Silas and the Marvellous Misfits

Erika, Beastling, Silas, Wade and Sim, otherwise known as the Dream Defenders, are a team of covert agents who enter children’s dreams to rid them of night-time worries. Silas is usually upbeat and optimistic, but while on a mission to help a boy who feels controlled by his parents, he is reminded of his own domineering family, the Glooms, and has a crisis of confidence.

Returning home to face his family in the chilling Citadel of Umbra, Silas’s cheerful personality is soon quashed, as he is pressured into behaving the same as everyone else. When his friends race to rescue him, they realise they must prevent the Glooms from infiltrating human dreams, leaving people feeling sad, hopeless and dejected, but time is running out.

This is the third book in the Dream Defenders series and would benefit from being read in sequence. The imaginative Dreamscape setting, short chapters and lively black-and-white illustrations make it an engaging tale for young junior readers, which celebrates individualism and promotes emotional wellbeing.

Selected as a Marcus Rashford Book Club title, the book is supported by a Teacher’s Pack from the National Literacy Trust, which features lesson plans and curriculum activities for children in Years 2-4.