Daily TribuneThe fantasy novel is a story about a department store selling dreams where one can only enter when asleep. It’s full of interesting people and places that capture the hearts of the sleeping customers, like a food truck that sells snacks to ensure a good night’s sleep, and grumpy Noctilucases who frantically dresses customers arriving without their nightgowns.
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Miye Lee
‘Dallergut Dream Department Store.’
Why do we dream? Why are we designed to spend a third of our lives sleeping?
There hasn’t been much explanation as to why people dream. In a study by Morewedge with Norton, an assistant professor at Harvard Business School, 149 university students from the United States, India and South Korea were surveyed about dreams. Majority believed that dreams “reveal hidden truths about themselves and the world.”
Dreams, the forever unknown, mysterious rift between yesterday and today, is what author Miye Lee found herself filling with joyful imagination through her Korean bestseller Dallergut Dream Department Store.
The fantasy novel is a story about a department store selling dreams where one can only enter when asleep. It’s full of interesting people and places that capture the hearts of the sleeping customers, like a food truck that sells snacks to ensure a good night’s sleep, and grumpy Noctilucases who frantically dresses customers arriving without their nightgowns.
Each floor of the department store offers unique dreams in special packaging, filling up the endless shelves to enhance the customers’ everyday lives.
“I used to think a lot about sleeping and dreaming. When we sleep, we are unconscious, and we are not sure what is actually happening. We do spend a long time in that state. And this book has been written after I’ve thought about how to fill that much time with imagination,” Lee said in an interview with The Korea Society.
The first floor of the magical department store sells high-end, popular, limited-edition and pre-ordered dreams such as “Three Nights in Maldives” and “Five Senses of Sensual Dream Series.” The second floor has more generic dreams, like “Going on a Quick Holiday,” “Hanging Out with Friends” and “Enjoying Good Food.”
The third floor is where the fun and groundbreaking dreams are found. The “Flying Dreams” by leprechauns is always a huge hit. The fourth floor, meanwhile, sells nap-exclusive dreams that are popular among animal customers. The fifth floor, crowded than the others, is where dreams are black and white and are sold at discounts.
These dreams are made by dream directors. Some dreams have become so convincing that one customer woke up feeling mortified that he isn’t born a killer whale.
If there are good dreams at Dallergut, there are also bad ones sold. Though nightmares aren’t that much of a hit among customers. Think of it, how awful it is to relive the worst moments of your life as a dream? Yet, it all depends on how one interprets or views the bad dream.
“Dream interpretation in Korea usually is about whether a dream is good or a bad one. I like the phrase, ‘what matters most is not the dream, but the interpretation,’” Lee added.
At this mysterious town where Dallergut is, there’s nightmare producer Maxim’s back-alley workshop as well as a dreammaker named Nicholas who specializes on seasonal dreams. Babynap Rockabye, one of the town’s most famous dream-maker, is known for conception dreams.
If you are someone who sleeps well at night, and if you like having dreams and are curious about your dreams, you will definitely enjoy Dallergut Dream Department Store as it will allow you to use your imagination. Remember, everything is possible with dreams.
