Dream City Dreaming by Cindy Angell Keeling. Petite Parasol Press, 2023. 336 pages. Hardcover, $27.99. ISBN 9798987489000. Paperback, $17.99. ISBN 9798987489017. Kindle $9.99.

“There’s magic at the fair that turns the most stalwart souls into hopeless romantics,” asserts one character in Dream City Dreaming by Cindy Angell Keeling. Combining well-rounded characters, a captivating story about visiting the Columbian Exposition, and vivid descriptions of the fairgrounds, this new historical novel crackles with the magic and romance of the 1893 World’s Fair. Any reader who dreams of traveling back in time to the most exciting but ephemeral city on earth will be rewarded by this enchanting narrative.

Junaluska (Juna) Lewis, a young widow, travels with her son Henry from their home in Missouri to see their family’s vinegar company display at the great exposition in Chicago. Both are transformed by the astounding sights, new possibilities, and a dangerous betrayal. As plans change, they extend their stay. Their adventures provide readers with a captivating historical setting, but also the timeless excitement of exploring a new city full of energy and opportunity. Juna discovers the growing independence and strength of the New Woman as she juggles her business ambitions and romantic suitors. Henry dreams of prospects beyond family expectations while navigating his own covert flirting. Memories of their beloved husband and father accompany them on the journey.

Keeling’s story offers richly detailed tours of the Exposition, and her characters visit much more than just the familiar sites common in most fairground fiction. Readers experience the buzz of activity in the Missouri State Building, the tragedy of the Cold Storage Building fire, the arrival of the Viking Ship, an evening stroll along the fairy lights of Wooded Island, a visit to the Kilauea Volcano Panorama on the Midway Plaisance, and demonstrations in the Japanese Ho-o-den (where timeless magic pulls one character back to again and again).

Along the way, characters engage with the Fair through amateur photography, the new bicycling craze, self-improvement classes, and a creative business venture. They also intersect with several real luminaries of the Exposition including the Board of Lady Managers President Bertha Palmer, Chief of Horticulture “Uncle” John Thorpe, and Henry Ward of Ward’s Natural Science, and also with an endearing immigrant worker and a cautious Japanese visitor. The author’s thorough understanding of the World’s Fair greatly enhances the narrative by creating an authentic setting. Joining Juna and Henry on their visit, readers will gasp at the enormity of the Grand Basin, plug their ears inside Machinery Hall, and wilt from the exhaustion after daylong explorations of the fairgrounds.

Inviting readers on this adventure is a lovely cover design that adapts John Ross Key’s oil painting showing the Administration Building from the Wooded Island.

Overcome by breathtaking beauty and otherworldly order, many fairgoers in 1893 experienced feelings of rapture as though they were walking through a fantastic “Dream City.” The sheer scope of the exposition guaranteed that each dream was different. Juna asks “there is always one more reason to fall in love with the place, isn’t there?” We can’t help but agree.

Information about ordering the book is available at https://www.cindyangellkeeling.com/, and a preview trailer can be viewed at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9VvP1-OaSkk.