Livi & Nate

After a fun-filled day of outside playing, siblings Livi and Nate are called inside when their grandfather becomes weary of the cold weather. Snow provides an exciting backdrop to their outside adventures; inside is filled with chores and brushing your teeth--ick! Upon sleeping, Livi dreams of a tea party with special guests Daphne the Dragon and Teddy. Awakened by a scary bear noise, Livi insists Nate join her on their hunt to find the culprit—and their real adventure begins. Once they fall back asleep, Livi goes on two more adventures in her dreams and subsequently wakes Nate up two more times to deal with the chaos. Deep into the night after the bedlam has settled, their mom finds them sleeping side-by-side, exhausted from their shared fun.

The dream and real-life stories are told in graphic novel format. The stories have a stream of consciousness vibe to them, as gestured by the lack of hard lines between the gutters. Like some dreams, their adventures are scattered and lead to nowhere—as children’s voyages often do. Perhaps that is the point though. Imaginative play has been discounted in a culture where screen time is how siblings and friends communicate and play. Play doesn’t have to be “productive” beyond how Livi & Nate’s curiosity takes them to new places. The colour pastel drawings and unique Finnish atmosphere will surely put kids in the mood for fun. School libraries will likely enjoy exploring the storytelling mode and themes found here. Some kids might become lost by the sometimes confusing motif, but that can become part of the adventure of rereading.