The Dream Walker

by Victoria Carless

The weight of a secret can drag you under . . .

Sixteen-year-old Lucy Hart has been counting the days till she can get the hell out of Digger's Landing - a small Queensland fishing hamlet home to fifteen families, a posse of mongrel dogs, and Parkers Corner Store (no apostrophe and nowhere near a corner).

But just like the tides, Lucy's luck is on the turn, and as graduation nears her escape plans begin to falter; her best friend, Polly, is dropping out of school to help pay the bills, and Tom has been shipped off to boarding school, away from the flotsam of this place. And then there's Lucy's nightlife, which is filled with dreams that just don't seem to belong to her at all . . .

When the fish stop biting, like they did when her mum was still around, Lucy realises she isn't the only one with a secret.

Genres: Young Adult, Family, Young Adult Contemporary, Crime, Contemporary

266 pages, Paperback

First published June 27, 2017

About the author

Victoria grew up in a small town on the North Queensland coast, and spent weekends on the water in a tinnie with her family. She is a published playwright, having written and produced seven plays since 2006. Her Queensland Theatre Company award-winning script, 'The Rainbow Dark,' was published in the Staging Asylum collection by Currency Press in 2013. She holds a PhD in creative writing and regularly contributes contemporary performance reviews to Real Time magazine. She is a graduate of the 2015 QWC/Hachette Manuscript Development Program.

'The Dream Walker' is her first novel.

Reviews

[Cass Moriarty · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s so refreshing to discover a new Australian voice, and all the better if it’s a YA author, because the issues explored tend to be weighty but the style is usually light, easy to read and peppered with humour. The Dream Walker (Lothian Hachette Australia Books 2017), the debut novel by Victoria Carless, is a heartening story set in a familiar landscape and told with originality and wit.
Lucy Hart is 16 and cannot wait to finish Year 12 and get out of the small community of Diggers Landing (population 15 families). The setting and environment of this book is very well described. Diggers Landing is a small fishing village on the Queensland coast, and fishing is about the only occupation. The visceral odours of fishing, along with the sounds and smells of the weather, are evoked in a way that puts the reader firmly there in a tin shack, with a posse of mongrel dogs sniffing around, and everyone knowing everybody else’s business.
The opening lines of the book are the best I have read in a while:
‘People around here say my father killed my mum. Not in a murdering sort of way, with a gun or anything. But in a leaving a dog on a chain too long kind of way.’
You would think there would be no secrets in such a town, and yet the death of Lucy’s mother a year earlier seems shrouded in mystery that she cannot penetrate. Her father has retreated into his own solitary world, her grandparents seem a part of her far away past, and she is beginning to question her friends’ loyalty and motivations. She and her best friend Polly dream of escaping to the big smoke as soon as school is finished, but the town has them firmly in its clutches. Her romantic interest, Tom, is an enigma, and part of the loveliness of this story is the innocent development of the relationship between them. Other characters are well-drawn and interesting: the various members of the dysfunctional Lawler family, Mrs Parker from the corner store, the local bus driver – all contribute to a rich portrait of this struggling community.
Overlaying Lucy’s conflict with the locals and her father’s odd behaviour is the surreal notion that she is dream walking – literally walking into her dreams. I won’t give away too much here, but this adds a slightly spooky dimension to the narrative, as Lucy tries to investigate the meaning of her own disturbing dreams, and how they are linked with others. At the heart of the story is the question of what really happened to her mum, and why the locals shun her father, and so it is vital that she uncovers aspects of their shared history.
The language of the book is worth mentioning. At first, I was a bit deterred by the sheer number of Aussie slang phrases and expressions that punctuate every sentence. But as I forged deeper into the story, the language began to roll around me in a comforting and familiar way, enveloping me in the time and place, and most importantly, strengthening my bonds with the characters, who are all as Aussie as they come. The language is witty and funny; this is exactly the sort of community that gives us the small-town stereotypes that flourish in our literature. The language, and the backwardness of the locals’ attitudes, present a picture that is immediately familiar to anyone who has grown up in a small town. And anyone who has ever yearned to escape such a small town will recognise the boundaries – both real and imagined – that fence off those within from those outside.

[Trisha · Rating 4 out of 5]

Much to ponder here. Great sense of setting and landscape. Fresh voice. A magic surrealism element (not covered by my shelves).

[Kelly (Diva Booknerd) · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 Stars.
Digger's Landing is a barren landscape of decrepit dwellings, residents livelihoods flowing with the tides of the local creek that sustains the small coastal town. Sixteen year old Lucy Hart is grieving for her spontaneous and spirited mother, her body salvaged from the water forsaking those she leaves behind. Lucy walks among the subconscious minds of slumbering Digger's Landing residents, observing their aspirations and desires sharing a prevailing theme. Lucy's mother.

Digger's Landing is an underprivileged socioeconomic community in Far North Queensland and sustained by the local creek. Lucy and her widowed father are residents of the predominantly Australian and Indigenous Australian community, where the emphasis is placed upon labour of the land rather than education in order to support those living in impoverished conditions. Lucy aspires to leave Digger's Landing, displaced since the suicide of her mother while her father is disengaged. The relationship between Lucy and her father is constrained and Lucy feels progressively isolated.

I enjoyed the friendship between Lucy and friend Polly, a wonderful young lady who is believed to be Indigenous or Torres Strait Islander. While Lucy continues her education, Polly abandons school to financially support her family. Mutual friend Tom is an interesting character and potential love interest for Lucy. Comparatively, all three adolescents experience the burden of parental expectations of varying degrees.

The magical realism elements were captivating. Since a car accident months prior, Lucy has been able to walk among the dreamers of Digger's Landing as a bystander. It's through the subconscious minds of others where she is able to see her mother, a woman who had a profound effect on the small coastal community. The narrative also explores impoverishment, suicide, environmental sustainability and parental neglect. Often confronting whilst challenging the privilege of readers.

The rural location was breathtaking and incredibly atmospheric, although I found the narrative languished at times and was disappointed the Indigenous Australian aspect wasn't further explored. The Dream Walker is a confident and enchanting debut novel from a fresh and wonderful new voice in Australian young adult literature.

[ALPHAreader · Rating 5 out of 5]

NOTE: I was sent the manuscript of this book by Hachette in late 2016, and I loved it so much that I provided an endorsement quote for the cover. This is what I said:

Victoria Carless announces herself as a phenomenal debut Australian YA author with THE DREAM WALKER. A tender surrealist portrayal of grief and family, love and hope that will snag readers from the explosive first line, and keep you on the hook from the first page to last sentence. Keep an eye on this author, and expect more great things.

[Stacey · Rating 5 out of 5]

If I can ever dry my face of this salty creek embedded on it, I will tell you how wonderful this book is. An absolutely beautiful exploration of what it is to find yourself through those around you, and how the worst things can shape the best to come. I didn't know what to expect from this tale at first, and not once did I guess where it was taking me (in the best possible way). At times a meander through the creek beds, and others a screeching pace into the bushlands, I so enjoyed reading this unfolding tale of love in all its forms--first, familial and self. How absolutely lovely The Dream Walker is. Congrats on a stunning debut, Victoria.

[Stacey Zwynenberg · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received an ARC of this from work in exchange for a review.

I have very mixed feelings about this book. I went into it not really having any idea what was going on but I really think that added to the reading experience, as Lucy didn't really know what was going on either, and we got to work it out together.

I thought the writing in this book was really great, very literary. You can tell that Victoria Carless is a really great writer and that she has taken a lot of time to get the book to where it is.

I think that the marketing of this novel would be better as lit fiction, because I was getting more of that than I was of YA. I think what disappointed me most about the novel was the expectation of it being Young Adult, while it really wasn't. Lucy's voice, and the way she presents her story, and the way that time passes in this book is not very YA at all. This isn't to say that the writing isn't fantastic, it just seemed to not fit in YA. I'm repeating myself but I'm struggling to write the words how I want them to be written.

All in all, I did really enjoy the book. It was absolutely HEARTBREAKING, but I enjoyed Lucy's character arc and I could really related to Lucy's feelings of restlessness and the want to get out of where she was.

[Yolanda Sfetsos]

I was really looking forward to reading this book, so I picked it up the other day. I started slow, because although I was curious about this story, there was something that just didn't grab me enough to make me want to keep reading.

It's hard to pinpoint exactly why this didn't work for me, because none of what was happening sucked me in. I just couldn't connect to the main character, the people around her were even worse, and her surroundings did nothing to encourage me forward. Not even the dream walking was enough to keep me interested. But I forced myself to keep reading, hoping that would change... Sadly, it didn't. :/

As much as I hate to do this, after 100 pages it's time for me to walk away.

This is a DNF for me.

[Sube · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting but not compelling
Beautifully written but not well written

[Bronya Robinson · Rating 1 out of 5]

I cannot get past how utterly depressing this book is.

It felt like there was so much unnecessary death in it, and often sad and hopeless things would come one after another in an endless tidal wave of all-consuming despair.

I was goddamn miserable reading this book. And I hated that in the end Lucy decided to stay in Diggers. My reading experience was often sprinkled with some genuine queasiness around some of the scenes in the book; anything to do with Gavin, for example, or that bit with her mother and the fishing net. The dream walking thing was weird, and I felt as though it just added a whole other layer of confusion.

Triggers (sort of) in the book that I was not aware of: implied suicide (that's if I'm reading between the lines right, which I'm 99.99% sure I am), death of a dog (how dare that be put in there when everything else was already terrible), and child abuse/neglect.

Also, the whole time I was reading, my poor over-worked brain kept looking at all of the Australian slang and being like OMG AFFIXATION, HYPOCORISMS, AUSTRALIANISMS AT THEIR FINEST. My EngLang teacher should be so proud.

[D_a_y_l_i_g_h_t · Rating 4 out of 5]

There was so much I loved about this book. I loved the setting that was created - I got an amazing sense of this small, dusty, north Queensland country town, with it's small population and long history of feuds and friendships, slowly dying because of over-fishing. I felt compassion, as the town's families respond to the simmering tension of the loss of income, through drink, violence, and rigid expectations that their children will put their own dreams away to support their family. At the heart of the story is 16-year-old Lucy, with her own dreams of escaping the town when she leaves school, trying to get away from the death of her mother and the whispers that her father was somehow involved.

The writing is gorgeous and the world-building very vibrant and realistic. My only criticism is that I felt that the secondary characters could have done with a little more fleshing out. it was strange, I knew that Lucy had these strong relationships with her best friend Polly and friend/love interest, Tom, but Polly and Tom remained mysterious - I didn't get a sense of why she was friends with them or who they were as people. I felt the most strongly drawn relationship was actually between Lucy and her dog, Glen.

This is a slow burn of a novel. I read it slowly, enjoying the language, but somewhere along the way, it grabbed me and I couldn't put it down. Poignant, yet hopeful. I hate using the word refreshing, but it *is* so refreshing to read a new Australian voice in YA, one representing the small towns, and one showcasing the dusty heat of Queensland.

[Cass · Rating 4 out of 5]

4/5

'The Dream Walker' was dreamy, atmospheric and wholly engrossing. Carless' lilting prose wrapped me up and pulled me under; I became helplessly attached to the story and its characters, as if in a spell, or a dream. While the depiction of small-town Queensland life, writing style and all its quirks were pitch-perfect I felt emotionally disconnected from Lucy's struggles, disappointments and familial tragedies. Overall, 'The Dream Walker' was a mesmerising and beautifully written story about the complicated nature of family, dreams and friendship.

'The Dream Walker' follows Lucy, a sixteen-year-old teenage girl who lives in Digger's Landing, a minuscule fishing town in North Queensland, housing about 15 families in all. There are the dogs, named after country singers, all the tinnies out in the water hopeful for a good catch to stay in the money, and Alfie the local croc.

The heat swelters as every slow day plods along, and Lucy is sticking it out for the rest of the year so she can graduate and go to the city, get the hell out of here. She and her best friend Polly have been planning this dream escape ever since they can remember . . . but when the fish start disappearing - just like it did years ago when Lucy's mum's body was found in the waters - and Lucy starts entering other peoples' dreams, things might be a bit more complicated.

{Full review to be posted on the blog soon.}

[Educateempower · Rating 5 out of 5]

As soon as I started this novel i couldn't put it down. This story stirred so many emotions - it brought tears to my eyes, made my stomach flutter with the memories of young love, I felt anger at the town bullies and joy at the beautiful friendships.

The Dream Walker by Victoria Carless is a story about a young girl living in a small Australian coastal town where most people rely on fishing as their income. As in many small towns rumours abound, opportunities dry up and the young people want to leave.

Our strong, fierce and brave character - Lucy - is dealing with the very raw death of her mother, the departure of a close friend and the discovery that she can walk into other people's dreams.

Dream walker will bring your imagination to life and make you wonder about dreams and how powerful they can be.

A powerful story that delves into issues of suicide, alcoholism, bullying, grief and violence is a must read for any young adult who is pondering where they are in their lives, the harm secrets can bring to us and the importance of friendship and family.

The Dream Walker by Victoria Carless is one of those books that will stay with you long after you have finished. A must read!

[Georgia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I must say that it was refreshing to read an Australian YA book. I was very fortunate that when I bought this book that it was autographed by Victoria Carless. The book focuses around Lucy, who lives in a small town in Queensland, Diggers Landing. All she wants to do is get out of the small fishing town. She has a best friend Polly, who later drops out of school and Tom who goes off to boarding school, leaving Lucy feeling lost. The interesting and juicy part of this book is that Lucy's mum died when she was fifteen, and people say that her father did it. She also keeps on having these dreams, very mysterious dreams, not her dreams and she doesn't know why. This book has many other twists and turns which made the book enjoyable. It shines a true spotlight on closeness on small Aussie country towns. I enjoyed this book a lot because of it's different context for a YA book and what it means to be a teenager, who faces and overcomes mountainous challenges. This book had meaning and a real heart-felt story to it.

[Vicki Ong · Rating 4 out of 5]

An amazingly crafted novel exploring the thoughts and feelings of a young adult growing up in a town where the fishing has dried up and hope has gone. Lucy Hart is still trying to figure out why her mother died a year ago and the town's increasing hostility to her father. The author, Victoria Carless, has brought the colourful characters in this novel to life, as well as the northern Queensland town in which it is set, with her vivid prose. The book also touches on various mature themes including domestic violence, addiction, suicide and unemployment. The characters of The Dream Walker show us the worst of humanity as well as the best of it. I would not be surprised if this book is made into a major film in the future. This masterpiece at first is written at a leisurely pace of a quiet country town, which builds up force and momentum to a cyclonic climax and conclusion.

[Claire · Rating 3 out of 5]

I feel like this was hard to read. And not just for the content (the turtle thing was really harsh) but it felt disjointed. But I still wanted to read until the end and find out what was going on, and the end was devastating. Who knew I would get so attached to Glen? He was an amazing dog! Communication is so important even if it's a hard conversation to have.

It's her debut novel. She's seeing what she can do and what works. Gus and the Starlight her second book is definitely worth a read.

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

I feel like three stars is a bit unfair to this book, but four stars doesn't feel right either.
It was nicely written - quite atmospheric and lyrical at times - but I thought other parts of it fell a little flat (perhaps plot driven areas?). The world building could have been more developed, as well as some more insight into her 'powers' (I liked that it wasn't the sole focus of the book, but I still could have used just a little more explaining).
All in all, it was a pretty enjoyable book. There's some relatable stuff in here, for sure.

[Tracy Mackay · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book and not bad for a first novel either. It's a young adult book and even though I am well past being a young adult I still liked it. There is enough of a story to make you want to finish it and plenty of things going on with a sense of hopelessness for the young people to want to get out of town. It also has a little bit of humour, bullying and other issues which make for a good read. I won the uncorrected proof copy from Hachette Date a book.

[Viv · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. It was slightly slow at the beginning, but I felt like it was a nice change of direction from the books I usually read. The story was set in Australia, so that always adds a sense of familiarity. I quite liked how the book built suspense throughout the beginning and end, and climaxed towards the end. I did cry towards the end, and I would say that it is a pretty emotional book overall.

[Bug · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great description and world building, easy to read but frustrating at times as I alway found myself abit confused or left out, I felt like I had alot of unanswered questions and Lucy also rarely questioned things which Idk why, but it makes me mad that characters just roll with the most unordinary things, she was also kind of a weak character, I feel polly and her family may have been alot more interesting. Everyone else in the town seemed a lot more interesting

[Lauredhel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Magical realism in a tiny, claustrophobic Queensland creek-fishing town. This book is beautifully written but please be warned that it is also grim AF. Very spoilery content notes: child neglect, child abuse, bullying (including severe physical bullying), death of a closeted gay teen character, and the dog dies.

[Jayarna ✨ · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5

Very slow. I like purple prose but this is bumbling and unclear. I want my writing to invoke an image and sadly this one didn't do that for me. It was a lot of fancy words that felt like they didn't quite fit.

The story itself is a very strange mix of parts, all which don't seem to culminate into much of anything.

[Emmeline · Rating 4 out of 5]

i really enjoyed this!! i'm always down for some australian ya content, especially when it's: magical realism, well written, atmospheric, and genuine. This book was all of the above. A book that is well worth reading.

[Beth Montgomery · Rating 2 out of 5]

I found this story bleak, grey and depressing. It also seemed to flow a little unevenly, like the tide that was an ever present character of the book. Despite its gloom, it is a powerful narrative that is still lingering in my thoughts.

[Mira Rowlands · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5

Idk it was just average. I didn’t really get stuck into the book at any point and I felt like there were too many storylines going on. It’s been sitting in my bookshelves for years cos I didn’t really think it appealed to me and I was right

[Gabby gcdeditorial · Rating 3 out of 5]

review on my blog soon;
alwaysandforeverreading.wordpress.com

[Melissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Took me a bit to get into this but when I did I flew through it.. really pulled at the heart strings in one bit.

[Kristie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've reviewed this book on my blog!
http://prettypaperthings.com/book-rev...

[Tina Jameson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well written, rather grim - recommend an older teen+ audience due to some 'coming of age' content and some disturbuing / confronting themes.

[Jade · Rating 3 out of 5]

The flashbacks or dreams were a bit confusing.

[Sherry Mackay · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like that this book is set in Australia and especially that it is in Queensland my home state. Not sure about the whole dream Walker thing. Is it meant to be real? can she really enter other people‘s dreams? Kinda sad and depressing, but It is very atmospheric and you get a real feel for this tiny place and the people in it.