The Voyage of the Dream Maker – Yogi Yasha

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Shiloh is seven years old when he notices a small skiff being piloted into the small harbour of his hometown, Palmer-by-the-Sea; a village on one of the San Juan Islands in the Straight of Juan de Fuca (a set of islands which is smack on the borders of America and Canada). In it, is his long lost grandfather, Misha, once thought to be lost to the sea some fifteen years before, and the whole village rejoices in his return. Shiloh feels an immediate kinship with Misha, and is delighted when he moves into the home he shares with his reluctant mother. 

As Shiloh gets to know his mysterious grandfather a little better, he becomes wistful. Misha tells him of a journey that they need to go on, tantalising the child with riddles and metaphors that he doesn’t quite understand. All he know’s is that he want’s to go with his grandfather to this fantastic place: Tambolia. 

The Voyage of the Dream Maker starts off strangely, with a glossary of sorts. It explains the science and esoteric theories behind the concept of a Galactic Library such as Tambolia. It’s unusual, which makes it noteworthy. Yasha has written this info-dump in a conversational tone, almost making the reader believe that Tambolia exists as he explains it, or at least did once exist; maybe to have been forgotten in the mists of time. 

Once the story gets going, we meet Shiloh, a young boy with dreams of grandeur. He roams the village as though he owns it, weaving in and out of the residents and relatives with ease. We see Misha through Shiloh’s adoring eyes – the enigmatic grandfather who was lost at sea. It’s clear that Shiloh simply wants to know about the adventures that Misha had, and Misha finds an enquiring and believing mind to regale his stories too. 

We weave in and out of a strange narrative then. Yasha keeps the perspective from the first person, but in some chapters, there’s no way of knowing who the narrator is. It keeps you on your toes in a trope that’s been written a million times before. But this is a different take on it. As Shiloh prepares for the biggest adventure he’ll ever embark on, he begins to understand that not everything on his small island is exactly what he’s been told it is. 

S. A

This book was reviewed using the Reedsy Discovery ARC program. You can read the original review here
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