Beguiling Dreams

This book takes the reader back and forth in time through the life of Daniel. In the present day, he is a doctor who cares about his patients, but has very startling dreams. Dreams that wake him up in a cold sweat. When speaking of the past, the author describes a period of time when Daniel is a child who has just had a heart operation and goes to stay with his aunties, uncles, and cousins in Argentina. The coming-of-age story helps the reader to understand why Daniel is not close to his immediate family even though he is very close to them in proximity. They all live in the state of New York, although in different cities; Daniel lives in New York City while and his mother and her family live in White Plains. After Daniel’s father dies, Daniel’s mother remarries very quickly and has two more children with her husband Alex. And although Daniel loves his half-siblings, he has really never gotten along with his stepfather.

Beguiling Dreams is a wonderful story about the vulnerability of a man whom everyone sees as a well-known, respected doctor. The stories of Daniel’s past is rather heartbreaking, and there are things that happen to him that no child should ever be involved in or see. In one part of the story, he goes to a football match with his Uncle Tony. What happens during the match is absolutely grueling. This part was especially hard to stomach because there was such a big buildup leading to Danny and Tony going to the game. Tony had given Danny a football jersey, his first one, and had also confided in Danny that his wife, Marcella, was pregnant with their first child. Then the football match happens and there is a violent group of people who take over the stadium. What ensues is chaos.

I thought this book would be more about interpreting Daniel’s dreams, however, because the book shared Daniel’s past, which really was a real-life nightmare, the reader did not have to wonder what the dreams were about. I enjoyed the cast of characters, although sometimes it was difficult to remember who was related to whom. The whole time I was reading, I felt so sad for Danny as a boy. There were also cleverly placed chapters about Daniel’s father, David, and how he died. This book really was a wonderful read from beginning to end.