He Who Dreams

by Melanie Florence

Juggling soccer, school, friends and family leaves John with little time for anything else. But one day at the local community center, following the sound of drums, he stumbles into an Indigenous dance class. Before he knows what's happening, John finds himself stumbling through beginner classes with a bunch of little girls, skipping soccer practice and letting his other responsibilities slide. When he attends a pow wow and witnesses a powerful performance, he realizes that he wants to be a dancer more than anything. But the nearest class for boys is at the Native Cultural Center in the city, and he still hasn't told his family or friends about his new passion. If he wants to dance, he will have to stop hiding. Between the mocking of his teammates and the hostility of the boys in his dance class, John must find a way to balance and embrace both the Irish and Cree sides of his heritage.

Genres: Indigenous, Young Adult, Canada, Middle Grade, Fiction, Realistic Fiction, Teen

144 pages, Paperback

Published January 31, 2017

Reviews

[Jordan Lombard · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm definitely not the target audience for this book, I must state right away. That said, I've always recommended Orca's hi/Lo books before to ESL students and reluctant readers, but I've not read one, until this one caught my eye because of a project I'm working on that has me researching a bit of native dance.

It was a good story, though the writing could have been better. I think the story could also have been a bit more fleshed out and longer, but I suppose then it wouldn't be a hi/Lo book, would it? My two annoyances are spoilers, so, you can find them here:

The word "competition" gets used twice, but without any explanation. Is that something John will be doing in the future? It's talked about like it's known he will, by others, but he never talks about it. He only mentions Pow Wows. And what is involved in the competition?

My second annoyance is that John was freely given grand regalia that must have been expensive, but he never uses it officially. Aside from the video that was posted without his knowledge to YouTube, only his teacher saw him in it. To me, that's the equivalent of a gun getting noticed in act one of a mystery and then never going off by the end, which is a huge no-no in the mystery genre.

I'm also wondering why he doesn't have a cell phone like all of his friends. But that's minor, I guess.

[Colette · Rating 4 out of 5]

John is a soccer player with an Irish father and Cree mother. He learns to dance for the Pow Wow but is ridiculed by the other Aboriginal boys thinking he is white and is bullied by his soccer friends for wearing Pow Wow regalia.
This is a high/low novel and would be a great novel to use as a teaching resource since it depicts racism on both sides and is a fast, easy to read book for reluctant readers.

[Marci Laevens · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great book for my classroom library. A plot that kids will connect to with and relate to. Appealing to all students, not just FNMI.

[Karine · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is my book for 2021 about; a book by an indigenous author.

I enjoyed reading this book. I like that the author is indigenous/ canadien. The book was a short read but to the point and good , realistic and written for all ages to read. 3.5⭐️

[Ashley · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was enjoyable. It wasn't anything groundbreaking, and at under 150 pages, I definitely think it could have been longer, but it had heart. I really liked John and his struggles of juggling everything in addition to hiding the secret that he was dancing, it felt very real. I loved his family and how supportive they were, and how well they all got along. And there were so many other great characters, too. (Santee and Sam, John's dance leaders, and Taylor, a young girl in his dance class.) Reading this I really wanted John to succeed, and I even felt a little teary at the end.

I was a little surprised that this wasn't a debut, because the writing felt a little clunky, and like I said, the story could have been fleshed out a bit more. But despite that, it was a nice little book with a great message.

[Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wouldn't say that the writing is the greatest in this Orca Limelights book, however, there are a lot of other things going for it. For one: the main character is biracial with Irish and Cree heritage. I find that there are few books with indigenous peoples in them and as far as I can tell, the information is accurately portrayed - since the author is of Scottish and Cree descent herself.
John looks Irish, not Cree, so when he gets drawn into a Native dance class at the neighborhood cultural center, he gets mocked by those who are more full-blooded Cree and look the part. John has to decide where his priorities lie and how much he wants to dance - plus he has to face his soccer team-mates and tell them why he has not been as present with the team as they would like.
A good hi-lo read with some thought-provoking content.

[Ginger Poulsen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very easy read with a good message.

[Ally Goodwin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quick read on Interesting subject; protagonist is Irish and Cree discovering who he is. very supportive family. if anything negative, too clean and tidy (overly positive)

[eve.lyn._.reads · Rating 2 out of 5]

🎶🪘🪶He Who Dreams🪶🪘🎶
  When bringing his younger sister to art class, John wanders the halls, only to stumble into a class that will change his life forever. He witnesses the girls dancing to the beat of their drum, the atmosphere like a heart beating as one. John discovers a passion that draws him away from his soccer responsibilities, causing tension to rise between him and his fellow teammates. As John pursues his dream to improve his dancing and is inspired by witnessing the dancers at the powwow, he joins a group of dancers. He is soon faced with hostility as the boys treat him differently because he is "too white," laughing at his dreams. John wants to embrace the Cree side of his heritage but struggles when others only see his appearance. A story about dance, passion, and identity.

     I enjoyed the messaging of the story as well as the characters, but the writing felt stilted and awkward at certain points.  The story felt like it had the potential to be something really powerful and impactful, but from my perspective, it overall felt simple and unfinished. John has a passion for soccer that can be seen but not felt. He easily forgets about his practises and doesn't put in 100% effort, which makes the whole part about him really liking soccer feel a lot like something said rather than shown.

John is going through an internal conflict. Many instantly assume he is Irish, not acknowledging his Cree heritage even when he tells others. This makes him feel different compared to his sister, who looks exactly like his mother. The two siblings experience different treatment because of their appearance. His sister is faced with racist comments and insensitive stereotypes being thrown her way. When John explains that he is half Cree, people laugh.

      The beauty of powwows was written in an atmospheric way, but I felt as though this book only brushed the surface. I wanted to know more about John's relationships with his friends and family because it would have added a lovely element to the story. I appreciated the plot, storyline, characters, and message, but something about the writing kept me from fully investing myself. The beginning felt awkward and clunky until it smoothed out, making for an enjoyable story. What mainly made it feel stilted could be the fact that I felt as though the book was heavily plotted. I love a book with a plot, but it felt a lot like the story was following a strict blueprint, where each scene was staged. The way certain things went didn't feel realistic or natural.

    Melanie Florence has written a heartwarming story with this one, so I will try to read some of her other books at a later time!
☑️PLOT
☑️CHARACTERS

[Storytime With Stephanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

He Who Dreams by Melanie Florence, published by Orca Book Publishers is a fabulous mirror/window middle grade novel. John McCaffrey is a typical young man, most likely middle school aged. He loves sports, does alright in school, and is a member of the school soccer team. John's mom is Cree and his dad is Irish. John is the spitting image of his dad, right down to the red hair so when John identifies as Indigenous he is often accused of lying. When he is tasked with dropping his younger sister off at her art lessons at the Community Centre, he hears the call of the drums. Those drums connect John to his roots and have him balancing between his need to dance and his commitment to his soccer team.

He Who Dreams is a book that really requires you to ask questions and face your own biases. John does not look like a typical Indigenous young man, but really what does that even mean. We are so caught up in appearances and identifying people based on their looks instead of what is in their hearts. No one is immune. When John joins a dance group at the Native Cultural Centre, he is once again ostracized because he doesn't look like the rest of the dancers. He is accused of appropriating their culture when in fact it is his culture as well. This story is a great reminder to embrace our culture and really truly seek our connections to our family and our history. Those connections make us whole and provide us with support. In the beginning John struggles with juggling all of his responsibilities: soccer, school, dance, etc. In the end, his connection to his heritage makes him not only physically stronger, but mentally stronger and gives him the courage to acknowledge and own both sides of himself. A fantastic book for anyone who has experienced the hurt of being judged by their appearance and not by their heart,

[Wunderdrugged · Rating 3 out of 5]

This title is nominated for the 2019 Hackmatack Award in the English Fiction category.
John McCaffrey is pretty much your average Canadian kid of mixed heritage (his mother is Cree, and his father is Scottish). He hates math and loves playing on his soccer team. One day at the local community centre he happens upon a dance class, and the drumbeat called out to him. John decides to join a more advanced class so he can learn from other dancers, only to face taunts from his Indigenous classmates because of his light skin and red hair. When one of his soccer teammates exposes him as a dancer, John initially faces some teasing. But all of his dancing improves his physical strength, making him a better soccer player. His confidence bolstered, John confronts his dance class bullies and absolutely blows them away with his new moves.
I really liked how the author dealt with the idea of racism and how harmful it can be when people make assumptions about one another. The ending of the book was probably my favourite part, but I wished that it wasn't the end! Did John compete at the Pow Wow?? I sure hope so!
I enjoyed this book and would recommend it for middle and high school students, but I think it was a little advanced for a Hackmatack book.

[Kristen Woudstra · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted more from this book. The story is a wonderful exploration of honouring culture, exploring identity, and the construct of fitting in. However, Florence has a tendency to tell, rather than show. As a protagonist, John is a bit too self aware of his challenges and what he needs to do to solve them ("I needed to stand up to the boys at the Cultural Centre," he says to himself in the midst of crisis). I also wish that John's connection to his Cree culture was explored more. Has he participated in cultural rites before? Does he already feel like he does not belong? Has his mother shown a desire for him to connect with his roots? Adding more background would have made John more three-dimensional. I also found that the writing was rushed in a way that forced John's problems to magically go away by the power of a single sentence. At one point, he is stretched so thin that he is always late for soccer practice and falling asleep at his desk; as soon as he tells everyone about dances, he can suddenly manage the workload. I was really rooting for this book, but I wish that all the characters and John's internal conflict had been fleshed out far more.

[Adela Bezemer-Cleverley · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book in less than 4 hours, I think--it's a nice short read. I enjoyed the book: it's a good story with a good message about following your calling and celebrating your heritage regardless of how other people treat you. It's also an insight into the experience of a young person of mixed background; Cree and Irish in this case and how they can feel sidelined in both groups of people. I'm giving it three stars (imagine it's a 3.5 really) only because the writing didn't do much for me--it wasn't bad, it just seemed a tad overdramatic when it came to John keeping his dancing a secret in particular. Maybe it's because I'm a dancer and have consumed more dance-related fiction than the average person, but I am no longer particularly interested in the "boy gets teased for dancing and then proves them all wrong" arc. But I think it could be an important story for kids in similar circumstances to read and relate to. Let's change that to a 3.75. Looking back there were only a couple of things about the writing that bugged me. Read it for the story, not for the writing!

[Laura Beam · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely adored this high/low book! It discusses so many important topics within its short chapter book pages: being indigenous, being biracial, being white passing and how that affects you within your indigenous community, hiding your identity, boys loving dance, dancing your cultural dance, and standing up for yourself. I love this book because I think any child who is biracial or who lives on the border between two different identities can relate to the main character. I also love that this book is about a straight boy in high school who loves to dance and wants to learn traditional powwow dancing. I would highly recommend this book to teachers, teens and middle schoolers who are lower reading level but want books about kids their age or older, and really just anyone because the writing was so good and I couldn't put the book down!

[Katy Mulholland · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is written for a younger audience, so while it doesn’t have the artistry and complexity I normally look for in a novel, for its genre it achieves its goal well, hence the five star rating.

This novel takes a contemporary issue and examines it closely and from a variety of angles to become a coming of age novel that can be appreciated by indigenous and non-indigenous people alike. Very rarely do you get to see teen fiction about sports and finding yourself that doesn’t become totally cringy and cliche. This book avoids both of those things while also representing a minority group whose presence in writing is often told through the lens of victimization or tokenism.

A well-balanced read, which I highly recommend for teen readers!

[Kris · Rating 3 out of 5]

I tend to read all of the literature I order for my school library that contains Native or Indigenous characters so that I can recommend those that have positive and non-stereotypical representation. This fits that. The main character is part Irish and part Cree, and since he presents as white, he experiences discrimination for his interest and involvement in Native dance. He has a sister who looks more like their Cree mother, and she experiences discrimination for that.

I particularly liked that his interest in dance is encouraged by his parents and, after some time, others. This is quite simplistically written (appropriately since it is a Hi-Lo book), but I found it engaging, if a bit too neatly wrapped up.

[Specialk · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book has a great message, about how important it is for cultures to maintain their traditions, and to recognize that people can belong to those cultures regardless of their outward appearance. You can’t know someone’s background based on their looks.

But, like most Orca titles, there’s no substance. No real conflict. It’s a book read in an hour, which in a way I enjoy, but I do wish you could more easily find titles that tackle these stories with a little more meat.

[Dr Knox]

This book was a good book to read. However the story was a little all over the place. There was so many good parts in this book. For one: The main character is indigenous. I like that because there aren't many books with indigenous characters that are interesting. For two: The main character plays sports and i love sports. That's what got me interested in the book. For thee: The book was short and an easy read. For me I personally don't like long books. I also love easy to read book.

[Bencramer · Rating 5 out of 5]

He who dreams is a great read for people interested in books about canadian first nations should read it. The book is about a 16 year old irish/cree boy who discovers first nations dancing and really enjoys it. The problem is he's having a hard time juggling schoolwork,dance class and soccer practice. In the end...know what I won't spoil it. if you want to find out what happens guess you'll have to read the book!

[Chalida · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love this story about John, mixed Cree and Irish who struggles to be enough of his Cree culture.
He struggles to embrace who he is publicly and is caught between what people think he should be and who he really is. Beautiful portrayal of Indigenous culture in present day with a biracial character.
Deals with cyberbullying, racism/colorism and identity. Would recommend this book for all teens, but especially readers who struggle and want to read a whole book.

[Veronica · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read for work. A sweet hi-lo read about a White-appearing First Nations boy embracing his heritage. The conflict never becomes very high-stakes but on some level I kind of appreciated that things didn't get blown out of proportion. Plus, a YA protagonist who actually talks to his parents and listens to their sensible advice! It's like seeing a unicorn.

[Michelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was good in that it looked at racism, white privilege, and coming to terms with who you are and what your passion is. It was an extremely quick, easy read. It was almost too easy. I think it would be a great book for reluctant readers. I loved the description of the main character finding his inner warrior and learning to dance.

[Kelsey · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was excited to read a middle grade book with an Indigenous lead character. It was refreshing to have a story with culturally appropriate content by an indigenous author too. That being said, this was written like one of my grade sixes wrote it. It was so simple and basic that I was incredibly bored. I think it will be great for some low readers but it was a dud for me.

[Brian Currie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an exceptional coming of age book to share with any youth who is coming to terms and growing into accepting their multicultural heritage. We all bring great value to this world. All of our heritage is a gift given. It is encourageing to see how we can each help each other grow into our own potentials and gifts.

[Trina · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very easy to read YA that is fairly quick paced (focus split between soccer, dancing and family) and while it certainly deals with racism, the true focus is how learning to dance builds the half Cree boys confidence. Great for positive Indigenous cultural content.

[Lorelei · Rating 3 out of 5]

A short read about a boy trying to fit in and discovering a love for his Cree heritage through dance.
He is lucky to have a loving and supportive family - no judgement, all ears. And he exhibits a dedication that very few do in reality (in my experience) but that still inspires.

[Heather Jennings · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is designed as a quick read without feeling like most hi/low texts. The main character is indigenous but looks like his non-indigenous parent, so there are issues of stereotyping along with bullying in athletics.

[Erika · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great book about belonging and being true to yourself. I will use it as a read-aloud with my grade 7 classes.

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Such an interesting read. I always love to see an experience from a viewpoint that I cannot experience myself.

[Jaime · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fantastic read and story. I could see this being a great book for reluctant older readers. Great message and not a challenging read. It would open a great dialogue too.