Thief of Dreams

By Todd Strasser and Tood Strasser

It's Christmastime. Your parents have just left for a month-long business trip. And your long-lost Uncle Lawrence is staying with you. Happy holidays indeed. But Uncle Lawrence plays video games with you, flirts with your psychologist, and treats you like a real person. He also keeps a wetsuit under the bed and stays out all night. Even as you grow to love Uncle Lawrence, you suspect he might be a professional thief. What will you do if he is? Through a heart-racing second-person narrative, Thief of Dreamsstunningly depicts a boy struggling with his suspicions about a desperately needed friend. Acclaimed teen novelist Todd Strasser has created a psychological thriller that will haunt your (the reader's) dreams.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0399231358
• ISBN13: 9780399231353
• Release Date: April 2003
• Publisher: Putnam Juvenile
• Length: 160 Pages
• Weight: 0.80 lbs.
• Dimensions: 20.0" x 20.0" x 20.0"
• Age Range: 10 to 12 years
• Grade Range: Grades 4 to 7

Customer Reviews

A different kind of story

I totally dug this book, starting with it's unique writing style, and really got into the story line. I liked the independence and sense of humor of the main character. It might be a little heavy handed, as an earlier reviewer wrote, but it totally had me guessing all the way to the end.

The Thief of Dreams

The Thief of Dreams is about a boy named Martin Hunter who's parents go to China from some of the winter. Martin is left at home with his babysitter (he has one even though he is in the eighth grade) and his Uncle Lawrence, who his family lost contact with several years before. Martin really likes Uncle Lawrence because he is a lot of fun and he understands him better than other any one else, even Martin's therapist. Martin notices that his uncle leaves at night and sometimes he is acts a little strange. Soon Martin finds out that his Uncle Lawrence is a professional thief and he was having the time of his life robbing the people in Martin's upscale neighborhood. Before long, Lawrence turns himself in because he cannot stand his nephew being disappointed in him because they formed a special bond. Martin and his uncle are still very close even though Lawrence is in prison. The Thief of Dreams is one of my favorite books. It is funny, serious, exciting and interesting. I would recommend this book to everyone. This is because there are aspects in the book that everyone would like. The Thief of Dreams is a great book and everyone should read it.

Thief of Endings

Strasser has created a suspenseful young adult novel that draws you in from the start. I identified with Martin, the main character, and was pulling for him through all his emotional turmoil and dysfunctional family relationships. The author's word choice and descriptions are outstanding. I am going to use select quotes as examples for my eighth grade students as they prepare for state assessment writing.However, Strasser's solutions to Martin's problems are terribly old fashioned. As a working woman, it was just like a slap in the face. Also the book was thick with theme -- like too much whipped cream. I like to work a little and infer rather than be hit in the face with the main ideas.This was a fast read with a disappointing ending.