A review by life_full_ofbooks
The Dallergut Dream Department Store by Mi-Ye Lee 이미예

funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.25

From the minute I saw this synopsis I knew this was going to be a great book. I was getting such Before the Coffee Gets Cold* vibes and it didn’t disappoint!

In the collective subconscious of all of us lies a mysterious town and in that town are stores that sell dreams. As we drift off to sleep we enter the town and shop for the dream we will have that night. The best store in this mysterious town is Dallergut’s Dream Department Store and that’s why Penny, a town native, wants to work there. It’s filled with all sorts of different dreams and shoppers. Some are repeat shoppers, taking the same dream multiple times and others always go for some different. The staff and the artists who create the dreams that are being sold (Dream Makers) make it abundantly clear why Dallergut’s is the place to go for dreams. 

Throughout the book we are taken to the different departments this store has and not only do we get to see a patron select a dream, we also get to see how each dream affects the person when they are awake and living their life.

While each chapter follows the story of Penny and the others who work at Dallergut’s they also contain a vignette of a different customer, giving us (the reader) a better idea as to what each dream contains and how everyone reacts differently to it. 

This book is so whimsical but there are moments of depth that will have you tearing up. At first it felt like I was reading a piece of creative writing, which isn’t a criticism in the slightest, but as it went on it started feeling more flushed and by the time I got to the ending I found myself wishing for more.