Dreamtime by Venetia Welby

 

From Goodreads

'So, where is he then, your dad?'

The world may be on a precipice but Sol, fresh from Tucson-desert rehab, finally has an answer to the question that has dogged her since childhood. And not a moment too soon. With aviation grinding to a halt in the face of global climate meltdown, this is the last chance to connect with her absentee father, a US marine stationed in Okinawa.

To mend their broken past Sol and her lovelorn friend Kit must journey across poisoned oceans to the furthest reaches of the Japanese archipelago, a place where sea, sky and earth converge at the forefront of an encroaching environmental and geopolitical catastrophe; a place battered by the relentless tides of history, haunted by the ghosts of its past, where the real and the virtual, the dreamed and the lived, are ever harder to define. In Dreamtime Venetia Welby paints a terrifying and captivating vision of our near future and takes us on a vertiginous odyssey into the unknown.

My thoughts

My thanks to the Publishers for a copy of this to read in order to take part in the Blog Tour of the book organised by Helen Richardson.

I gave this a 4 stars or 8/10.

This is a well written book, that makes you think about things and how events that happen in the story can influence the lives of the characters in more ways than one.  The author also shows us a world that we have all inherited that is in many ways nearing it's end many would have us believe.  Due to our own advances over the years in things that are not the best for our environment, that pollute and damage the World we live in.  Whilst, we have inherited a lot of this from our predecessors, we have not really acted in the best interest of the environment.  We might have started making small changes, but are those changes a little too late or can the changes that we make impact on any further damage?

Sol is a recovering addict and following a stint in rehab, she goes on a journey with her friend Kit.  The aim of this journey is one of discovery, they are off in search of Sol's father who lives in Japan.  The journey turns out to be one that at times the reader is never sure whether it is actually happening or if it is a dream that Sol is having.  This was the impression that the narrative gave me as I read it.  To find out exactly what I mean, you would need to grab a copy of Dreamtime for yourself and let the narrative take you to places that you will possibly never be able to define one way or the other.  Why not grab a copy and come back to me with your thoughts once you have read it.

Please be aware that between the covers of the book, the story may cover some passages containing violence towards others including sexual.  These are handled well and enhance the story as it makes you realise what other people have to contend with sometimes.  

I always remember when I was suffering with some delayed shock from my Father having passed away (I was 6/7 months pregnant) and my youngest daughter having been poorly with Bronchiolitis at 19 days old, it was a form of post natal depression.  The therapist asked me what my family life was like, I replied to her 'that it was normal.'  She then asked me, 'What a normal life was?'.  It sure makes you think and this book likewise makes you think about things.  What is normal life for Sol and what is a dream?

By the way the cover is stunning in my opinion.