The Dream Factory

Tate’s first book written by a Maori author is a moving, vibrantly illustrated tale of community and the dreams that power creativity

An amazing building rises on the edge of town—it’s the dream factory. Every night, it sends out magical mist. Flying cars, flower cakes, and talking tigers fill the people’s dreams. And the next day the people make those dreams come true. But when a kereru bird flies into the dream factory and a feather floats into a cog, everything goes terribly wrong.

Steph Matuku is a writer from Taranaki, New Zealand. She enjoys writing stories for young people, and her work has appeared on the page, stage, and screen. In 2021, she was awarded the established Maori writer residency at the Michael King Centre. Zak Atea is an illustrator and visual artist from New Zealand now based in Sydney, Australia. Her practice involves digital and traditional painting and drawing mediums. Through her work she explores the intangibles of our world and the complexities of self within both a worldly and Te Ao Maori lens, with a focus on color, texture, and multimedia practices.