I read this with my 11 year old son. As much as it wasn’t really his chosen genre or his reading style he sat and took it in. One of the reasons I did this was he is about to start secondary school and with Autumn's changes in her family and moving home and school I felt it would be relevant. It was a lovely read and my son enjoyed it too. We had discussions after it in regards to the changes and his feelings towards them and it opened up a conversation between us which I was pleasantly surprised at. As well as it having these undertones of emotion and changes in life it also had the children’s action that keeps them entertained. I feel it was well written and loved the illustrations.
Autumn’s Diary of Dreams is a book about different environments and routines-especially children and how it can affect mental state. This is a story about how little minds cope with different situations and it doesn't always have to be bad. Mayster's emotions show it doesn't matter where you are, it matters who you are. It tells not to give up on yourself or family to continue being resilient and mature about heart-breaking and future making experiences. In the end, she shows how she goes from unpopular to popular backing up the moral of the story that says to never underestimate yourself. Not every change is horrible. We are scared of unknown things, but Mayster uses it in her own advance and by doing her best, she turns out to be what she had desired the most. The author has done an impeccable job in creating the thrill from the first page of the book till the last, making you read the entire book in one sitting. For me, it has been my children’s favourite book of the year, and for that, I feel highly obligated to appreciate Alexandra’s sincere efforts.
