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I always look forward to new picture books from Polly Dunbar<\/a><\/strong> (who visited 7-Imp<\/a><\/strong> back in ’08). <\/p>\n Arthur awakes one morning to recall an amazing dream. He’s got a sailboat on the mind — in more ways than one. He’s dreamt of one, not to mention there is a tiny sailboat perched on his head. (“A few years ago,” Dunbar notes in the book’s back-flap bio, “I was sitting on Brighton beach, looking out to sea. There was a small boy in the water and a boat far away on the horizon. For one magic moment, the boat looked as though it was perched on the boy’s head. I remember thinking, I’m the only one who can see that boat on his head; it must be a dream boat. And I drew a quick sketch.”) <\/p>\n He sets out to tell family members about his “amazing” dream, but no one is quite listening. Observant readers will notice that the boat is increasingly embellished with features he sees on or near his own family members—the rainbow-colored fish food his mother is tossing into the aquarium becomes the “polka-dotted sails,” and the baby food his sister is flinging around the kitchen becomes the “golden flag”—as well as other nautical clues, including a message in a bottle on the family’s kitchen table. <\/p>\n Finally, in a large, dramatic font we see the young boy yell, “DREAM BOAT!” (at the height of his irritation at having been ignored) with quite the<\/em> fanciful (and fully-fledged) boat of the imagination perched atop his noggin. <\/p>\n Finally, the family sees it, followed by … <\/p>\n Here the book shifts, as his family is out in the waters where his boat sails, calling “Ahoy!” Don’t fret; everyone’s happy. “ALL ABOARD!” Arthur calls, as you can see in this post’s opening spread. Whew. Now the whole family’s on the boat, actually paying attention to each other and enjoying one another’s company. <\/p>\n On the final endpages, we see Arthur perched in the water, asleep. Is it all in his head? Which part was a dream? Which part wasn’t? Was the entire<\/em> thing a dream? <\/p>\n The answers don’t really matter. It’s the journey itself that does. <\/p>\n As Kirkus<\/em> noted, Polly Dunbar knows how to get your attention (just as the boy does) with these mixed media illustrations. The transition to the ocean setting near the book’s close is especially pleasing, as she slows things down and lets the book breathe with a couple of “shh” spreads, as the boy ponders entering the waters. And, as noted, she has rewards for discerning eyes all throughout the tale. <\/p>\n It’s an entertaining flight of the imagination, as well as a great read-aloud. As Publisher’s Weekly<\/em> writes, there’s a “sizable bookshelf of titles that bear witness to the power of a child\u2019s imagination,” but this one does it up well. <\/p>\n ARTHUR\u2019S DREAM BOAT. Copyright \u00a9 2012 by Polly Dunbar. Reproduced by permission of the publisher, Candlewick Press, Somerville, MA on behalf of Walker Books, London.<\/em><\/p>\n Note for any new readers: 7-Imp\u2019s 7 Kicks is a weekly meeting ground for taking some time to reflect on Seven(ish) Exceptionally Fabulous, Beautiful, Interesting, Hilarious, or Otherwise Positive Noteworthy Things from the past week, whether book-related or not, that happened to you. New kickers are always welcome. <\/p>\n First of all, Happy Earth Day<\/strong><\/font>, dear imps. <\/p>\n![](\"http:\/\/blaine.org\/jules\/adboatcover1.jpg\")
Kirkus<\/em> calls her newest, Arthur’s Dream Boat<\/a><\/em><\/strong>, released by Candlewick in February, a “real attention-getter.” In this book, Dunbar asks child readers to consider what is real and what is but a dream. <\/p>\n![](\"http:\/\/blaine.org\/jules\/9780763658670final.jpg\")
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