Some funny pictures just have that chaotic, dreamlike energy—the kind that makes you pause and wonder if you’re still awake.

A student and chess lover Andrey Popov, while getting sick the night before a chess game with a chess world champion Karpov, falls asleep and is having a dream. In this dream, he finds himself in ...

Still: I’m as relieved as I am thrilled to report joy in discovering “Dream State,” Puchner ... it is fresh, wise, funny, and compassionate. It is also big, every which way.