Product Description

Mitra and her little brother, Babak, are beggars in the city of Rhagae, scratching out a living as best as they can with what they can beg for–or steal. But Mitra burns with hope and ambition, for she and Babak are not what they seem. They are of royal blood, but their father’s ill-fated plot against the evil tyrant, King Phraates, has resulted in their father’s death and their exile. Now disguised as a boy, Mitra has never given up believing they can rejoin what is left of their family and regain their rightful standing in the world.
Then they discover that Babak has a strange gift: If he sleeps with an item belonging to someone, he can know that person’s dreams. Soon Babak and his abilities come to the attention of a powerful Magus–one who has read portents in the stars of the coming of a new king and the dawn of a new age. Soon Mitra and Babak find themselves on the road to Bethlehem . . .
The acclaimed author of Shadow Spinner returns to ancient Persia in this spellbinding saga–a tale filled with the color of the caravansaries and the heat of the desert, a tale that reimagines the wonder and spirit of a lost age.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #2252079 in Books
• Published on: 2006-08-08
• Released on: 2006-08-08
• Formats: Audiobook, Unabridged
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 8
• Binding: Audio CD

From School Library Journal
Grade 7 Up–Mitra and her younger brother, Babak, are refugees in ancient Persia, living in a labyrinth of caves, scraping by with the food they can steal in the nearby marketplace. Disguised as a boy for safety and mobility, Mitra dreams of returning to her former life of opulence before her father's plot against a despotic king scattered the family. When it is discovered that Babak possesses the ability of prophetic dreaming, he comes to the attention of a local magus, Melchior, who takes the children under his protection as he travels westward, following signs in the stars. Joined by two more scholars, each with his own gifts, the caravan continues on a harrowing journey that leads them into the Roman territories, and eventually to the tiny village of Bethlehem. While the focus is always on Mitra, readers experience a growing awareness of who these three wise men actually are and what portentous events Babak is dreaming for them. Fletcher explains in detailed author's notes her long-standing fascination with the story of the Magi and provides insight into the research process. A fine weaver of historical fiction, she creates a fully realized world for her characters and builds a plot full of suspense and anguish. Mitra and Babak's plight is that of any children caught between warring factions. Their journey is one of seeking a place of safety to call home, and, for Mitra, it is a coming-of-age quest that leaves her changed forever.–Connie C. Rockman, Stratford Library Association, CT
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist
In a richly imagined novel, Fletcher dovetails her own characters and plot with an utterly familiar New Testament story. Mitra comes from Persian royalty, but most of her family is dead. Now disguised as a boy, she steals food and shelters in burial caves with her younger brother, Babak. Political enemies of their father pursue them, as does the magus Melchior, who has heard of Babak's gift for dreaming others' dreams. The complications facing a pubescent girl living as a boy and the rhythms of desert life form one intriguing dimension to the novel; another is the journey set in motion when Babak dreams of a portentous star, and the siblings follow Melchior and his two magi companions as they seek the king it represents. Teens will recognize their own longings in proud, headstrong, and passionate Mitra; steer slightly older readers to Anne Provost's In the Shadow of the Ark (2004), another novel about a resilient young woman swept along by biblical events. GraceAnne DeCandido
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

About the Author
Susan Fletcher, the author of several novels for young readers, says, "I have never spent much time with cows, but I have lived with and adored a variety of dadblamed, headstrong pets." She lives in Wilsonville, Oregon.

Customer Reviews

Westward leading, still proceeding
Blurbs and book descriptions can be great. If you see, for example, an enticing cover in the bookstore, blurbs have the power to make or break your potential purchase. If the description sounds remarkable, the blurb is the book's friend. If the description sounds deathly deadly dull, the blurb and book are foes. But you see, I don't read blurbs. I like books to surprise me. To have stories and plots that jump out of nowhere and throttle my attention soundly. In short, I like to know as little about a book as possible before I read it. And since my focus in life is to concentrate wholeheartedly on children's books, blurbs are avoided at all times at all costs. Good thing too. Had I known the plot of "Alphabet of Dreams" beyond the initial premise I might have labeled this book too soon. As it was, my slow realization of what this story was about liberated me to feel especially proud of myself and proud of author Susan Fletcher for so skillfully drawing out the story's elegant elements. If you're anything like me and you'd like to unravel the mystery behind "Alphabet of Dreams" on your own, stop reading this review and know only this: Excellent book. Excellent plot. Excellent characters. A classy affair through and through. Nuff said.

First sentence: "When we lived in the City of the Dead, my brother dreamed mostly of food". Little wonder. Mitra and her little brother Babak are displaced members of a Persian royal family. Due to their father's failed plot to overthrow King Phraates, the two have been separated from the rest of their family and live as beggers in the city of Rhagae. That is, until fourteen-year-old Mitra (dressed as a boy and going by the name of Ramin) discovers that Babak has a dangerous gift. Simply place an article of clothing under his sleeping head and in the morning he'll dream a portentous dream for the owner of that material. Always on the lookout for a way to return to the life she once knew, Mitra uses Babak's power to restore them to the city of Palmyra, where she hopes to find their kin. Unfortunately, knowledge of this dreamer reaches the ears of the powerful everywhere. Now Babak and Mitra are in the possession of a magus with dreams of power. And as the boy's dreams concern a birth, stars, and a king, it becomes clear that there is something at work far greater than either child could fathom. Something so great that it may kill Babak to dream of it.

At what point did my slow moving brain realize that this story was concerned with the three Magi? You see, that's the caravan that Mitra and Babak eventually end up with. Somehow I could have caught on right from the start if I'd looked more closely at the map at the beginning of the book. Yup. There's Bethlehem clear as clear can be. But somehow I missed both that clue and the moment when the first Magus (clue #2, I suppose) was introduced as Melchior. It really wasn't until Babak had a dream about a Jewish king with sores that I began to get clued in. Then when they met up with a second Magus named Gasper... well you can imagine how pleased I felt with myself. Kids who haven't been immersed in "Amahl and the Night Visitors", however, may not get what's going on until the crew meets up with King Herod or enters Bethlehem proper.

By and large Fletcher is just an out-and-out good writer. At one point the story's heroes are hiding under some blankets on a camel to avoid detection from their enemies. As they sit there they hear a sound like "Pok!". It becomes clear to Mitra that this is the sound of someone sticking a dagger through the blankets. "I held my breath. Pok! Pok! To my left. Pok! Pok! Somewhere in front of me". Delicious stuff. Then there are the characters themselves. Mitra, our heroine, is not likable in the least at the story's start. She works for her own gain, fooling herself into believing that using her little brother is for his own good as well. She's obsessed with royal blood, to the point where she'll sacrifice everything to return to her station in life. And like the rat Roscuro in Kate DiCamillo's, "The Tale of Despereaux", Mitra craves light at all times. I liked that Fletcher covered her bases. Whenever a character in a book disguises herself as a boy, some inevitable questions come up. How does Mitra pee? What about her period? What happens when she gets that? And her breasts? What about those? Fletcher handles each question in a manner befitting of Tamora Pierce's, "Alanna".

Not that the book doesn't have any flaws, of course. There's a whole subplot involving Mitra's attraction to a boy named "Pacorus" that is supposed to help show how she's evolving into a young woman. Unfortunately it comes across as more of a distraction than anything else. About the time Mitra says, "And Pacorus. What did I want from him?", you, the reader, don't really care all that much. Besides, Pacorus seems like a nice enough fellow, but he's not fleshed out enough to care for. Ah well. Other readers I've discussed this book with have also found it a little slow moving. I, personally, felt the pace suited the style of the book, but I agree that I wouldn't hand, "Alphabet of Dreams" to a reluctant reader. As long as you can get through Mitra's constant yearning for Palmyra (which does get a little old after a while) you'll be okay.

Ms. Fletcher isn't the first children/teen author to tackle a Biblical story from an alternate point of view. Anne Provoost's, "In the Shadow of the Ark", for example, took on Noah's Ark, to say nothing of Madeline L'Engle's, "Many Waters", and the too little lauded "The Garden" by Elsie V. Aidinoff. These were all based on Old Testament stories, however, and think as I might, I couldn't come up with a single children/teen title that used The Nativity as its focus. Plus one of the nice things about this book is that it doesn't foist any particular religion on the reader. Yes, it's about The Nativity. But for those who see divinity in the story, that element is there for them. For those who just want a good story without a overt Christian theme, that's there too. This book has something for everyone. It balances out its storyline with its subject matter delicately. Hats off to Ms. Fletcher for her restraint. If there's a theme to this book, it concerns itself with a newfangled concept: Do good things and regardless of your station in life you can still attain heaven.

Fletcher, for that matter, has done her research. The "Note From the Author" at the back of the book details how Fletcher went about researching her tale, to say nothing of why she chose to include some elements and not others. It's here that readers will learn how much of this book is based on historical fact, how much on the Nativity tale alone, how much on the Book of Matthew, etc. Did you know that there was a conjunction of two planets, Jupiter and Saturn, that could easily have been the "star" referred to? Or that the Magi fit beautifully as Zoroastrians? Then she intricately plucks out the geography of the region, citing the locations as they were known in the past and as they are known now. The Works Cited page is beautifully displayed, and it's clear from her Acknowledgments that Ms. Fletcher was not afraid of legwork. It's all very impressive.

In a way, this is a Christmas story of an entirely new sort. One that goes to the actual event itself and shows the world at that time and how dangerous it was. There's magic here and fighting. Escapes and death. Miracles and treachery. All in all, an exciting take on an old tale, and one that's never been done before. Consider me a fan.

Thought-provoking and beautiful
Susan Fletcher seems to be a master at writing quality children's books. When I say quality, I mean her work is beautifully written and, while appealing to the young audience she writes for, it can also inspire and make them think deeper about the world around them.

"Alphabet of Dreams" is the story of Mitra, a displaced Persian noble of about 13 or 14, and her younger brother Babak. As the story begins, Mitra (who poses as "Ramin," a boy) and Babak live hand-to-mouth and Mitra longs for her family, supposedly in far-off Palmyra, and the genteel life she used to know. When by chance Babak's talent for prophetic dreams comes to life, Mitra uses his ability to help them gain money for food. But the talent proves treacherous when Babak and Mitra are forced to accompany a caravan of scholars on an enigmatic journey across the desert, while the king's spies try to track them down.

While Babak is the "dreamer" in the family, Mitra is the one with grandiose longings and an inability to accept the truth of their situation. Most of her actions are spurred by her desire to go to Palmyra to find the rest of their family, and she eventually learns the meaning of home and true, attainable dreams.

In fact dreams are really what drive this book. Most of the main characters have some dream that drives them, whether it's to find a family, move beyond their station in life, or - subtly interwoven in the story's fabric - to find the Christ child. You suspect early on that this is a retelling of the story of the Magi, but Fletcher lets you piece it together on your own.

She does a great job of sticking to the Biblical and historical record, as well. There were several times when I would refer to the Biblical story in Matthew, thinking that what I had read in "Alphabet of Dreams" wasn't right. But it was - Fletcher did a very good job in challenging this reader's preconceived notions of the Magi story. Historical notes at the end are also a nice touch for readers who might be interested in learning more.

Overall, a beautiful book, and one that stays with you after you've read it.

a deep and satisfying tale
This story pulled me in deep and wouldn't let go. It got richer and thicker as it went along. The best of it to me was the love story at the heart of the book. The main character, Mitra, goes around as a boy for safety reasons. Then a boy meets her and instantly knows she is a girl, even though no one else has seen through her disguise. And he loves her. This idea, that someone who loves you is someone who can see you, and how good it is to be seen, are beautifully and convincingly rendered.