"These figs are very special," the woman whispered. "They can make your dreams come true."

Thus Monsieur Bibot, the cold-hearted dentist, was given two ordinary-looking figs as payment for extracting a tooth from an old woman's mouth. Monsieur Bibot refused to believe such nonsense and proceeded to eat on of the figs for a bedtime snack.

Although it was possibly the finest, sweetest fig he had ever tasted, it wasn't until the next morning the Monsieur Bibot realized it indeed had the power to make his dreams come true.

While dragging his poor dog, Marcel, out for his walk, he discovered that his strange dream from the night before was becoming all too real. Determined to make good use of the second fig, Monsieur Bibot learns to control his dreams. But can he control Marcel?

Once again Chris Van Allsburg explores the mysterious territory between fantasy and reality in an uncanny tale that will intrigue readers of all ages.

克里斯•范•奥尔斯伯格（Chris Van Allsburg），美国儿童文学作家、画家。1949年出生于密歇根州，先后于密歇根大学、罗得岛设计学院学习雕塑，并获得艺术硕士学位。画作曾在以美国现代艺术收藏闻名的纽约惠特尼美术馆展出。

奥尔斯伯格创作了二十多部绘本，凭借《魔法师的奇幻花园》《极地特快》《勇敢者的游戏》三次获得绘本界的奥斯卡——凯迪克大奖。《极地特快》《勇敢者的游戏》《勇敢者太空冒险》还被好莱坞改编为电影，2004年上映的动画电影《极地特快》获得奥斯卡奖、动画安妮奖等多项提名。

他的作品构图精妙，具有雕塑般的独特质感，变幻的光影营造出亦真亦幻的超现实氛围，与奇幻故事相得益彰，带给读者无尽的遐想。村上春树非常喜欢他的作品，评价他为“善用光与影的魔术师”，并亲自将他的多部绘本翻译成日文。史蒂芬•金从他的画中获得灵感，创作了小说《枫树街之家》。

1993年，奥尔斯伯格即已获得Regina Medal——这个奖也曾颁给苏斯博士，以及艾瑞•卡尔、伊夫•邦延等优秀的绘本作家——奖励他在儿童文学领域持续而卓越的贡献。