Tony Johnston is the award-winning author of more than 100
beloved children’s books. She lives with her family in San Marino,
California, where she grew up.
Jim LaMarche is one of the most talented artists working in
children’s books today. His many successful books
include Rainbabies by Laura Kraus Melmed
and Albert by Donna Jo Napoli, which was selected as a
New York Times Best Illustrated Book;
and Up and Raft, which he also wrote. Most recently
he illustrated The Carpenter’s Gift by David Rubel and
Puma Dreams by Tony Johnston. Jim lives in Santa Cruz, California.
A young girl is fascinated by pumas, and after months of waiting
and watching, she sees a puma near her home.The unnamed narrator of
the lyrically told story lives with her grandmother on a remote
ranch in an unspecified location with mountains and canyons. The
girl is fascinated with puma lore and legends, and her dream is to
see a puma, even just once. She uses her allowance money to
purchase a salt lick with hopes of luring a puma close enough for
observation. After over a year of watching and dreaming, she
finally sees a puma through the window as it circles the salt lick.
The first-person story is told with evocative descriptions as the
girl observes the environment around her with a dreamy, imaginative
style enlivened by Gram's pithy country sayings. An oversized
format and expansive double-page-spread format showcase the
striking, realistic illustrations done in a glowing, golden
palette. The accomplished paintings capture the beauty of the
natural surroundings and help create a real world for the rather
lonely child. The girl and her grandmother present white. An
author's note offers more information about pumas as well as
puma-conservation organizations, although exactly where pumas can
be found in the U.S. is not made clear enough. The unlikely but
real danger posed by pumas to humans is also not addressed.A
lovely, beautifully illustrated story of a child's dream fulfilled.
(Picture book. 4-8)
*July 15, 2019*
The girl who narrates this wistful idyll by Johnston (Loving Hands)
lives with her grandmother amid rolling grassland. She has long
dark hair and a starry-eyed expression, and she dreams of seeing a
puma one day. (Her Gram calls it a “long-dream, for it may not ever
happen.”) The puma population is dwindling, the girl knows: “Some
are hunted down./ Some are forced from the land/ when people move
in.” She sinks her allowance into a salt lick; it lures other
animals, but not the one she wants to see. The wisdom of her
grandmother (“Easy dreams aren’t worth a pin or a pickle”) helps
sustain her as she gets a lesson in patient waiting. Johnston’s
deliberately paced story foregrounds the sense of time that comes
from living in the natural world, where things can take years, not
minutes. Each softly tinted, naturalistic spread by LaMarche (A
Story for Bear) captures a scene of rare beauty: a misty morning, a
snowy dawn. While the text treats habitat loss and extinction, it
focuses, too, on the simple joy of encountering an animal in the
wild, where it is meant to be. Ages 4–8. (Oct.)
*August 19, 2019*
Among the hills where she lives with her grandmother, a young girl
has always wanted to see a puma, but, as Gram explains, because of
their being hunted or displaced by humans, they’re rare. However,
having heard stories of sightings, the girl’s hopeful. She even
sets out a salt lick—“I imagine that big cat / slipping through our
wheat field / on whisper-feet”—which only attracts other wildlife.
Still, she remains vigilant through seasons, until, finally, she
spies a puma in the grasses around the salt lick. Though fleeting,
the experience inspires her in multiple ways. The girl’s eloquent,
poetic narrative is reflected in LaMarche's evocative, richly hued,
realistic illustrations, softly rendered in acrylics, pencil, and
ink, which make equally great work of landscapes, mountain vistas,
and close-up portraits of the determined narrator. The lyrical
lines and warm scenes combine harmoniously to tell a lovely story
that highlights the natural world, while also conveying the
resonant power of aspirations. An appended author's note includes
puma facts, Johnston's personal puma experiences that inspired the
story, and lists some conservation organizations.
*September 15, 2019*
JOHNSTON, Tony. Puma Dreams. illus. by Jim LaMarche. 48p. S. &
S./Paula Wiseman Bks. Oct. 2019. Tr $17.99. ISBN 9781534429796.
K-Gr 3– A farm girl dreams of seeing a puma in the wild. Her gram
tells her that this is a “long-dream,” since pumas are elusive and
their population is dwindling. The girl is determined and makes a
plan. She invests her allowance in a salt lick. Months go by; the
girl goes about her daily life and waits. Her patience pays off
when she finally sees a puma licking her salt lick. The girl thinks
he looks like a great golden ghost and she is inspired to pursue a
new dream—to preserve and protect wild puma populations. Printed in
landscape format, the realistic illustrations of a farmhouse and
outdoor vistas are created with a combination of acrylic, pencil,
and ink with frame-worthy skill. A soft and natural color palette
places readers through the seasons gazing along the long horizon.
Gently poetic first-person prose emphasizes the quiet beauty in the
every day. An endnote contains information about pumas and a list
of organizations dedicated to puma initiatives. VERDICT Budding
nature lovers will enjoy this quiet, beautifully illustrated book
with a strong conservation message.–Mindy Hiatt, Salt Lake County
Library Services
*October 2019*
Puma Dreams
By Tony Johnston, Jim LaMarche
Paula Wiseman
$17.99
ISBN 9781534429796
Published 10/01/2019
4 to 8
Children's / Children's Picture
Puma Dreams, a lyrical, panoramic beauty of a book, is the
collaborative effort of award-winning writer Tony Johnston and
renowned illustrator Jim LaMarche.
In this lyrical story, a young girl who lives in the country has a
dream of seeing a puma—the elusive “ghost of the mountains.” Her
Gram tells her she must be patient and that dreams require waiting,
time and more than a little luck.
To try and lure a puma, the girl and her Gram buy a salt lick and
place it in the meadow. Every day the girl watches with her
binoculars as birds, mice, deer and elk nibble at the salt lick,
but no puma appears. The girl grows tired of waiting, but she knows
dreams take time.
One morning over breakfast, the girl senses something is about to
happen. When she gazes out the window, she finally sees the puma,
golden and magical—the dream she has waited for. Now that she has
realized her dream, the girl begins to imagine a new dream of
keeping pumas safe and making sure they always have places to roam
free.
With gentle pastels, LaMarche creates sweeping vistas of mountains
and prairies, the perfect puma habitat, and Johnston’s evocative
language beautifully portrays a little girl’s longing.
*October 1, 2019*
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