Dream Defenders: Erika and the Anger Mare
by Tom Percival
Interest age: 6 to 8
Reading age: 6+
Published by Macmillan Children's Books, 2020
About this book
After storming off to bed upset and in a terrible mood, Erika wakes up in the most incredible place ever: there are rainbow-coloured trees, super bouncy grass and waterfalls that flow up instead of down.
She’s in the world of dreams, run by the magical Dream Defenders and powered by dream crystal. But a bunch of fanged fluffballs have invaded her dream and are eating their way through all the crystal! When the dream disintegrates, Erika finds herself caught in the Dreamscape instead of waking up.
Fortunately, the Dream Defenders are there to help. But they have stolen the one thing that will be able to get Erika home: an exceptionally powerful dream crystal. She and her new friends must track them down and get it back before the end of this dream cycle, otherwise Erika will be stuck in the Dreamscape forever.
An energetic adventure, with two-colour illustrations throughout and relatively short, manageable chapters for younger readers. Whilst the story is set in a fun alternative world, Percival manages to cleverly weave in themes of emotional care, as Erika’s bad mood also attracts a dangerous Angermare and she has to learn to manage her own anger in order to defeat it.
Note: This book was previously titled Dream Team: Attack of the Heebie Jeebies.
About the author
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Chapter books with colour illustrations
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