Fever Dream by Samanta SchweblinMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
Fever Dream, written by Samanta Schweblin and translated by Megan McDowell, is one of those books that is difficult to explain. Part of the pleasure of the book is untangling the past and following the mystery backwards with the characters. What I can say about the plot is that it is conveyed as dialogue between Amanda, a young mother, and David, a nine-year-old boy who is the son of a friend. Amanda is confined to a bed and David is at her side, guiding her back in time to discover how she got to this place.
It is a spooky book, full of suspense. It is an eco-thriller, in the tradition of magical realism, but also plays upon parental anxiety, with the “rescue distance” Amanda uses to measure how far she can allow her daughter to safely wander away from her.
Would I teach Fever Dream? Yes. I do teach this book, as part of my Multicultural Literature course. It is a slim novel, difficult to put down, with a devastating ending. Students love the book—it has a compelling plot and the dialogue format adds to the tension. And, of course, there are horses.
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