New book by local native chronicles personal dreams
By Jennifer Archibald Staff writer

Dreamscape narrator Barry Morgan is pictured at his home in Portland, Maine. His newly published book is a documentation of the dreams he had over the course of a year. The dreams reflect his Carroll County background, his travels in the U.S. and abroad, and his imaginative subconscious. The book's front cover is pictured below. Illustrator was Calyx Kratz. Photo provided

Carroll County native Barry Morgan has written his dream book. Literally. He chronicled his dreams for a whole year, resulting in a 462-page book titled "So You Think Your Dreams Are Weird?!"

"What I found is what I have always known, but hadn't taken the time to study," said Morgan in one of the two forwards to his book. "My dreams are weird, hilarious, and entertaining."

"I have been blessed (or cursed, haven't decided which yet) with the ability to remember at least one dream every night, usually in vivid detail," he said.

Morgan estimates that during the dream-study year, he had about a 1,000 dreams. He recorded them from May 31, 2006, to May 31, 2007.

Morgan now lives in Portland, Maine, but he says Carroll County people and places still appear in his dreams and are in his book.

"Over the course of the year, probably on average, every other day, someone that I went to high school with appeared in a dream," he said. "The old school on Main Street in Flora made its way in, as well as the high school I attended. Several of my teachers from elementary and high school also appeared."

He identifies people in his dreams, using first name and last initial.

In an attempt to help himself and his readers understand why he dreamed what he did, Morgan also lists highlights of his day and the day's headlines along with the daily entry of his dreams. He explains that he kept a cassette recorder by his bedside, and whenever he woke up during the night or in the morning, he recorded the details of his dreams.

He says his nonfiction book has an emphasis on humor, social commentary, and psychology.

In his recorded dreams, Morgan confronts zombies, werewolves, monsters, and strange creatures. He stars in films and TV shows, sets a new world record in hula-hooping, and plays for the Chicago Cubs.

Morgan said he hopes his book is entertaining, but the main reason he wrote it was to gain a better understanding of himself.

"I've always thought dreams to be a very important and often overlooked facet of our psyche," he said. "I don't know if one can truly understand himself without digging into the subconscious mind."

He said he has recurring dreams about football.

Morgan is a 1994 graduate of Carroll High School, where he played football. In his dreams, he's back on the field again. He said in his book, he didn't try to analyze his dreams or draw any conclusions. But in everyday life, he has taken a second look at some of his dreams.

For instance, he said in a football dream, when he plays badly or forgets a piece of his uniform, there are things in his waking life that are not going well. When he plays a good game in his dreams, he said he has his life in order.

Morgan said another reason he wrote the book was to engage in a different type of creative project.

He previously has written a science fiction novel and four screenplays, in addition to writing, producing, and directing an independent film.

"I'm currently writing a children's novel titled "The Insectasylum," he said.

Morgan said his "dream book" is the first thing he's had published.

The illustrator of the book's front cover has a Carroll County connection. It was done by Calyx Kratz, eightyear old son of Flora natives Taran and Brooke Kratz. Morgan said he and Taran have been good friends since childhood.

Morgan included a brief autobiography in the appendix of the book.

He is the son of Diane and Harry Sturdivant of Junction City, Kan., and Bob and Sonya Morgan of Akron, Ind. His grandmother, Doris Duff, lives in Flora.

Morgan graduated from Purdue University in 1997 with a degree in liberal arts. He majored in anthropology and minored in religious studies.

He is currently working for Ashley Furniture and plans to apply to graduate school at the University of Maine.

His self-published book is available at www.lulu.com. A preview of the book also can be found at the web site. To contact Morgan, email soyout hinkyourdreamsare weird@yahoo.com.