Buffalo Dreams Hardcover – September 1, 1999

This is a wonderful book about a Native American Legend. It gives some history and insight about the legend itself and the importance of passing down these valuable stories in the authors note. The author also speaks of the significance and meaning of dream catchers in this section. As a parent, I found this information helpful so we I could speak to my daughter about these subjects and have a meaningful conversation on this after reading the story. The story is about a girl named Sarah and her family who travel to see a vary rare newborn white buffalo calf. The entire story is beautiful, but there are a few portions that really stood out to me. The daughter Sarah was gifted her grandfather's eagle feather with the intent it could be placed on her dream catcher.She instead, chose to gift it to the white buffalo so her dreams would be strong even though she is a tiny calf. What a great lesson for our children to learn - and a great example of being unselfish. Also, it was pointed out several times that the white buffalo was not for petting, and that a visit to just see her was an honor. Another great lesson here to respect animals! Throuhout the course of the story, the daughter, Sara, showed much bravery and selflessness. She gave away a priceless gift, and learned a wonderful lesson as well! This book is filled with beautiful examples of life lessons. It has beautiful drawings and descriptions. A great book to add to your personal library. This book was purchased for a first grade child. She was able to read the entire book on her own. We did talk about the significance of many topics after she read it.

BUFFALO DREAMS is grounded in Native American (Sioux) spirituality including a retelling of the legend of the White Buffalo Calf Woman. The newborn white buffalo calf is the focus of the story, but Sara, the protagonist, learns something about herself as she touches the magic of the calf. Sarah says, "Maybe magic doesn't make you do something special. Maybe you do something special, and it makes magic." Young readers, with an adult's help, can make a dreamcatcher using Doner's clear instructions. The illustrations are delightful, particularly the buffalo clouds. Doner states in the author's note: "For a culture to thrive, Story must be breathed into the mouths of the next generation and ever passed on." BUFFALO DREAMS is a such a story.

I love this book so much. I would read it all the time growing up. But...could someone clarify why in the world there is a whole section on Piano lessons? I was not expecting to open the book and the first page being on how to play piano. It was almost sixty pages worth of piano before I could get to the actual story. I am just so confused.