The Dream Keeper by Anna Walker (Candlewick) School Library Journal review

‘A child with pale skin and dark hair who fears the dark finds solace in imagination in this soothingly fanciful bedtime story. “What if there exists a Dream Keeper…” begins the spare, lulling text. As the pajamaed child moves from playtime to bed, a glowing bedside lamp protects against the encroaching darkness of bedtime. When her lamp gives out, an industrious, lantern-toting turtle—the eponymous Dream Keeper—embarks on a quest to deliver a dream. The two storylines play out in parallel, often with the child’s experience depicted on the verso and the turtle’s perilous sea journey appearing opposite. Thoughtful readers will enjoy puzzling out the mystery of the relationship between the focal characters. Are the turtle and his animal friends connected to the child’s animal figurines, which she gathers into her darkened bed for comfort? The two stories come together as the delivered dream, depicted as a jar of glowing lights, floats through an open bedroom window, carrying the now smiling child to sleep. Walker suffuses the narrative with folkloric simplicity, her turtle serving an appealingly modern take on the classic archetype of a benevolent guardian of childhood dreams. The bright cheer of the soft pencil and watercolor illustrations slowly give way to the gloom of spray-painted shadows, but when the peace of dreaming arrives, all is bathed in sparkling motes of light. VERDICT A cozy, ethereal read, perfect for bedtime and other gentle moments.’ –Jonah Dragan

The Dream Keeper by Anna Walker (Candlewick) Booklist review

‘In this fable-like tale, a child afraid of the dark is aided by a magical turtle whose guiding light is delivering dreams. At dusk, a girl in pajamas sprawls happily on her bedroom floor and draws pictures. On the facing page, the Dream Keeper weighs sunny yellow petals on a worktable in his foliage-filled room. The girl’s mood changes when she notices shades of darkness creeping across her artwork. The Dream Keeper also takes note of inky-blue, amorphous shapes drifting across the sky. Soothing, spare text posits, “When you’re scared of shadows, the Dream Keeper sees. He mixes up a dream and carries it through the forest.” Atmospheric watercolor, pencil, and spray-painted illustrations illuminate the nighttime obstacles that both characters face when their lights go out. Wordless spreads show their side-by-side, overlapping journeys of courage, perseverance, and help from friends. A luminous picture book about facing fears and finding beacons of light in the darkness.’ — Linda Ludke

The Dream Keeper by Anna Walker (Candlewick) The Horn Book review (July/August 2026)

‘What if there lives a Dream Keeper…and when you’re scared of shadows, the Dream Keeper sees.” The story opens with illustrations of two rooms. The first is a bedroom, cozy with books, stuffed animals, art supplies, and a happily drawing child. The second is a kind of conservatory/apothecary workshop presided over by a turtle who walks upright. Each room, painted with a combination of translucent watercolor and grainy spray paint, is a welcoming, light-filled space. In a few simple sentences, we hear the story of how the turtle intervenes to keep the darkness at bay for the child during a scary, stormy night. The tale is mysterious, involving a boat rowed through the storm and a community of creatures—giraffe, bear, hedgehog, unicorn. The tone is established through deeply infused colors (a glowing golden yellow and gorgeous deep blue-black) and contrasting textures (soft-edged and gritty). The turtle hero is a reliable magical helper, but we see from the illustrations, in which its creature friends exactly mirror the child’s toys, that it is actually the child who is comforting herself, using her own initiative, turning on her own bedside light, gathering her stuffies to keep her company. A subtle, visually lovely celebration of friendship, resilience, and the secret power of imagination and storytelling.’
— Sarah Ellis