“We had walked for almost an hour before I felt the last fingers of the dream loosen from my lower back”

Dreams are a central theme in The Marrow Thieves. In this quote Dimaline demonstrates that dreams are not simply imaginary, insignificant visions. Rather, they are at the center of the main characters’ identity as well as the violent struggle to regain the capacity to dream. Here, Frenchie personifies his dream of his lost brother, Mitch, which he feels so fully that he describes it as a hand gripping his back even after he wakes up.