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186th out of 199 books
—
477 voters
Dreamrider
by
Barry Jonsberg (Goodreads Author)
Michael Terny is at his seventh school in four years and he knows that whatever he does, he will be ridiculed and pushed around. Michael is the fat kid. But Michael is also a lucid dreamer–he can recognize when he is dreaming and make the dream unfold exactly as he wants. Here he is safe and completely in control. Safe that is, until he finds the dream world and real world...more
Hardcover, 256 pages
Published
February 12th 2008
by Knopf Books for Young Readers
(first published June 1st 2006)
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You can read more reviews at my blog, The Armchair Librarian!
This book takes the "it was all just a dream" trope and turns it on its head, and I'm trying to decide if that's a good thing. I'm still not sure what to make of Dreamrider as a whole. It's...
Strange.
Dreamrider starts out strong, about a boy named Michael who's overweight, has changed schools about seven times, and has a major problem with bullies. Michael is a lucid dreamer, which means he can take total control over his dreams. The...more
This book takes the "it was all just a dream" trope and turns it on its head, and I'm trying to decide if that's a good thing. I'm still not sure what to make of Dreamrider as a whole. It's...
Strange.
Dreamrider starts out strong, about a boy named Michael who's overweight, has changed schools about seven times, and has a major problem with bullies. Michael is a lucid dreamer, which means he can take total control over his dreams. The...more
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This book could start some great discussions about bullying in a high school setting. Apart from that... Spoiler alert! I can't describe my reactions to this book without revealing the plot, so if you don't want advance information, then just move along, folks.
While I got involved with the protagonist, felt the poignancy of his situation, and appreciated the issues brought forth, Dreamrider can't handle everything it tries to contain. Author Jonsberg tackles bullying, grief, dysfunctional paren...more
While I got involved with the protagonist, felt the poignancy of his situation, and appreciated the issues brought forth, Dreamrider can't handle everything it tries to contain. Author Jonsberg tackles bullying, grief, dysfunctional paren...more
Dreamrider caught my eye on the desk of a seventh grader. There was a time when I was obsessed with dreams, and the thought of living in a controllable, lucid dreamworld was fascinating.
The premise of Dreamrider has promise: a bullied, overweight high schooler finds solace in his dreams. According to the book jacket, the story has a plot twist comparable with the one in The Sixth Sense. I'll say that it was certainly a twist, although not entirely predictable, and not entirely shocking either.
Th...more
The premise of Dreamrider has promise: a bullied, overweight high schooler finds solace in his dreams. According to the book jacket, the story has a plot twist comparable with the one in The Sixth Sense. I'll say that it was certainly a twist, although not entirely predictable, and not entirely shocking either.
Th...more
I thought this book sounded interesting, but it was just.. weird. The book is about this boy named Michael Terny who can 'ride' dreams. I don't know if he can actually, but apparently lucid dreaming is real, but he can like make things happen in his dream happen in real life later on. He explains it like a Möbius strip. I love anything doing with Physics so I thought that was interesting, but really.. at the end, I was really confused. Apparently, all his "friends" weren't really real.. they wer...more
This was another book that I've read over the summer and it was quite intresting because it showed how a boy went threw a total life change. This boy Micheal lived threw alot of hell when he moved with his family to a new place. He went to a new school and of course since he was smaller then everyone else he got picked on by all the school bullies. He would come home everyday telling his father that he was picked on and his father would tell him to fight back and stand up for himself because it...more
This was definitely a strange read, not necessarily through the whole book but certainly towards the end. It was okay, I wouldn't read it again but it wasn't terrible. I liked the characters especially Martin and Mary, but then those last few pages just throw you for a whirl. I liked it but it wasn't really my taste, there are some things that I still don't quite understand but it did not intrigue me enough to go back and try to figure it out. If you like weird, then I think you would like this...more
Apr 30, 2012
Bryton
is currently reading it
I started reading this book about two weeks ago and I am liking it so far. I'll have to admit it is a little confusing in the beginning because Michael is a dreamer and the book shifts back and forth between dreams and reality. Michael is a fat boy and gets picked on a lot. So he moved to a new school to try to get away from all that. But this school is weird like how his homeroom teacher does this strange coin trick and the bully is also his friend. Right now michael is trying to find his place...more
I read this last year, & it popped into my head because I have a student reading it now who freaked out about the ending. I think the book works with a well-worn concept, but does so interestingly. When I got to the end, I felt I had heard this story before, but not quite this way, & that was pretty good.
I like the main character a lot, & I love Jonsberg's descriptions of the main character's dreamlife. I think it's definitely worth checking out, if only to practice giving your readi...more
I like the main character a lot, & I love Jonsberg's descriptions of the main character's dreamlife. I think it's definitely worth checking out, if only to practice giving your readi...more
Dreamrider by Barry Jonsberg Book Review
by Max Pawlick
I originally picked up this book because the title of Dreamrider caught my eye. Dreaming is one of the most interesting topics out there. The book was not at all what I expected, from the first line of the book, "I killed two kids at school today." to the last lines which leave the reader furiously turning back pages to understand the ending.
The main character and lone narrator of the book is a boy named Michael Terny, a sophomore in high...more
by Max Pawlick
I originally picked up this book because the title of Dreamrider caught my eye. Dreaming is one of the most interesting topics out there. The book was not at all what I expected, from the first line of the book, "I killed two kids at school today." to the last lines which leave the reader furiously turning back pages to understand the ending.
The main character and lone narrator of the book is a boy named Michael Terny, a sophomore in high...more
Nov 13, 2012
Jennifer Wardrip
rated it
5 of 5 stars
Shelves:
trt-posted-reviews,
trt-gold-star-award-winner
Reviewed by Allison Fraclose for TeensReadToo.com
As a lucid dreamer, Michael Terny can control the direction of his dreams, and, over the difficult years since his mother's death, he's used that ability to escape the harsh realities of his life. While tucked away in his dreams, it only takes that one little difference, that blip on the screen for him to recognize, to bring him into control. Then, he's no longer the hopeless fat kid who suffers the same fate at each new school, that same tiring c...more
As a lucid dreamer, Michael Terny can control the direction of his dreams, and, over the difficult years since his mother's death, he's used that ability to escape the harsh realities of his life. While tucked away in his dreams, it only takes that one little difference, that blip on the screen for him to recognize, to bring him into control. Then, he's no longer the hopeless fat kid who suffers the same fate at each new school, that same tiring c...more
'Dreamrider' is a thought provoking read, one that does not give you a definite answer. It questioned the ability of imagined happenings crossing over to the real world. How much of the dreamworld that crossed over will affects us greatly? I like the situation in this book, how the main character grew out of that fear of being bullied in school. Probably his way of dishing out justice wasn't the best way but I did like the character development in this one. The ending was quite a twist, the fac...more
This book is about a boy namd Michael, who moves to a new house, and of course he has to get adapted to his new school and make new friends. In school he gets bullied because hes smaller then the rest of the kids. Micheal would tell father this, and he would tell him to fight back, but hes not the type of person to start drama. The rest of the book is about Michael becoming a stronger man and learning how to stand up and defend himself.
This book was awful. My mom had checked it out at random and initially it looked kind of interesting, but it was actually about a bullied kid who is a lucid dreamer. It was creepy, pointless, and stupid. I didn't even finish. It was probably the worst book I have ever read. If I could rate it zero stars I would. Just plain weird.
Sep 29, 2009
Brooke Ingraham
added it
This book seemed like it would be relly cool, and it was. At first. But the more into the story i got, the more weird and confusing it got. It jumped around A LOT and I quite confused throughout. I wouldn't recomend Dreamrider if you have a hard time following a story.
I loved the writing in this book. It was fascinating to me. I have to admit though that it could have ended better; the end was confusing to me.
like magic buut it was alittle more confusing until the end.
id recommend this book to anyone that finds dreaming books fascinating.
id recommend this book to anyone that finds dreaming books fascinating.
Ok I guess. Slower paced, kind of confusing, but it makes a little more sense at the end. Well, the reason for confusion is.
The twist was a bit surprising, though I figured it out a lot earlier than I was supposed to. Good book!
Disturbing and interesting and you don't realize you've taken the red pill until the very end.
Im not saying it wasn't a good book but not to interesting and a little bit hard to follow.
This was a super-fast read for me. I thoroughly enjoyed the premise of the young bullied protagonist being able to "control" his dreams. I admit I did have to flip back and re-read some passages as I had "ah-ha!" moments. Being a huge fan of the show "Perception," this book reminded me quite a bit of it.
Compelling and dark, this book was a page turner, despite its length.
One of my favorites! Hopeful and heartbreaking, simple as that.
This book was interesting. I like books about lucid dreams, but in this one I couldn't figure out if it was a dream or if it was real life. At the end I figured out its all the same, but I was really confused at the end. It was an okay book.
~Tori
~Tori
Oct 18, 2010
Theodora
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
Lacey, Carolyn
Shelves:
young-adult,
books10
This book was pretty fun. I always love dream stories.
Nov 26, 2008
Cristian Gonzalez
is currently reading it
I barely started reading this book
Have you ever had a lucid dream - a dream where you realize that you are in control of everything that happens? Michael Terny discovers that he can not only control his lucid dreams, but use them to alter reality. He uses his power to cure a woman's brain tumor, and also to get revenge on the school bullies. So why is it a horror novel? Read it to discover the chilling twist at the end!
For those who are interested in lucid dreaming, try reading the fabulous "The Lathe of Heaven" by Ursula K. LeG...more
For those who are interested in lucid dreaming, try reading the fabulous "The Lathe of Heaven" by Ursula K. LeG...more
not what i expected more like boring!!!!!
This book is very fascinating. I think it is great.
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| Which are real? | 1 | 1 | Sep 09, 2011 08:44am |
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“You're learning. So why don't we stop pretending? It's so much easier when you give up all those illusions and realize that the only justice you'll get in this life is the justice you dish out. It's a dog-eat-dog world out there, mate. You need to sharpen your teeth. Don't get angry. Get even.”
—
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