A Plague of Unicorns by Jane Yolen (review)

Abstract

Reviewed by: A Plague of Unicorns by Jane Yolen April Spisak Yolen, Jane A Plague of Unicorns. Zonderkidz, 2014 [208p] illus. ISBN 978-0-310-74648-5 $15.99 Reviewed from galleys Ad Gr. 4-6 Unicorns are all well and good as glorious, majestic figures, until they start eating the abbey’s very best apples. Abbot Aelian is determined to fight off the unicorns, enlisting the help of various heroes over the years and defensive strategies, but it takes a curious outsider kid (sent to the abbey to spare his parents his endless questions) to save the day. The grace of the narrative and the cozy sense that all will undoubtedly end well create a warm, readaloud-ready volume. Unfortunately, there’s not much tension here: even when things appear to be going wrong, there’s a flatness to the tone and a lack of urgency to the problem itself which is, in the end, simply the eating of apples. It’s not quite clear if this is single story or a linked collection: the original source was a Yolen short story from 1994, and there’s a curious lack of connection between the chapters on occasion. Format questions aside, however, Yolen fans will recognize and appreciate her capture of the everyday as magical and characters who act from a kind, earnest core. Crisp black-and-white illustrations accent the text, reinforcing key scenes. Copyright © 2015 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois