cover image Dream Quilt

Dream Quilt

Amy Zerner, Jessie Zerner. Tuttle Publishing, $19.95 (96pp) ISBN 978-0-8048-1999-2

Written and illustrated by a mother-and-daughter team, this tale of a magical quilt that unleashes a series of dream adventures doesn't quite hit the mark. Alex, spending a week with a great-aunt, sleeps beneath the quilt, which every night dispatches him into a different fantasy. Princesses, dragons, and animals and insects that talk figure prominently; settings include a world beneath the sea and a medieval play. The text, apparently aiming for an old-fashioned storybook feel, is both overlong and overwritten (``Alex stared at her, round-eyed, but he remembered the young princess and a feeling of bravery swelled his chest''), and the various episodes consequently lose momentum. Amy Zerner's imaginative collages fare better; resembling lush, Victorian valentines, they may appeal to fans of Michael Hague. Previous works by the Zerners include Scheherazade's Cat and Zen ABC. Ages 5-up. (Mar.)