SuitabookAlphabet of Dreams
Susan Fletcher
- Reading
- Read alongside a map or brief account of the ancient settings, then pause to discuss what is shown directly and what remains imagined. Discuss how dreams and political authority might influence Mitra and Babak, and how their choices may affect the journey.
- Themes
- Sibling loyalty and changing family: Mitra and Babak survive together after their father’s death and exile, while seeking their remaining family and coping with Babak’s declining health. Family separation and sibling dependence are central situations. Emotional strain and eventual change are evident, while the book’s judgement of every choice remains unclear.
- Identity, disguise and belonging: Mitra lives disguised as a boy while concealing her royal background, hoping to regain family connection and a former place in society. The story explores identity through concealment, status and Mitra’s developing sense of self. Whether the disguise or social hierarchy is ultimately endorsed or criticised remains unclear.
- Dreams, prophecy and authority: Babak’s ability to know another person’s dreams attracts a powerful Magus, whose star readings concern a new king and a new age. Supernatural knowledge and political influence shape the journey, while the reliability and moral effect of prophecy remain open questions.
- Worth knowing
- Be aware of bereavement, exile, poverty, begging, theft, concealment, pursuit and illness. Violence connected with the threatened slaughter of innocents is mentioned but left offstage; the overall frequency and intensity of danger remain unclear.