Dreamers by Yuyi Morales (review)

In this narrative addressed to her son, the author-illustrator describes the experience of coming to the U.S. with him when he was just a baby, and "there were so many things we didn't know" and "we made lots of mistakes." Then, in her wanderings around San Francisco with her baby in a stroller, she happened on the library ("a place we had never seen before. … Unbelievable. Surprising") and fell in love with it ("Books became our home"). Those books inspired her own creativity as she and her son learned to "make our voices heard." Understanding this as a creator's own story is key to its resonance; the gently hopeful text offers its best optimism when rooted in Morales' own experience. The immersive magical reality of the art is the real glory here; the mixed-media illustrations, including acrylic paint, drawing, and bits of collage, are full-bleed spreads that depict the library as a milieu every bit as startling and novel to the speaker as the U.S. itself. The visual demonstration of creativity begetting creativity, as both the female figure and her little boy begin to draw and make books, is also eminently satisfying. This has potential for use as an imaginative author/illustrator bio and also as an entrée to audience creativity, perhaps alongside Pietromarchi's craftily inspiring The Book Book (BCCB 2/08). A more straightforward account of Morales' experience concludes the work, and a list of books that inspired her (many identifiably depicted in the art) is included, as is a vibrant explanation of the story behind her artistic elements and choices. DS