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Animal Dreams Cloth Signed
First published 1987 · 441 pages
A moving, dream-laced exploration of family, courage, and finding one's place in a threatened world.
What it feels like
Reading this novel feels like stepping into the sun-baked, complicated reality of a small Arizona town, where personal history and environmental stakes deeply intertwine. The narrative unfolds at a steady, deliberate pace, weaving a rich tapestry of present-day suspense, vivid flashbacks, and Native American legends. It carries a reflective, dreamlike mood that balances the melancholic weight of confronting an ailing, distant parent with the hopeful spark of a new, philosophical romance. The prose is moving and familiar, guiding the reader through an earnest exploration of courage and life's largest commitments. It will deeply satisfy readers who crave literary fiction that marries intimate, character-driven family drama with broader political and ecological consciousness, offering a journey from profound disconnection to rooted identity.
- Mood
- reflective
- dreamlike
- atmospheric
- melancholic
- Tone
- earnest
- philosophical
- moving
- suspenseful
- Pace
- steady
- Themes
- confronting the past · environmental crisis · father-daughter relationships · finding identity · courage
- The writing
- The narrative voice is familiar and moving, seamlessly weaving together present-day suspense, vivid flashbacks, dreams, and cultural legends.
- The arc
- The protagonist journeys from a state of dreamless exhaustion and disconnection to a profound awakening of identity, love, and worldly commitment.
- Who it's for
- Readers who love atmospheric literary fiction that grounds intimate family struggles and romantic suspense within larger political and environmental stakes.
Content notes
- ailing parent
- environmental catastrophe
- family estrangement
About the book
"Animals dream about the things they do in the day time just like people do. If you want sweet dreams, you've got to live a sweet life." So says Loyd Peregrina, a handsome Apache trainman and latter-day philosopher.
But when Codi Noline returns to her hometown, Loyd's advice is painfully out of her reach. Dreamless and at the end of her rope, Codi comes back to Grace, Arizona to confront her past and face her ailing, distant father. What she finds is a town threatened by a silent environmental catastrophe, some startling clues to her own identity, and a man whose view of the world could change the course of her life. Blending flashbacks, dreams, and Native American legends, Animal Dreams is a suspenseful love story and a moving exploration of life's largest commitments. With this work, the acclaimed author of The Bean Trees and Homeland and Other Stories sustains her familiar voice while giving readers her most remarkable book yet.
Description from Open Library.
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