Dreaming in Color by Melanie Florence

My thoughts

I always love reading about art and artsy people, and the gorgeous book cover caught my eye. I requested it without bothering to see that it was YA/middle grade fiction. Once I realized that, I was a bit dubious as to whether I’d enjoy it.

I’m happy to say that I thoroughly enjoyed Dreaming in Color by Melanie Florence. While this definitely wasn’t my normal type of reading material, it was a refreshing change from some of the heavy, dark novels I’d recently read.

A Hi-Lo book

As I said, this isn’t my normal type of reading material. I rarely read YA, much less middle-grade, and I’ve never read anything in the “hi-lo” category. I’d never even heard of hi-lo books!

(Hi-lo books means “high interest, low readability”, which is helpful for reluctant readers, such as those with dyslexia or others for whom reading is a struggle. According to one website, hi-lo books “can motivate struggling readers by providing books on topics that are engaging that are also targeted toward their independent reading level. Hi-Lo books can help build reading fluency, vocabulary, background knowledge, and interest in reading.” (from homeschoolingwithdyslexia.com)

Here’s some reasons why I loved this book:

Jen

From the start, Jen is a sympathetic character. She’s hard-working, loves her family, and passionate about her art. She desires to push her creative boundaries and to be around people who take art as seriously as she does. The art school accepts her, which thrills her. But she’s nervous, too. Will she fit in? Will she make friends? A lot of kids–even a lot of adults–will able to identify with her mixed feelings and insecurities.

Jen feels like a true fourteen-year-old girl. Even her new art school friends have their lives mapped out, while she wonders what to do after high school. As I read her internal thoughts, I was nodding, too. My young teen daughter complains that all her friends have their lives planned out (unrealistically so, IMO) and she doesn’t have any ideas for her career. Reassurances from me don’t help, especially when schools–even cool art schools like Jen’s–push for specialization early on. But for those who feel that they’re already “behind” (at age 14!) because they haven’t picked their life-long dream career, Jen’s emotions will feel familiar and reassuring. Not everyone knows what they want to be when they grow up.

the Teachers

I absolutely loved that the art school teachers are so cool. I would’ve loved to have seen more of them, in particular the English teacher. Mr. Sutherland has a first-day-of-school monologue about how graphic novels are just as important as other kinds of books. While my high school English teachers would’ve frowned upon this notion (and never would’ve worn a Spider-Man hoodie) this is an important idea. Books are books, whether they’re audio or graphic, low readability or high readability. I appreciate that Melanie Florence took the opportunity to subtly encourage this.

The Story

The plot moves at a quick pace, building up to a school-wide art show. Jen, who often uses indigenous-inspired elements in her artwork, works hard. But even her hard work and obvious talent can’t stop other students from sneering that she was the school’s “diversity pick.” A small group of bullies picks at her. Their words are cruel, but their assumptions are unfortunately all too common.

Jen is part Cree, part white. While she resembles their Cree mother, her older brother John resembles their Caucasian father. Jen wishes that she looked more like John: life would be easier, she thinks, because it would be easier to fit in. Yet as she learns, that’s not really true.

I would’ve liked a little more depth to some of the secondary characters like Jen’s friends Sabrina and Dan. They didn’t come to life for me like Jen and her family did. However, that’s really my only complaint.

One thing I particularly liked . . .

One thing I particularly enjoyed was the descriptions of Jen’s artwork. She incorporates indigenous elements into her work in some creative ways. I was particularly impressed by the piece she exhibits at the final art show. It is a moving, emotional piece that powerfully portrays a message of love and acceptance.

Overall

Melanie Florence does a terrific job telling Jen’s story of self-acceptance in a warm, interesting, and reassuring way. I thoroughly enjoyed Dreaming in Color and recommend it for hi-lo readers and middle-school aged tweens/teens, especially those interested in art or racial issues.

Note: I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. I was not required to write a positive review. All opinions are my own.

For those who are interested in a grittier novel about indigenous life, check out my review of the new crime novel Winter Counts by David Heska Wanbli Weiden.