GOOD DREAM, BAD DREAM / SUEÑO BUENO, SUEÑO MALO

Enlisting the powers of some awesome heroes transforms a child’s nightmares into commanding dreams in this bilingual flight of the imagination.

Julio’s nightly search for monsters lurking in his room is interrupted by his father, who reminds the boy that “for every bad dream, you can have a good dream to help defeat your fears.” Papa lists all the conquering heroes for each scary creature. A mighty hunter will take care of a snarling mammoth, a crafty falcon will catch a scary scorpion, a strong wrestler will defeat a roaring jaguar, and so on. Julio’s confidence and assertiveness grow with each new dueling scenario Papa introduces. The bad dreams are presented in the active, anime-style digital scenes as ghoulish, roaring, teeth-gnashing, eye-popping creatures. Plucked from many world mythologies, the characters are rendered in dark, opaque colors with the occasional explosion of red and yellow, and they are drawn with sharp, jagged lines, making each tableau jump off the page. Children will notice how Julio’s expression grows increasingly stern, bold and intimidating, as well as how his garb and even skin tone change to match the various legendary heroes he emulates. English text appears over Spanish in every spread, with key words printed in uppercase letters.

The clever approach to an age-old bedtime issue will help strengthen vulnerable little minds with some resilient thinking.