"...A dream net for baby / like a small spiderweb / spun of nettle-stalk twine / stained dark red with the bark of wild plum..." hung by the Ojibway people of centuries ago on babies' cradleboards. Such a net might serve as a charm to catch "dark dreams...like flies in a spider's web" before a bad dream could reach a slumbering infant. Good dreams "drift through the hole in the center of the web: dreams of...white shells tinkling in the breeze / pheasant feathers ruffling / sucking maple sugar in a birchbark cone..." Young's decorative page borders pay tribute to the floral patterns of Ojibway artists and his images of clothing and other objects allude to this cultural history. Ojibway language references and names are accurate. The full-color illustrations were created in pastel for this 9 3/4 x 10 1/2" picture book. (Ages 4-9)

After big sister makes a dreamcatcher, a net of fibers that catches bad dreams, she feels comforted in the knowledge that her baby sister will now be able to sleep safely and peacefully, in a charming story about Ojibwa life. Reprint.