The Cure for Dreaming

September 22, 2014
During a stage show on Halloween night in the year 1900, 17-year-old Olivia Mead is hypnotized by Henri Reverie, a dashing young mesmerist visiting Portland, Ore., from Montreal. The hypnosis is such a success that Olivia’s controlling father hires Henri to render Olivia proper and docile, eliminating her free spirit, passion for a career, and growing support of the women’s suffrage movement. However, Henri deceives Olivia’s father with slippery language, commanding Olivia to “see the world the way it truly is,” and only be able to say the words “all is well” in response. Suddenly, Olivia’s father and other misogynistic citizens appear to her as terrifying vampiric creatures, women are seen in cages or vanishing into thin air, and those who support women’s rights glow “with breathtaking luminescence.” A subtle setup this is not, but Winters (In the Shadow of Blackbirds) creates a rich, gothic backdrop (further brought to life through period photographs and illustrations) for a story that will open many readers’ eyes to historical injustices inflicted on women—injustices with plenty of present-day parallels. Ages 12–up. Agent: Barbara Poelle, Irene Goodman Agency.

August 15, 2014
After being hypnotized during a theatrical performance, modern yet repressed Olivia begins to take interest in the women's suffrage movement. Just as her interest grows, her darkly conniving father, a dentist, becomes increasingly determined to keep her in what he has decided is her proper place-in the home. He hires the hypnotist, attractive young Henri, to give her a posthypnotic command: She will "see the world the way it truly is," and when angry, she will only be able to respond by saying, "All is well"-a recipe for disaster. Kindly Henri is drawn into the scheme solely because he is trying to raise money for his younger sister's needed surgery, of course. After the hypnosis, Olivia sees her father-vividly-for the monster he is, sees demoralized women fading into transparency and realizes the young man courting her is also a fiend. Although the romantic elements are predictable and the hypnosis component is overplayed, the early-1900s era is nicely portrayed, and the societal limits placed on Olivia are both daunting and realistic. A really malevolent dentist is amply creepy, and Olivia's father's threat believably pervades the tale, maximizing the suspense as she and Henri devise a plan to thwart his efforts. A smattering of period photos adds authenticity to this gripping, atmospheric story of mind control and self-determination. (Historical fiction. 11-16)

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September 1, 2014

Gr 9 Up-What if you could tell a person's true nature just by his appearance? Emotional vampires would be represented with fangs and a ghastly pallor; feeble, miserable individuals would flicker in and out of existence. Winters's latest historical novel, set in Portland, Oregon, in the year 1900, explores this question and others. The daughter of a cruel dentist, Olivia Mead is called onto stage at a show to be hypnotized by the young yet famous Henri Reverie. Her furious father enlists Reverie's help to browbeat Olivia into her proper role as a woman, forcing her to "see the world the way it truly is." When Olivia realizes she cannot voice her dissent and that she can truly see peoples' natures, she must take her future into her own hands with the help of Reverie-all set within the backdrop of a dynamic suffragist movement. Winters combines the history of women's rights in the early 20th century with a spellbinding story of a young woman caught at a crossroads between family and self. A strong female protagonist, realistic dialogue, and well-written prose allow readers to become immersed in Olivia's rather unique (and sometimes frightening) world. Aesthetically, bibliophiles and novices alike will love the old-fashioned introductory chapter photographs with leading quotes.-Amanda C. Buschmann, Atascocita Middle School, Humble, TX

Copyright 2014 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

October 1, 2014
Grades 9-12 Winter's sophomore outing makes a perfect bookend to her debut, In the Shadow of Blackbirds (2013): both are turn-of-the-century historical novels rife with surprising detail, infused with mysticism, and starring young women aching to break free from societal constraints. After Olivia, 17, meets young hypnotist Henri Reverie at a performance, her domineering father hires Henri to rid his budding suffragist daughter of unfeminine thoughts. It worksthough not as planned. Olivia can no longer speak in anger and discovers that she can see the world as it truly is; in other words, those who behave monstrously look like monsters, those whose spirits have been broken look like ghosts, and so forth. The metaphor of mass hypnosis as a means of keeping women in their place is a potent one, and Winters' ability to flex this metaphor in illuminating ways is a delight. The relationships are somewhat less successfulOlivia and Henri are mostly without flaw, and Olivia's father can be hard to swallowbut Winters continues to be a refreshing, incisive talent with a unique perspective.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2014, American Library Association.)

January 1, 2015
In Portland, Oregon, 1900, strong-willed seventeen-year-old Olivia Mead supports suffrage; her overbearing single father does not. Dr. Mead hires handsome hypnotist Henri Reverie to "teach her to accept the world the way it truly is." Fluid boundaries between what's tangible and what's intuited, lucidity and unconsciousness, sanity and madness are particularly apt for this story about hypnotism and emotional manipulation. Reading list, timeline.

(Copyright 2015 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

November 1, 2014
The issue of women's suffrage divides 1900 Portland, Oregon, and seventeen-year-old Olivia Mead's own home is no different. Strong-willed Livie supports suffrage; her overbearing single father adamantly does not. After Livie attends a pro-suffrage demonstration, Dr. Mead hires handsome visiting hypnotist Henri Reverie to "teach her to accept the world the way it truly ismake her clearly understand the roles of men and women" -- and to squelch Livie's ability to argue. But sympathetic Henri (who has his own reasons for taking the assignment) finds a loophole in Dr. Mead's directive, hypnotizing Livie to see the way things are -- not accept them. Livie can now discern peoples' true natures; for instance, unscrupulous men appear as vampires la her favorite novel, Dracula. Her visions are as unsettling and surreal as nightmares, but rather than being cowed by this new view of the world, Livie feels empowered. Fluid boundaries between what's tangible and what's intuited, lucidity and unconsciousness, sanity and madness are particularly apt for this story about hypnotism and emotional manipulation. It's not subtle -- but then, neither are the gender inequalities Winters's protagonist confronts. A timeline of women's suffrage in the U.S. and a recommended reading list are appended. katie bircher

(Copyright 2014 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)