In my dreams I can fly

Eveline Hasler

Book - 2009

When cold weather arrives, five friends (a grub, a beetle, two worms and a caterpillar) prepare for the winter. They amuse themselves in conversation and by playing games. But a little caterpillar only wants to sleep and dream.

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jE/Hasler
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Location Call Number   Status
Children's Room jE/Hasler Checked In
Subjects
Genres
Picture books
Published
New York : NorthSouth c2009.
Language
English
German
Main Author
Eveline Hasler (-)
Other Authors
Käthi Bhend (illustrator)
Item Description
Originally published as: Im Traum kann ich fliegen. Zürich, Switzerland : NordSüd Verlag, 2008.
Physical Description
unpaged : col. ill. ; 27 cm
ISBN
9780735822597
Contents unavailable.
Review by Booklist Review

A meditative sense of mystery sets this book apart. It is autumn, and five friends a grub, two worms, a beetle, and a caterpillar are hunkering down. Their regular card games at the grub's place give way to stockpiling their holes for the winter freeze. Bhend's cut-away vision of this miniature underworld is a scraggly, cramped, cluttered, yet somehow cozy maze daubed in soft, muted colors and festooned with twisting vines that reach beyond each rectangular frame. It has a gently magical, early-Disney feel also reflected in the straightforward prose. For a time, the story seems to revel in its warm feelings without going anywhere, but then Hasler reveals two surprises: the onion the grub has hidden has pushed above ground and flowered, and the caterpillar has vanished, leaving behind a silken cocoon. After summer thaws the icy ground, the creatures find the caterpillar now a butterfly hovering near the flower, reflecting the grub's dreams of being able to fly. An earnest, unfettered effort with enough visual detail to win over all kinds of readers and listeners.--Kraus, Daniel Copyright 2009 Booklist

From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review

Hasler's story of five wintering insects has many virtues-believable characters, lighthearted humor, and dreamy reflection among them-and Bhend's intricate artwork adds to the pleasure (the two previously collaborated on A Tale of Two Brothers). A beetle, two worms and a grub have gathered food, though a caterpillar, who gathers only thread, says, "I don't need food. All I need are dreams." Throughout the winter, the five play cards and gossip: "I dream every night too," the grub tells the caterpillar. "In my dreams I can fly." Changes unsettle the group as winter draws to an end-caterpillar can't be found-but spring brings transformation and discovery. Bhend's paintings, cross-sections of life underground, are united visually by the roots that spread like nerves through the soil, echoing the insects' sensitive feelings. Candlelight illuminates the friends' burrows, walnut and snail shells hold their food stores, while above leaves fly, snow falls, and flowers bloom, all in lacelike detail. The overall feeling is one of depth, and not just because the book takes place underground; it offers much to pore over and contemplate. Ages 3-up. (Jan.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved

(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review

PreS-K--As the snowy winter settles, five friend--a grub, a beetle, a caterpillar, and two worms--play cards and share the steps they have taken to prepare for winter underground. The worms and the beetle have collected food to support them in the cold days and as time passes on, the caterpillar spins itself in a warm and colorful cocoon, where it can dream. This picture book will capture preschoolers' imaginations as they glance at the underground homes of these invertebrates. There is a small mishap involving an onion, which is actually a flower bulb, but mostly these are soothing underground scenes. Following a palette of soft colors, interrupted only by the bright marks on the beetle's body, the illustrations offer great details for readers to discover in a compact story time setting or at home. Although caregivers might need to explain that the caterpillar does not need food when it hangs upside down in the cocoon, readers will delight in uncovering that after winter comes the spring and with it butterflies and sprouting vegetables and flowers. VERDICT A wonderfully pleasing picture book that could be used in a preschool sessions covering the seasons and invertebrates.--Kathia Ibacache, Univ. of Colorado Boulder

(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review

A simple story spreads like frosting over weighty themes. It's a classic architecture, which allows for slicing as deep as readers can handle, and Hasler works it straightforwardly. On the surface, she presents five friends living underground for the winter months. Two worms, a grub, a caterpillar and a beetle show each other their digs and their supplies. They entertain each other; they witness strange happenings that create suspense and one of them behaves selfishly, which will come back to bite him, but all is patted smooth when Spring reveals her secrets. Peel back the layers and readers will find issues of survival, change and communal responsibility, as well as the importance of dreams, especially when they may be intuitions of the future. The prose keeps a steady beat to the story's voice"Every third evening, the friends played cards together in the grub's home among the roots"letting readers invest them with emotion, and Bhend's jewel-like artwork treads the line between cozy and precarious. If no new ground has been broken, it has certainly been turned with discernment. (Picture book. 3-8) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.