The Wondercurrent

J. R. Parks's The Wondercurrent is a dreamy fantasy adventure for 8 year olds about a girl who can wake up inside her own dreams.

What happens

Rella is seven. Her mother left on a secret mission for the Storykeeper's Alliance when Rella was four, and she hasn't been heard from since. Six months ago her father went to look for her. Now Rella lives with her young Uncle J.

Her world isn't a cheerful one. In her village storybooks are banned, drones watch the streets, and families keep their books in hidden libraries. Rella carries them to and fro in her mother's old satchel.

But Rella has a gift. She knows when she's dreaming, and she can usually change things. A monster becomes a bunny. She fancies a pear and there it is on the branch.

Then a girl with golden braids turns up in one of her dreams. She's a dream traveller from a world called Hleo, and she needs help against a shape-shifting villain named Archimago, who wants everyone to forget their stories.

It's a book for children who love words. Rella adores old words (chivalric is a favourite). Her father taught her that a pen can be stronger than a sword, which is where her secret hero name, Rella PenSword, comes from. The narrator chats to you, the reader, now and then too, which gives it a cosy, storytelling feel.

There's sadness underneath the magic. Rella misses her parents badly and sometimes doubts she'll see her dad again. The shadow-puppet game her mum taught her is a small, touching thread through the early chapters.

It isn't always a straightforward read. The dream scenes drift and shift the way real dreams do, so a reader who likes a straight line from A to B might need a little patience. A child who loves getting lost in a strange, colourful world will be very happy here.

What to read next

If they love the idea that stories can be places you live in, try Tilly and the Bookwanderers, about another girl whose mum vanished long ago, growing up above her grandparents' bookshop with characters who feel more real to her than most people.