Blizzard of the Blue Moon (A Stepping Stone Book(TM))

Book Description

Jack and Annie are off on another Merlin Mission. This time, Merlin has sent them to rescue a beautiful magical creature—the unicorn. But when they land in New York City during the Depression of the 1930s, Jack and Annie are confused. Where will they find a unicorn in a big city?

Customer Reviews:

Another Wonderful Book.......2007-05-27

I read this wonderful book to myself the day I got it. I was thrileed and couldn't wait for the next book to come out. It takes place in New York City in 1938 during the Great Depression. jack and Annie have to find a unicorn. But how will they find one in a big city? Finally Jack and Annie find the unicorn, whose name is Dianthus. But just then two teenagers named Balor and Grinda burst in and try and take Dianthus. Jack and Annie escape with the unicorn, and stop in Central Park. There, Balor and Grinda show up, and Annie recites her favorite magic rhyme, Turn Into Ducks. Balor and Grinda turn into ducks.

Teddy and Kathleen, Merlin and Morgan, show up and the two other teenagers ride Dianthus home to Camelot. Jack and Annie travel home in the Magic Tree House, and merlin and Morgan take a ride around New York City.

For ANY fans of the magic tree house, MAGIC TREE HOUSE #36: BLIZZARD OF THE BLUE MOON, I reccomend you read this wonderful book. You will be so surprised that you read this book over and over again!

Goody, Goody. Sugar and gooey talks down to kids........2007-05-11

I felt insulted for my seven year olds intelligence. These books not only murder the myth of Malory's Le Morte D'Arthur (Merlin and Morgan best buddies and silly wizards) but the writing here is bland and boring. The prose reads aloud like a robot's voice.

The story is full of holes and illogical points. Why, why, why are these two older kids following the little kids but not giving them information. I don't understand why Merlin and the older kids know everything that has to be done, knows where and how to do it, but instead of telling the little kids they send to do it, they give them poems that give them hints to figure out. I wanted to scream at them.

Why doesn't the author use pronouns? Even early readers can read pronouns. The use of proper nouns for names and the constant repeating of information makes the books more fit for preschoolers than early readers.

By advice, buy Junie B. and Lemmony Snickets, better books, better writting.

I love fantasy and have been reading since before I started school nearly 30 years ago. I can't subject my children to this poorly writen garbage. All I can say is, thank whoever for Harry Potter teaching people that childrens litterature doesn't have to suck.

Capturing The Unicorn.......2007-04-13

Blizzard of The Blue Moon by Mary Pope Osborne was a fun, entertaining book that I would recommend to elementary school kids, because it's a lower reading level. It all begins when Jack and Annie go in there tree house that goes to wherever they want. They had to go to New York City to rescue a unicorn. The tree house landed at Central Park, and there was a BIG blizzard. They got on the subway so they could get closer. A lady told them the wrong stop that was really far away from where they needed to go so they took a taxi to try to get closer. The taxi ended up getting snowed in, so they just got out and walked. Jack and Annie had block's and block's to go.

As Jack and Annie are walking there far distance, thinking they needed to go to the zoo, they decided to hit the museum to warm up. This nice museum lady said she was very excited, since she hadn't had any costumers all day. She suggested they stay a while, since there was going to be a huge blizzard. She wanted to inform them on some older facts, that probably nobody knew nothing about. She talked for a long time, about boring things, that practically put them to sleep. Jack finally stooped her with an interruption, and said "we need to get some work done." So she showed them the way to the back of museum, and said "why don't you take a look there, because you'll enjoy it." Jack and Annie had no idea why there were going there, but maybe there could be the unicorn that they need to capture. So they went right along, through a double set of doors, to the outside, and back into a different building. Right when they enter, and to the left there was a HUGE picture of an unicorn that would capture your eyes in a second. From that moment on, they knew that was the right unicorn. Jack got into his backpack a read a poem form the book. All of a sudden, the unicorn came to life. Oh no. Just now two people showed up who were also trying to get the unicorn. Now were going to have to fight for him.

Make sure you read this book and find out what happens. I would recommend it to you any day.

Another great book!!.......2007-01-15

My son and I enjoy reading this series and this book did Not disappoint--another great one from Mary Pope Osbourne.

Magic Tree House does it again.......2007-01-10

We read these books together and although they are all different there are some repetitions from previous books. We love this series, but the last 12 books have to be read in order because of clues. We suggest reading them in number order from one all the way to the last number.

Average customer rating:

My friend loved the book
Timeless Story
the last unnniiiicccooorrrnnnn!!!! I'M ALIIIIIIIIVEEEEE!!!!
My favorite fantasy novel of all time.
Pretty good for a fairy tale

The Last Unicorn
Peter S. Beagle
Manufacturer: Roc Trade
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0451450523

Amazon.com

The Last Unicorn is one of the true classics of fantasy, ranking with Tolkien's The Hobbit, Le Guin's Earthsea Trilogy, and Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland. Beagle writes a shimmering prose-poetry, the voice of fairy tales and childhood:

The unicorn lived in a lilac wood, and she lived all alone. She was very old, though she did not know it, and she was no longer the careless color of sea foam but rather the color of snow falling on a moonlit night. But her eyes were still clear and unwearied, and she still moved like a shadow on the sea.

The unicorn discovers that she is the last unicorn in the world, and sets off to find the others. She meets Schmendrick the Magician--whose magic seldom works, and never as he intended--when he rescues her from Mommy Fortuna's Midnight Carnival, where only some of the mythical beasts displayed are illusions. They are joined by Molly Grue, who believes in legends despite her experiences with a Robin Hood wannabe and his unmerry men. Ahead wait King Haggard and his Red Bull, who banished unicorns from the land.

This is a book no fantasy reader should miss; Beagle argues brilliantly the need for magic in our lives and the folly of forgetting to dream. --Nona Vero

Customer Reviews:

My friend loved the book.......2007-10-05

I got this book as a birthday gift to my friend that doesn't so much like Sci-Fi stuff. She loved it. She has a thing for unicorns and everything that she's made up about unicorns has been mentioned in the book. It's a good book.

Timeless Story.......2007-09-13

This has been my favorite book since I was a small child. Lovely cover on this edition.

the last unnniiiicccooorrrnnnn!!!! I'M ALIIIIIIIIVEEEEE!!!!.......2007-09-06

while I have not read this amazing work of fiction, i have seen the movie! and let me say....WOW!
this compelling drama is about a young unicorn coming to terms about her magic pals, who in the words of the eccentric butterfly (has anybody here seen Kelly?? Red rover red rover send Charlie on over!!) "passed down the old roads long ago, and the Red Bull ran close behind him and covered their footprints." This journey takes us through the mind of a troubled young mythic beast who goes through a wide range of emotions including love, curiosity, loss and ......REGRET!!!! After crossing paths with a befuddled young magician, Schmendrick, she starts her journey to recover the lost unicorns and solve the mystery of the Red Bull! Now I don't want to give away the ending, so you just go buy that book/movie and read/watch it!!!
I'm serious. I was genuinely touched by this book/movie and hope that it will change your life as it has changed mine.
Thank you for your time.
P.S. Now that I'M A WOMAAAAAAAANNNNNNNNN!!
and I'm a UNIIICORRRNNN!!!
(man is she confused).

My favorite fantasy novel of all time. .......2007-09-02

I have read a lot of novels over the years, most of them fantasy and science fiction. And this is one of the few than I keep coming back to again and again. I reccomend it to anyone I know, regardless of if they read fantasy or not.

And I reccomend it to you. Try this book, you will not be dissapointed.

Pretty good for a fairy tale.......2007-08-28

Saw the cartoon as a child but just recently read the book. It's fun and entertaining, and a little tongue-in-cheek, but not ridiculously so. I wish Beagle had written more over the years, he's definitely got talent. Highly recommended!

The Adventures of Tintin: The Crab With the Golden Claws / The Shooting Star / The Secret of the Unicorn (3 Complete Adventures in 1 Volume, Vol. 3)

Average customer rating:

Haddock is introduced in the Golden Claws
A little disappointing
Tintin on his adventures!
A rich part of this bilingual Canadian's heritage
The Adventures of Tintin: The Crab With the Golden Claws / The Shooting Star / The Secret of the Unicorn (3 Complete Adventures

The Adventures of Tintin: The Crab With the Golden Claws / The Shooting Star / The Secret of the Unicorn (3 Complete Adventures in 1 Volume, Vol. 3)
Herge
Manufacturer: Little, Brown Young Readers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0316359440

Customer Reviews:

Haddock is introduced in the Golden Claws.......2007-08-23

Thundering Typhoons!! Had been trying to get my hands on this issue as it introduces my fave. character!! It compliments the package well because the issues are in a sequence and one ends up getting more of blistering barnacles! I would recommend this to Haddock's admiration club and otherwise as well!

A little disappointing.......2007-02-07

The quality of the printing is far from perfect. It smooches on several pages.Also, I read the French version first and the English one is, in my opinion, rather lame. A lot of work would need to be done to improve it.

Tintin on his adventures!.......2007-01-21

I have read many Tintin adventures and love them all. Herge can make very funny adventure stories.
In the book, The Crab with the Golden Claws, Tintin meets Captain Haddock. Captain Haddok loves whisky. Professor Calculus is not here. He comes in Red Rackham's treasure.
Reviewed by my child, C.B. Patras

A rich part of this bilingual Canadian's heritage.......2006-09-09

Volume 3: The Crab With the Golden Claws (1942), The Shooting Star (1942), The Secret of the Unicorn (1943). This is the third instalment of my reviews of each of the seven volumes.

As I mentioned in my review for Volume 1, as a child I read these stories in no particular order. So, when reading The Crab With the Golden Claws, I was surprised to see Captain Haddock in such a pitiable state, having made his acquaintance in later adventures...

But this is where he is introduced, and the friendship that develops between Haddock and Tintin not only allows the alcoholic captain to bloom, it lifts the curtain on one of the most entertaining, impulsive (Haddock = ad hoc, get it? In French, the pronunciation of the two is exactly the same...), flawed, and in essence loyal, good hearted and lovable characters in all comicdom. His irascible nature will be abundantly prodded with insufferable foils (Wagg, Abdullah, Castafiore, the Thom(p)sons, and sundry villains) throughout the series. We also meet the sinister Allan for the first time. The story takes place in Morocco, and the child sees yet more of our planet's vistas, while the adult continues to revel in Hergé's textured adventures and detailed settings, as well as a terrifying dream sequence.

Michael Farr's "Tintin: The Complete Companion" (highly recommended), gives a glimpse at why Tintin did not take in the USA as it did in the rest of the world, and that has to do with a couple of panels from The Shooting Star. Though with some brilliant sequences, such as the cinematic seasickness scene, it is not as captivating as the usual Tintin standard, but again, one does not want to miss a single adventure.

The Secret of the Unicorn has a number of threads, one of which develops into the sequel, Red Rackham's Treasure.

The Adventures of Tintin: The Crab With the Golden Claws / The Shooting Star / The Secret of the Unicorn (3 Complete Adventures .......2006-08-31

Good book for kids and aldult as well

Flim-Flam! Psychics, ESP, Unicorns, and Other Delusions

Average customer rating:

An early skeptic classic
Exposing charlatans and idiots
Randi's book a must-read, must-have, and must-implement
Stop hurting science!
Logical and Insightful

Flim-Flam! Psychics, ESP, Unicorns, and Other Delusions
James Randi
Manufacturer: Prometheus Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | New Age | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 0879751983

Customer Reviews:

An early skeptic classic.......2007-02-15

After being a magician for over thirty years, James "The Amazing" Randi devoted his considerable talents in helping people see the hand behind the curtain in such popular delusions as ESP, spoon bending, levitation, TM, UFOology and the like.

This book represents a considerable effort on his part to briefly address many popular myths.

And without exception, his treatments are excellent introductions to the topics he discusses. However, this book is probably best an introductory work to the matters he discusses.

As a for instance, he spends a chapter on the TM movement which proposes to teach hightened consciousness through the recitation of a mantra. As he indicates, those behind the movement no doubt knowingly were making a profit from selling their subjects a bill of goods. However, the short term greediness of some does little to explain the vulnerability of the many who sustain them.

Again, using TM as an example, there are sound reasons for why people believe they experience a hightened state of consciousness when reciting a mantra. As can be seen the recent book Why God won't go away, the recitation of a mantra -- though simple -- does powerful things to the conscious perception of experience. One of our most basic awarenesses is of our separation from the world around us. It turns out that when concentration is made on a mantra or any simple one word or one idea, a perceptual illusion can be created (for which some are more suseptible) of what has been termed a oneness or falling away of the division between self and the world.

So the action does not occur as a result of only the use of TM but occurs in accordance with basic psychological rules. To be sure, those who trade on this illusion to bilk others are guilty of hucksterism. However, their huckersterism is but part of what is actually a larger fascinating story about the workings of the human mind.

In this way, Barnum's "sucker born every minute" is but part of a larger story about what makes everyone "suckers" under the right circumstances.

Though not stated by Randi, people should not feel gulible for being duped, just human because it was their humanity that gave them vulnerability in the first place. Yes, read this book, but use it as part of beginning a journey of discovery...not your final destination.

Exposing charlatans and idiots.......2007-01-16

In "Flim Flam", Randi debunks various paranormal chicanery, like ESP, UFOs, dowsing, spoon-bending, etc. A lot of his targets are old news, even for 1982; I don't think Conan Doyle's claims about fairies were misleading too many people in the 1920s, let alone in the 80s. Some of the New age fads of the 70s that he deals with, like levitation, are similarly dated, but all in all, the book is a healthy dose of rationality. There are probably more relevant and up-to-date books out there on the subject of modern mass delusions though. After all, more than half the American people believe that Saddam Hussein was the primary culprit behind the 9/11 attacks. And they vote!

Randi's book a must-read, must-have, and must-implement.......2007-01-11

Flim-Flam! is must-read for anyone who has ever thought, "There's got to be a trick to this." Flim-Flam! is a must-have for anyone who takes themselves for a rational thinker. Flim-Flam! is also a must-implement, a call to critical thinking in an otherwise delusion-muddled world. Be prepared to be challenged and entertained.

Stop hurting science!.......2006-11-02

So-called "skeptics" have put society into the dark ages when it comes to so many topics. I used to be skeptical by default too, because I thought, if there was proof of any paranormal stuff, everyone would believe in it, it would be a part of science.

That's just not true, sadly.

Experiments that show proof of "paranormal" stuff have been successful over and over again, but to skeptics they never count. Fortunately, many things can be experimented with on ones own. For example, when I was an open-minded skeptic I read about astral projection, because I figured it was an interesting experience, even if it was just a dream. A book I read suggested running an experiment of verifying things seen while out-of-body. I have personally done this successfully on more than one occasion. It's not hard to find other people's accounts of verifying things seen out-of-body too. But to the skeptic these are all mere anecdotes. Yeah, that's so rational to assume that getting 1-in-a-million results is just luck. Anyhow, that experience changed my life. I tried other things, like dowsing, and I got some impressive results with that too. I am disturbed at how skeptics can deny the existence of stuff that is so straightforward to observe. Saying something like say, ESP, doesn't exist is like saying gravity doesn't exist. It's not that hard to observe.

It's also disturbing how skeptics have co-opted the word "rational", even though they are in reality completely hysterical and irrational. They paint the world with a broad brush of fear and hatred... telling us that there are shysters and con men around every corner itching to take our money and prey on our gullibleness. Instead we should let Randi take our money and prey on our fear and hatred of things that are strange and different of course.

Just take a visit to the forums on his website to see how negative his followers are. There is a subset of skeptics that are basically a hate-group. They even made up a slur for the people they hate so much: the "woos". The woos are ruining this country, y'know. They are stupid and out to rob you, just like mexicans.

My only solace is that skeptics are in minority. Randi can go ahead and write more vitriolic drivel, he can't stop people from believing in the things that they have personally observed and experienced. Randi can go ahead and argue that stoves don't exist while us woos continue to cook dinner with them.

I know I won't convince a great many skeptics, the ones that are completely unreasonable and close-minded. But for the open-minded, I suggest you go see the truth for yourself. Amazon has a wide variety of books about paranormal events and abililities, by people who are not as completely ignorant and clueless as Randi.

Logical and Insightful.......2006-05-22

I read a lot of books of this ilk (Shermer, etc.) and this one compilation is excellent. It starts with overviews of some common paranormal claims, showing that even 'smart' people can be fooled. The great part of the book is the last half with pictures and descriptions of people trying to win the million dollar prize for demonstrating paranormal skills. Mr. Randi has a strong tone against fraud that some people in other reviews have noted - but when people are getting bilked out of their life savings, or not seeking proper medical treatment because some witchdoctor in the Phillipes is doing fake surgery - it is ok to be outraged.

One of the best things about this book is the revelation that most of the people are not trying to scam people - they really believe they have supernatural abilities. They just lacked the scientific basis to test it properly. You'll note that no mainstream (John Edward, Sylvia Brown, Uri Geller, etc.) paranormal specialist has ever tried to win the million dollars. They know they are making a good living by entertaining folks - but magic is entertaining, these guys are fooling people into believe something more.

A note: The book was one of my favorites and I let a couple of friends borrow it and they loved it too. However, I also bought the audiobook (I really did like this!) and the reading is very monotone and not enjoyable compared to reading it yourself and seeing the photos in the book.

Average customer rating:

A seamless story
A rich tapestry
Descriptive and entertaining
seductive historical fiction
The Artist, The Weavers, The Gentry, The Lady, And The Unicorn

The Lady and the Unicorn
Tracy Chevalier
Manufacturer: Plume
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0452285453

Amazon.com

If you think you wouldn't raise your skirts for a rakish legend about the purifying powers of a unicorn's horn, then maybe you aren't a 15th-century serving girl under the sway of a velvet-tongued court painter of ill repute. In keeping with her bestselling Girl with a Pearl Earring, and its Edwardian-era follow-up, Falling Angels, Tracy Chevalier's tale of artistic creation and late-medieval amours, The Lady and the Unicorn is a subtle study in social power, and the conflicts between love and duty. Nicolas des Innocents has been commissioned by the Parisian nobleman Jean Le Viste to design a series of large tapestries for his great hall (in real life, the famous Lady and the Unicorn cycle, now in Paris's Musee National du Moyen-Age Thermes de Cluny). While Nicolas is measuring the walls, he meets a beautiful girl who turns out to be Jean Le Viste's daughter. Their passion is impossible for their world--so forbidden, given their class differences, that its only avenue of expression turns out to be those magnificent tapestries. The historical evidence on which this story is based is slight enough to allow the full play of Chevalier's imagination in this cleverly woven tale. --Regina Marler

Book Description

A tour de force of history and imagination, The Lady and the Unicorn is Tracy Chevalier's answer to the mystery behind one of the art world's great masterpieces—a set of bewitching medieval tapestries that hangs today in the Cluny Museum in Paris. They appear to portray the seduction of a unicorn, but the story behind their making is unknown—until now.

Paris, 1490. A shrewd French nobleman commissions six lavish tapestries celebrating his rising status at Court. He hires the charismatic, arrogant, sublimely talented Nicolas des Innocents to design them. Nicolas creates havoc among the women in the house—mother and daughter, servant, and lady-in-waiting—before taking his designs north to the Brussels workshop where the tapestries are to be woven. There, master weaver Georges de la Chapelle risks everything he has to finish the tapestries—his finest, most intricate work—on time for his exacting French client. The results change all their lives—lives that have been captured in the tapestries, for those who know where to look.

In The Lady and the Unicorn, Tracy Chevalier weaves fact and fiction into a beautiful, timeless, and intriguing literary tapestry—an extraordinary story exquisitely told.

Download Description

"Bewitching art experts and enthusiasts alike for centuries, the Lady and the Unicorn tapestries hang today in the Cluny Museum in Paris. In each, an elegant lady and a unicorn stand or sit on an island of grass surrounded by a rich background of animals and flowers. Little is known about them except that they were woven toward the end of the fifteenth century and bear the coat of arms of a wealthy family from Lyons. Tracy Chevalier takes readers back to the tapestries' creation, giving life to the men who designed and made them, as well as the wives, daughters, and servants who exercised subtle (and not so subtle) influences over their men. Like the many different strands of wool and silk that were woven together into one cloth, the lives and fates of these people entwine in complex patterns, crisscrossing as they seek desires sensual and spiritual, temporal and eternal. An extraordinary story exquisitely told, Tracy Chevalier's The Lady and the Unicorn weaves history and fiction into a beautiful, timeless, and intriguing literary tapestry that rivals in grace and grandeur the masterpiece that inspired it."

Customer Reviews:

A seamless story.......2007-09-27

I read this book a few months back and I still think of it, meaning it left an impression.

Like Girl with the Pearl Earring, the prose are absolutely tight and seemless, with very few snags to jar the reading.

Honestly, I find it irritating when a book changes between characters, because I get wrapped up in one. This book was an exception. Each character had a distinct voice and each wove into the others' lives, like, what else? A tapestry.

I felt for all of the characters and, like Girl with the Pearl Earring, this story created in me the feeling that there was some underlying power at work, something bigger than the characters. Nice.

A rich tapestry.......2007-07-30

Tracy Chevalier has a solid formula for success--choose a period, populate it with both familiar and fictional characters, and tell a story that mixes historical fact with a fictional narrative that is, nonetheless, meticulously researched (the bibliographies in the backs of her books are extensive). The formula worked beautifully in Girl With a Pearl Earring, and perhaps even better in Falling Angels, but not so well in The Virgin Blue, where you can sort of feel her finding her footing. The Lady and the Unicorn, though, remains my favorite of all of her books. It might not be as heartbreaking as Falling Angels or as subtle as Girl With a Pearl Earring, but it's deliciously naughty, contains rich period detail (who knew 15th century tapestry weaving could be so fascinating?), and is full of complex characters that you can't help rooting for, even when they behave despicably. I still find myself re-reading it occasionally. And, as with the famous painting she based her other book on, I won't ever look at the unicorn tapestries in quite the same way again.

Descriptive and entertaining.......2007-03-31

Far raunchier than The Girl with the Pearl Earring...with the key character in the book being a Parisian artist whose main hobby is seducing women (or should that be farming?!) ;-)
Chevalier tells a good story though and I enjoyed the way each character had their own chapters where we heard their take on things.
Chevalier's particular talent is for bringing the sights and smells of her settings alive to the reader, therefore she was the ideal author to describe a tapestry relating to the five senses. I felt I could see and smell the places described, from the fragrant lily of the valley in Aliénor's garden to the early warning smell of Jacques Le Boeuf!!
In addition, the colour plates depicting the tapestry were very useful to refer to throughout the story.

I found this book interesting historically, artistically and in the very human way we conduct our relationships. The author has surely suceeded in making us look at the Lady and the Unicorn tapestries with new eyes and a little romance.

seductive historical fiction .......2007-03-19

Nicolas des Innocents, renowned at the court as a miniaturist, painter of tiny portraits of ladies, is commissioned by nobleman Jean le Viste to complete what at first seems to him a daunting and colossal task: tapestries depicting the battle of Nancy to cover all of the walls of the Grande Salle of the le Viste mansion, a room no fewer than twelve paces long and six wide.

Nicolas stands in awe, pondering the sheer enormity of the task, beads of sweat trickling down his forehead, when he suddenly catches a glimpse of Claude...Jean le Viste's daughter...

Chevalier masterfully weaves fictitious threads to create a seductive and alluring tale based on sensible suppositions concerning "The Lady and the Unicorn", a famous set of tapestries woven towards the end of the fifteenth century.

Pure magic, sheer elegance dotted here and there with tiny specks of vulgarity, just so to evoke the spirit of the era. A magnificent set of characters, a carefully thought-out plot, the book itself flows effortlessly and makes for an addictive read.

The Artist, The Weavers, The Gentry, The Lady, And The Unicorn.......2007-01-29

When Tracy Chevalier writes (or perhaps a better word is "composes") one of her novels, her extensive research into the period lets her deliver a story that is impeccably accurate in terms of the feel of the era, from the grandest down to the most intimate and trivial of matters. That's what Tracy Chevalier does best. Where she slides a bit in her plotlines is in her capacity to really maintain a full head of steam from start to finish, and every time I've read her books, I've found it an effort to get through certain chapters, even as I greatly enjoyed others.

The Lady and the Unicorn is Chevalier's imaginative, historically-sound re-telling of the creation of the lovely fifteenth-century "Lady and the Unicorn" tapestries that today hang in Paris' Musée National du Moyen-Age. Creating a back-story to replace the great unknown behind this most glorious of late-Medieval textile art, Chevalier tells us of the lusty, womanizing artist, ironically named Nicolas Des Innocents, hired by the callous social climber Jean Le Viste to design for his home a tapestry of the brutal Battle of Nancy, in which the French triumphed over the forces of Charles the Bold, Duke of Burgundy. However Le Viste's wife, the would-be nun, Genevieve de Nanterre, persuades the artist that a more fitting subject might be one that depicted the classic Medieval ideal, a virgin seducing (to its death) a unicorn.

The novel shifts through Nicolas' design for the tapestry, followed by its painstaking creation by a family of Flemish weavers. During the two years of this massive artwork's creation, the reader follows the lives of a half-dozen central characters, from Nicolas and Genevieve, to the blind daughter of a master Brussels weaver, to the vibrantly beautiful Le Viste daughter, Claude, whom Innocents' portrait in cloth depicts for us to this very day. Chevalier does a fine job of explaining how the great tapestries of the era were produced, and she is to be congratulated for her unflinchingly realistic take on Medieval sexual morality, which was far different in so many ways from that of our own times: in some ways more restrictive, in others shockingly licentious, with children being at times a far from treasured "consequence" of momentary passion.

Overall The Lady and the Unicorn is a well-told story set in the carefully-realized world of northwestern Europe at the end of the Middle Ages. It has a number of memorable scenes and moments, and wraps up nicely with a hint of irony and black humor amid all the celebratory relief at the collective accomplishments of so many. Where Chevalier went wrong was in not reproducing the tapestries for us to see either in an appendix or as a centerpiece in her book. Seeing what she was describing would have made a difference in following which figure appeared in which panel. Still, photographs of the tapestries may be found online, at the author's website, as well as several other places, and I'd recommend a reader seek them there.

All in all, this is a book worth reading, and one which should do Tracy Chevalier proud.

The Black Unicorn (Magic Kingdom of Landover Novel)

Average customer rating:

The Black Unicorn - worthy of accolade
hey
An absorbing and straightforward plot
A well thought out novel, with a fun story
The Black Unicorn

The Black Unicorn (Magic Kingdom of Landover Novel)
Terry Brooks
Manufacturer: Del Rey
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

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ASIN: 0345335287
Release Date: 1988-08-12

Book Description

A year had passed since Ben Holiday bought the Magic Kingdon from the wizard, Meeks. But unbeknownst to him, he has been the victim of a trap by Meeks, who has succeeded in stealing the Paladin and appropriating his face. Suddenly none of Ben's friends know him, but all of his enemies do. He must win it all back again--only this time on his own!

Customer Reviews:

The Black Unicorn - worthy of accolade.......2007-08-22

I wasn't sure what to think of Terry Brooks - I had heard so many conflicting opinions of his books. A few years ago, someone gave me a big box full of them, and I finally took the plunge and began reading the Magic Kingdom of Landover series. The Black Unicorn, second volume in the series, is everything that a good magical fantasy novel should be, and everything that a good contemporary fantasy novel should be.

Brooks' characters are intelligent, sympathetic beings that I couldn't help beginning to care about. In addition, there's a bit of the humor and punnery more common to Piers Anthony's Xanth series present, and it is a delightful addition to the typical fantasy ingredients.

The residents of Sterling Silver (the King of Landover's living castle) are all suddenly experiencing strange dreams, and Ben Holiday, Willow and Questor Thews each depart on a quest to follow the dream they have been sent. But where did the dreams come from?

I am anxiously anticipating reading Wizard at Large, which is the next volume in the series, and I would eagerly recommend The Black Unicorn, and the Magic Kingdom of Landover series to any fans of fantasy and magic.

hey.......2005-10-25

i would say this book was good. was kind of out of in regards to all the specific details but i got alot of the main plot.

An absorbing and straightforward plot.......2005-10-23

Very east to read and its worth buying the whole series of 5 books. Although they can be read seperately from each other the story interweaves throughout all books. I like the way the author does not let his character figure out to quickly what is happening even though the reader knows what is happening.

A well thought out novel, with a fun story.......2005-09-23

Brooks has an amazing way to twist words and thoughts together in a flow that paints a beautiful picture for his readers. When reading The Black Unicorn, I found that I was able to visualize the world that Ben Holiday and his friends traversed from day to day, and that I was able to understand, at least in part, the lives of those who would inhabit the world.

In The Black Unicorn, Brooks shows his readers a part of the world - the faery lands - that are so intwined with Landover. He shows us how the faeries used the realm of dreams to intervene in life as the Landoverian people know it, by showing Willow the black unicorn, by assisting Ben in his quest to rediscover himself. Brooks shows his readers how subtle influences can change the course of history.

And for that feat, I love his story of the Black Unicorn.

The Black Unicorn.......2005-05-23

In this second installation of the Landover series by Terry Brooks we find Ben Holiday a year after he first came to Landover. Through a scheme by the evil wizard, Meeks, Ben finds himself a stranger to his friends and banished from his castle. There have also been sightings of an elusive and mysterious black unicorn who may hold the key to Ben's return to his kingship.

This is a nice, entertaining, series which I am enjoying. I am hoping the farther along the series goes, the better they will become. I am already getting more attached to the characters which keeps me coming back to this series. However, I dont consider it on the same level as Edding's The Belgariad or Goodkind's Sword of Truth.

The Secret of the Unicorn (The Adventures of Tintin)

Average customer rating:

The beginnings of true greatness.
Great album by Tintin
Full of adventure and fun-filled confusion
"Now why were they both so keen to buy my ship?"
A nautical treasure hunt

The Secret of the Unicorn (The Adventures of Tintin)
Herge
Manufacturer: Little, Brown Young Readers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0316358320

Amazon.com

The Secret of the Unicorn was one of the first truly great Tintin adventures and Herge's personal favorite, combining a puzzling mystery with a ripping pirate yarn. When Tintin finds a magnificent model ship in the street market, his attempt to buy it for Captain Haddock leads him on a trail of pickpockets, burglars, and secret treasure, and Haddock enthralls him with a tale of his seafaring ancestor, Sir Francis Haddock (who was exclaiming "Thundering typhoons!" generations before the Captain ever did), and his fateful encounter with the fearsome pirate Red Rackham. The story is also notable for Herge's fantastic eye for ship detail as well as the first appearances of Nestor and Marlinspike Hall. The Secret of the Unicorn was Tintin's first official two-book adventure, continued in Red Rackham's Treasure. --David Horiuchi

Customer Reviews:

The beginnings of true greatness........2007-04-13

Herge, The Secret of the Unicorn (Methuen, 1946)

This is where Herge really started to get great. A series of wallet-snatchings in plaguing Brussels, which Thomson and Thompson are investigating. Meanwhile, Tintin buys an old model of a ship as a present for Haddock, and is immediately accosted by two people who want to buy it from him. Both stories converge when the ship and one of the missing wallets become parts of the key to the final resting place of the Unicorn, Sir Francis Haddock's legendary ship. Just before the Unicorn went down, Haddock had been involved in a great battle with notorious pirate Red Rackham-- and the Unicorn is believed to hold Red Rackham's final treasure. But that's another story. Despite the fact that there's very little story to be found here (this is, after all, setup for Red Rackham's Treasure), Herge throws in all sorts of diversions and red herrings to keep the readers entertained. It's a wonderful read. *** ½

Great album by Tintin.......2007-02-03

This might not be the best Tintin album, but I considered it a special one for me, as it was the first one I ever read (I still had the copy I bought around 1978, when I was about 9, tattered, and with writings in the margin, as I tried to comment on the action). This was one of the albums that Herge wrote during World War II, when he thought prudent not to dabble into politics as he has done in his previous albums. In Unicorn, Captain Haddock founds that the memories of an ancestor of him, seems to hold clues to a mysterious treasure. The book includes during several pages a very funny story-within-a story of that ancestor, Captain Francis Haddock. Soon, though, Tintin and Haddock found themselves on the run by the Bird brothers, evil antiquaries who have also found about the treasure and want a piece of it. The mansion of Marlinspike (or Moulinsart, in the original) as well as Nestor are introduced in this book. Unicorn, by the way, has a less interesting sequel (though still worthwhile reading), Red Rackham's Treasure, where Tintin and friends rent a boat to try to recover the treasure in the Caribbean. Calculus is introduced in that album.

Full of adventure and fun-filled confusion.......2006-07-09

First published in French in 1943 as The Secret of the Unicorn (Le Secret de la Licorne. An epidemic of wallet snatching in and around Brussels affects the Thom(p)son twins as theylose wallets by the dozen. Meanwhile Tinin sees a curious model ship and decides to buy it for his friend , Captain Haddock , after which he is pestered by dealers to sell it to them.
The Captain unpieces the mystery of the adventures of his ancestor Sir Francis Haddock , who lived in the reign of Charles II , and his battle against the pirates. Meanwhile Titnin finds himself on the wrong side of rogue art thieves , the Bird brothers, and gets kidnapped by them where he does battle with them at their headquarters at Marlinspike Hall.
This is the first in a two part series leading up to Tintin's search for the centuries old lost treasure in Red Rackham's Treasure.As usual , full of adventure and fun-filled confusion, not to mention the historical flashbacks to the escapades of Sir Francis Haddock and the villainous pirate chief , Red Rackham.

"Now why were they both so keen to buy my ship?".......2005-05-18

The Secret of the Unicorn - La Mystere de La Licorne, or the Mystery of the Unicorn, in the original French - is the eleventh installment in the Tintin series. It was also evidently the personal favorite of author Herge.

Like many other Tintin adventures, it spins out of something as seemingly innocuous as can be: Tintin goes to a street fair, sees a model of a ship that he likes, and decides to buy it. Almost instantly two mystery men are hot on his heels as he leaves the place, offering him exorbitant amounts of money. He manages to lose them before he gets back to the flat, but needless to say, this is not the last we've seen of these two in The Secret of the Unicorn.

It later turns out that the ship is a small replica of a real vessel, the Unicorn, that was commanded by none other than Sir Francis Haddock, ancestor of the Captain and possible originator of such Haddockisms as "thundering typhoons," etc. It also comes to light that hidden in the model are parchment scrolls indicating something important about the original ship, which sank ages ago. But by the time Tintin finds this out, his ship has mysteriously disappeared...!

The Secret of the Unicorn as it was originally published in the magazine Le Petit Vingtieme was far too long to be contained in one book; it spills over into a sequel, Red Rackham's Treasure, in which Tintin and friends take the sea to find the sunken Unicorn - but that will have to wait for another review!

(Incidentally, to anyone who wonders, the scale on which I am rating these books is one to five for Tintin, not one to five for everything else. In other words, it starts with great and goes on up from there. Three stars = no slouch.)

A nautical treasure hunt.......2004-11-27

Tintin purchases a model ship at an antiques market. Just after he purchases it two strangers arrive who want to buy the ship. Tintin won't sell it to them even though they offer him ten times what he paid for it. It is a gift for his friend Captain Haddock. The captain is amazed to get the model ship. He shows Tintin a painting of his ancestor, a captain. The captain's ship is visible in the background, and is identical to the model Tintin purchased. The secret to buried treasure is somehow hidden in the model ship, but other parties are also after it...

This particular Tintin book was my favorite when I was a child, mostly because of Captain Haddock. The Captain is continually hollering fake profanities, such as, "Billions of blue blistering barnacles!" I guess that could be a little disturbing now, since the captain acts funny because he is a raging alcoholic (trying to quit though which is a plot point, and I don't think that that is a reason to keep the book from children). This story cuts back and forth in time as bits and pieces of Captain Haddock's family history are shown and trigger new events in the search for treasure.

Song of the Wanderer (The Unicorn Chronicles, Book 2)

Average customer rating:

Coville's lyrical writing takes you on a whimsical adventure that won't soon be forgotten!
A Great Book Cannot wait for the next
Looking forward to this book
Oh My Gosh You Have To Read Song Of The Wanderer
I waited soooo long for this

Song of the Wanderer (The Unicorn Chronicles, Book 2)
Bruce Coville
Manufacturer: Scholastic Paperbacks
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0590459546

Amazon.com

Prolific children's book author Bruce Coville has delivered a down-to-earth unicorn tale, if such a thing is possible. Song of the Wanderer, the second book in The Unicorn Chronicles, delivers a neat follow-up to Into the Land of the Unicorns, unraveling mysteries and handily reweaving new ones just as fast. The world of the unicorns, Luster, is carefully and cohesively imagined, with myths and rules and prejudices that seem logical and organic. Readers will thrill to the story of Cara, an earth girl who becomes both ward and savior of the unicorns. She must travel through Luster--a world replete with all manner of secret caves and rainbow prisons and talking seashells--back to earth to try to find her grandmother, the Wanderer. The episodic structure of the book is satisfying; Coville delivers all the de rigueur scenes, including a makeover, wherein a Geomancer provides Cara with clothing appropriate to her journey: "To finish the outfit, she strapped a short sword to Cara's side. 'May you never have to use it,' whispered the Geomancer." (The rest of us hope otherwise.) Coville hurries his heroine past some flat characterizations through clever, well-thought-out plot points. And he leaves his ending compellingly open, as befits a series: Luster resounds with rumors of "the possibility of a fierce, final battle that would decide the ancient struggle between the unicorns and the Hunters once and for all." Stay tuned, unicorn lovers. --Claire Dederer

Book Description

Luster, the world where the unicorns fled to escape the Hunters who have sworn to wipe them out, has dangers of its own—as Cara discovers when she attempts to cross that world in a desperate effort to rescue her grandmother. Each stage of Cara's journey brings new peril, wondrous new characters, and new clues to the mystery of her grandmother's past. And through it all threads the haunting melody of the "Song of the Wanderer", heard on this tape for the first time. From the enchanting flute notes that introduce the story to its stunning conclusion, listeners will find themselves, like Cara, drawn heart and soul into the wonder of Luster.

Customer Reviews:

Coville's lyrical writing takes you on a whimsical adventure that won't soon be forgotten!.......2007-06-29

After being cast into the mysterious land of Luster not too long ago, twelve-year-old Cara Diana Hunter is finally just moments away from meeting the Unicorn Queen - Arabella Skydancer. During her time in Luster, while Cara has missed Grandmother Morris dearly, she has made friends with mythical creatures of all shapes and sizes - from Thomas the Tinker to Lightfoot the Unicorn, and a squirrel-like creature called Squijum to the half bear/half human Dimblethum, and many, many more. But the time has come to buckle down and complete the mission at hand to save Luster forever as we know it. The Unicorn Queen has reached old age. She is fading slowly but surely; however, she refuses to say farewell to her friends and family until she has had the opportunity to see Grandmother Morris - aka The Wanderer - one last time. This is where Cara enters the story. It is the Unicorn Queen's request that Cara, along with a glory of unicorns - Moonheart, Finder, and Belle. Together, Cara and the glory of unicorns - along with Thomas the Tinker and Squijum - will make their way back to Earth, in order to save Grandmother Morris from Beloved and the rest of the Hunter's, and return her to her rightful home right here in Luster. Cara is convinced that, with the assistance of her strong, and powerful friends, the task will be simple. However, she soon realizes that heading back to Earth and locating Grandmother Morris is a much more difficult task than she ever could have imagined. For one, their days are numbered before the dynamics of Luster shift for Autumn, and make it impossible to re-enter Luster in the same location where they departed. Two, the companions will have to find a way to make it to the back of the dragon, Ebillan's cave, in an attempt to reach the secret door that bridges the gap between Earth and Luster. And three, with various moments of contact with the wicked Beloved, Cara has no idea what to expect when she takes her first steps back onto Earth's soil. She's also reluctant to find out. As much as she wants to see Grandmother Morris again, she can't help but feel nervous about leaving the quiet, shimmery world of Luster. But, alas, Cara accepts the task, and begins her journey. This time, however, the journey is much more tiring than her first travels through Luster. With a request to pay a visit to the Geomancer, M'Gama, Cara visits the magician of sorts, where she is given provisions and protection to help her during her quest. But her time with M'Gama is not nearly as important as her time with Grimwold, the individual who records all of the Unicorn Chronicles, and has a very special story waiting for Cara and her companions when they arrive at his front door during their journey. With Grimwold and M'Gama's instructions and information close at hand, Cara sets her mind on accomplishing her task, and finding Grandmother Morris. But through battles with vicious delvers, and encounters with enough mythical creatures to make your head spin; Cara becomes to wonder whether she'll be able to accomplish her task in the set amount of days, or if she'll be the ruination of Luster altogether.

I absolutely adored Bruce Coville's INTO THE LAND OF THE UNICORNS, which I read a little over a year ago. However, upon beginning SONG OF THE WANDERER, I quickly realized that, as fabulous as its predecessor was, it couldn't hold a candle to the magic and adventure found within the pages of SONG OF THE WANDERER. Coville has returned with the rest of Cara's story, painting Cara, once more, as an understanding, brave, kind individual; whose loyalty to her Grandmother, her friends, and the secret world of Luster is admirable; while her determination to complete any task that may find its way to her is thrilling. The fact that, like with INTO THE LAND OF THE UNICORNS, Coville has kept many secondary characters around, and introduced many more only adds to the excitement of the tale, and makes it impossible to stop reading. The Squijum is still one of my favorite characters. His constant ramblings are humorous; while his ability to brighten the mood in any situation makes him a much-needed character. Thomas the Tinker is also a fun individual. The fact that he owns a caravan that can be folded into the size of a piece of paper adds a little magic to the story; while his protectiveness over Cara makes him appear quite similar to a father-like character, whom you can't help but love. I was absolutely ecstatic to see that the faces of Lightfoot the Unicorn and the Dimblethum made appearances throughout SONG OF THE WANDERER, as they are two very important characters whom I certainly wouldn't want to see cut from the story. Coville's descriptions of the vicious delvers, and their surprise attacks send shivers up your spine; while the stories that Grimwold recants regarding Unicorn history are absorbing, and hard to resist. Coville's lyrical writing takes you on a whimsical adventure that won't soon be forgotten!

Erika Sorocco
Freelance Reviewer

A Great Book Cannot wait for the next.......2007-05-15

I thought this book was really great. Bruce Coville did a great job with this book as he did with the last one. Cara is one of my favorite book characters and I just loved all the twists this book had. Thses books are not your average unicorn books! Some good news for anyone who has already read these books and want to know if there's more there is. Book 3 is supposed to come out around April 2008 and called Dark Whispers. There will also be a book 4.

Looking forward to this book.......2007-04-25

My daughter hasn't made it to this book yet but she is looking forward to it!

Oh My Gosh You Have To Read Song Of The Wanderer.......2007-04-13

Song of the Wanderer by Bruce Coville is a great fantasy book. I definitely recommend it to people who LOVE using there IMAGINATION. The story begins when a girl named Cara is in the wonderful yet dangerous land of the unicorns, Luster. Cara was summoned by the queen of the unicorns to find the wanderer(Cara's grandmother) so that the queen(Arabella Skydancer) can rest in peace. Soon after that meeting Cara sets off on her mission to find her grandmother. The night she set off she had a dream of her many times great grandmother (that hates unicorns) Beloved, contacts Cara in her dream. The next day Cara, Moonheart, Belle, the squijem, and Finder set off to M'Gama's mountain. Cara and the rest of the group follow M'Gama's servant deep down into the mountain, to the point that they are almost under the surface of the earth to do a spell that will help tell the way to the gate that leads from Luster to Earth. Also M'Gama will do something that will surprise you. Trust me.
This paragraph is just about a character that comes later in the book. That character is Lightfoot. Lightfoot is a smart alec, cocky little(well he is not really small he actually is a rather large unicorn) that is also very sweet and protective of Cara. He risk's his life for Cara at one point in the book. And you will find out in what way. Oh and you will find that a unsuspecting person will finally meet Cara. And all you need to do is read the book to find what adventure lies in it. I'm not going to you what is going to happen in the rest of the book.

I waited soooo long for this.......2007-03-30

After picking up Into the Land of the Unicorns: The Unicorn Chronicles when it was first published, I very impatiently waited for this title to be released. My best friend and I read it over and over -- my copy was so worn I went through several rolls of tape repairing it. Finally, on a trip with my high school honors society, I picked up a replacement AND the sequel! That night, I burned through the book in about half an hour. Yes, at the age of 16, I was reading a book aimed at children. I am that hooked. If a third is ever released, I'm going to buy it as well.

The new cover art is impressive, but it kind of ruins the imagination to actually SEE Cara. The imagery in this book, however, puts the art to shame. This is by far the most cleverly-written tale I have laid hands on.

Into the Land of the Unicorns (The Unicorn Chronicles, Book 1)

Average customer rating:

Best
Fabulous story.
Amazing!
Best Book about Unicorns!
Inspiring

Into the Land of the Unicorns (The Unicorn Chronicles, Book 1)
Bruce Coville
Manufacturer: Scholastic Paperbacks
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0439108381

Book Description

This is the magical story of Cara, a girl sent on a mission by her grandmother to the land of the unicorns. Only Cara can protect the unicorns and their world from invasion.

Customer Reviews:

Best.......2007-05-07

this book was written when i was born, and i love it! i love the unicorns and i am hoping to finish my own series called United Unicorns, i hope i can get it pubilshed

Fabulous story........2006-11-10

My kids really enjoyed me reading a chapter from this book every night after their meditation time. I am about to start reading The Song of the Wanderer to them now that we have finished this book.

Amazing!.......2006-06-13

I picked up the book when I was younger, I can't even remember when, but at the age of 19, it still rings as one of my favorite unicorn stories. This is one of the few excellent fantasy books for girls, and I highly recommend this as well as the second book.

Best Book about Unicorns!.......2006-02-13

One thing I really like about this book is that the unicorns don't act super girly. They have battles and other stuff. Each has a diffrent way of thinking. If you are nervous of buying this book don't it's really cool.
Another thing is if you're worried this book will scare you think again. I was in second grade when I read this book and wasn't scared by it at all.
This book is packed with really cool charaters, a good plot, and a big twist. So if you're looking for a good book read this. It's really good for girl Harry Potter fans waiting for the next book to come out.

Inspiring.......2006-01-23

Into the land of the unicorns is one of the best books I have ever read. It inspires me and literally takes me away from my world. I feel like a part of the book and it's a part of me.........SERIOUSLY! I loved the book and suggest it to be read by not just kids, but by adults too. The book inspired me to start writing my own book, even though I am only 12 years old. But its not only me who loved the book, but my father too. He and I would read it together and talk about it. I really recommend this book to persons of all ages.

Average customer rating:

The Unicorn Sonata
Fall asleep and dream of this beautiful fantasy world
A lovely book
The Unicorn Sonata
The Last Unicorn for elementary school readers!

The Unicorn Sonata
Peter S. Beagle
Manufacturer: Turner Pub
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 1570362882

Customer Reviews:

The Unicorn Sonata.......2006-05-24

This book is very carefully bittersweet. Joey, short for Josephine, is disenchanted with modern life. She spends most of her time in a small California music shop owned by an old Greek man who gives her music lessons in exchange for her help around the store. One day she begins hearing strange, enchanting music, seemingly started by a mysterious boy named Indigo who plays an instrument unlike anything she has ever seen, and follows the melody until she stumbles into an entirely different world. Here she meets satyrs and tiny dragons and water-nymphs... and eventually, unicorns.

The plot in this book is somewhat subtle. You go into it thinking it will be a typical 80s/90s feel-good type of thing where a troubled young teenager has a great adventure, is bettered for it, and ends up loving the normal world just because s/he has grown up some over the course of the adventure. But eventually you see the book it is not about that at all, but more about Joey's keeping contact with it, her struggling desire to capture unicorn songs in the modern world, and unblinding the old unicorns. This book definitely has more to do with its world, the unicorns, and the simple obersvations of characters than it does with a plot. Luckily the story flows smoothly and this works out OK, if only because Peter S. Beagle is such an amazing author.

I did not like this book as much as I enjoyed The Last Unicorn, since I do typically get more swept up in dynamic storylines rather than subtle ones, but this book definitely kept my fancy well. It is also not quite as beautifully written as Peter S. Beagle's most well-known novel, but perhaps this one just speaks to me less on a personal level. I'm an unfortunate escapist, so I did instantly connect with Joey, but this story is just not as touching as The Last Unicorn.

Definitely a good novel and a book worth reading.

Fall asleep and dream of this beautiful fantasy world.......2005-06-07

I am a huge fan of the last unicorn and I've been collecting unicorns since I was a little girl (When The Last Unicorn movie came out in 1982). Even though this book is at about an elementary/Jr. High reading level, I had to pick it up and read it. I was not disappointed. I was drawn into the beautiful fantasy world created by Mr. Beagle. After finishing the book I went to sleep that night and had a wonderful dream that I was in the world with the unicorns and other creatures. You have to read this book and drift into this wonderful world of childhood, if only for one good dream.

A lovely book.......2003-09-22

This really is a beautiful book, and I believe if it had been published 20 years ago it would have been a huge seller in the fantasy market. I think the reason some of the other reviewers have not enjoyed the work as much is because this sort of fantasy kingdom has been portrayed before--Never Never Land, Middle Earth, Narnia--even the world of The Last Unicorn itself. Still, at the end, I found myself yearning for Beagle's mythical kingdom. And Abuelita is a wonderful character. A slower, older style, but worth finishing.

The Unicorn Sonata.......2003-04-10

The Unicorn Sonata, written by Peter S. Beagle, is about a lack-luster 13 year old girl named Josephine Riveira who accidentally stumbles upon a magical land called Shei'rah. The story that unfolds is both riveting and beautiful. The Unicorn Sonata is a wonderful read, accessible to both children and adults and successfully brings back the sort of magical world that we seem to have forgotten in today's chaotic society.

The Last Unicorn for elementary school readers!.......2003-02-24

I am huge fan of Beagle's "The Last Unicorn," and finally have decided to check out some of his other works. This is the first one I grabbed off the shelf because it is also about unicorns. I was a little disappointed because the plot is very slow and not that interesting, and the dialogue is not very deep or memorable. It lacks most of the lyrical qualities of "The Last Unicorn" in both plot and style. However, I don't think this a bad book!!! Its just different, that's all. I'm sure that Beagle had a different audience in mind. If I were 10 or 12 I would be raving about this book for sure! Call it a "Last Unicorn" for elementary school readers. "The Last Unicorn" is a difficult book after all, full of beautiful poetry, deep characters, and detailed descriptions. Perhaps this is a good stepping stone for younger readers to use... and eventually discover "The Last Unicorn!"

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