, Matt, Susan, and House concludes with tons of unanswered questions, and leaves room for a whole mess of sequels. While I like Hoffman's prose and imaginative settings, I can't help but feel disappointed at another ending with so much open. She writes such vivid characters, and yet the story always ends with one problem solved and five more created.

This is the story of the transformation of House, and 'Past the Size of Dreaming' refers to the task set by the House to it's children, which are being gathered by Edmond and Matt in the early book. They are opposed by the warlock who hurt Julio long ago. I don't recommend reading this first, book one -- A Stir of Bones, book two -- A Red Heart of Memories.

I am prejudiced. I read to crawl into the writer's imagination and live their story. Nina can write and be enjoyed regardless of the age group chosen for her market. Enjoy her books and share them with your children and greand children.