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John Midas #2
John Midas in the Dreamtime
While visiting the site of sacred cave paintings in the middle of the Australian outback, John Midas slips back thousands of years and finds himself among a prehistoric aboriginal tribe
Library Binding
First published January 1, 1986
About the author
Patrick Skene Catling
27 books49 followersPatrick Skene Catling is a British children's book author and book reviewer best known for writing The Chocolate Touch in 1952.
Catling was born and schooled in London and was educated there and at Oberlin College in the United States. Catling served in the Royal Canadian Air Force as a navigator and as a journalist at The Baltimore Sun and The Manchester Guardian.
He has traveled extensively. His present home is in the Republic of Ireland. He continues writing books, and writes reviews for The Spectator, The Telegraph, and other publications.
His first publication of The Chocolate Touch in 1952 received enthusiastic responses from several reviewers. The New York Herald Tribune remarked, "it has already proved a hilarious success with children," and The Saturday Review said, "it is told with an engaging humor that boys and girls will instantly discover and approve." Catling has since written dozens of books, and has developed the popular The Chocolate Touch character John Midas into the children's book series: John Midas in the Dreamtime (1986), John Midas and the Vampires (1994), John Midas and the Radio Touch (1994), and John Midas and the Rock Star (1995). Of John Midas in the Dreamtime, School Library Journal wrote, "...children who have been dragged around tourist sights will relate to John's boredom".
Catling was born and schooled in London and was educated there and at Oberlin College in the United States. Catling served in the Royal Canadian Air Force as a navigator and as a journalist at The Baltimore Sun and The Manchester Guardian.
He has traveled extensively. His present home is in the Republic of Ireland. He continues writing books, and writes reviews for The Spectator, The Telegraph, and other publications.
His first publication of The Chocolate Touch in 1952 received enthusiastic responses from several reviewers. The New York Herald Tribune remarked, "it has already proved a hilarious success with children," and The Saturday Review said, "it is told with an engaging humor that boys and girls will instantly discover and approve." Catling has since written dozens of books, and has developed the popular The Chocolate Touch character John Midas into the children's book series: John Midas in the Dreamtime (1986), John Midas and the Vampires (1994), John Midas and the Radio Touch (1994), and John Midas and the Rock Star (1995). Of John Midas in the Dreamtime, School Library Journal wrote, "...children who have been dragged around tourist sights will relate to John's boredom".
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
June 15, 2019
Dated, of course. Most obviously, Uluru is still called Ayers Rock. There's also a silly kangaroo that doesn't know how to jump, and a silly band of prehistoric aboriginals that don't have fire (which irl they have had for probably tens of thousands of years, and a platypus near Uluru. Otoh, there are many details about Australia that do seem accurate (or, at least, that were at the time the book was published).
And the treatment of the aboriginal people seems, in general, to be reasonably respectful. However, though they are not childlike or stereotyped, they are impossibly ignorant and John teaches them a whole lot of stuff.
I really liked the illustrations. A very quick read but, given the 'white savior' trope, not recommended.
And the treatment of the aboriginal people seems, in general, to be reasonably respectful. However, though they are not childlike or stereotyped, they are impossibly ignorant and John teaches them a whole lot of stuff.
I really liked the illustrations. A very quick read but, given the 'white savior' trope, not recommended.
April 2, 2020
Meh. No where near as good as the first book.
Cleanliness: some slight aboriginal magic (not really discussed) and going back in time are used to bring about this adventure. John bickers with his family and whines fairly regularly too.
**Like my reviews? Then you should follow me! Because I have hundreds more just like this one. With each review, I provide a Cleanliness Report, mentioning any objectionable content I come across so that parents and/or conscientious readers (like me) can determine beforehand whether they want to read a book or not. Content surprises are super annoying, especially when you’re 100+ pages in, so here’s my attempt to help you avoid that!
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Cleanliness: some slight aboriginal magic (not really discussed) and going back in time are used to bring about this adventure. John bickers with his family and whines fairly regularly too.
**Like my reviews? Then you should follow me! Because I have hundreds more just like this one. With each review, I provide a Cleanliness Report, mentioning any objectionable content I come across so that parents and/or conscientious readers (like me) can determine beforehand whether they want to read a book or not. Content surprises are super annoying, especially when you’re 100+ pages in, so here’s my attempt to help you avoid that!
So Follow or Friend me here on GoodReads! You’ll see my updates as I’m reading and know which books I’m liking and what I’m not finishing and why. You’ll also be able to utilize my library for looking up titles to see whether the book you’re thinking about reading next has any objectionable content or not. From swear words, to romance, to bad attitudes (in children’s books), I cover it all!
July 5, 2025
Boring, but also racist.
I just reread The Chocolate Touch and was intrigued to find that it has four sequels that nobody's ever heard of, written thirty years after the original. I'm really curious about what the story is there.
The Chocolate Touch is a charming tale of horror and the consequences of excess. John Midas in the Dreamtime is a two generic stories in one. The book starts off as a late entry in the (usually very boring) children's travel genre that really peaked before World War I, where two generic children go to visit a country and walk around sightseeing and talking like an encyclopedia. John's sister Mary is a big help here, because she reads books and John doesn't, so she has to tell him Australia facts, which he resents. John is a different child than the boy in The Chocolate Touch. He's gone from being a sensitive, respectful kid of the '50s to an '80s brat. It's sad, that literature went in that direction.
John's family is visiting Uluru and he disrespects the aboriginal people by going into one of the caves tunneled in the rock, but, surprise!, he comes out into prehistory. First thing, he teaches a kangaroo to hop, and then he meets a group of aborigines and teaches them fire, better ways to hunt, and the boomerang. He learns nothing. It's stupid, obviously. For so many reasons. Short book, but a massive waste of time, unless you're studying stereotypes about prehistoric and non-European peoples in children's literature; then it's a treasure trove.
I just reread The Chocolate Touch and was intrigued to find that it has four sequels that nobody's ever heard of, written thirty years after the original. I'm really curious about what the story is there.
The Chocolate Touch is a charming tale of horror and the consequences of excess. John Midas in the Dreamtime is a two generic stories in one. The book starts off as a late entry in the (usually very boring) children's travel genre that really peaked before World War I, where two generic children go to visit a country and walk around sightseeing and talking like an encyclopedia. John's sister Mary is a big help here, because she reads books and John doesn't, so she has to tell him Australia facts, which he resents. John is a different child than the boy in The Chocolate Touch. He's gone from being a sensitive, respectful kid of the '50s to an '80s brat. It's sad, that literature went in that direction.
John's family is visiting Uluru and he disrespects the aboriginal people by going into one of the caves tunneled in the rock, but, surprise!, he comes out into prehistory. First thing, he teaches a kangaroo to hop, and then he meets a group of aborigines and teaches them fire, better ways to hunt, and the boomerang. He learns nothing. It's stupid, obviously. For so many reasons. Short book, but a massive waste of time, unless you're studying stereotypes about prehistoric and non-European peoples in children's literature; then it's a treasure trove.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews