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Wish upon a Unicorn

by Vicki Blum, Alan Barnard, illus.

One day Arica falls through a crack in her grandmother’s kitchen floor and finds herself kidnapped by trolls and dragged into North Bundelag, a land of magic. Soon she is in the clutches of the evil fairy Raden, who wants to harness Arica’s powers for his own purposes. Arica discovers she has a strong bond with the captive unicorns, who speak to her telepathically and call her True One. As she makes friends with her fellow captives, the elves, she hatches a plan to escape and save the unicorns. A harrowing flight through the Badlands leads to a final confrontation between Raden, Arica, and a character called the Fairy Queen.

This is a fast-paced adventure that will hold young fantasy-lovers from start to finish. Arica is an attractive young hero, and the unicorns, especially the youngest, named Wish, are vividly portrayed. Arica’s captivity and enslavement by Raden give the story unexpected depth. The revelation that the Fairy Queen is Arica’s own grandmother leaves room for a sequel.

There are problems, however. Blum’s ambitions obviously exceed the beginning-chapter-book form: many narrative threads are introduced and then abandoned quickly, and some scenes are cut short before the necessary connections with other parts of the story emerge clearly. The emotional texture of the story also suffers as a result; Arica’s parents remain shadowy figures, and her relationship with Wish, which is central to the story, needs to be developed in more depth. Readers who value action over emotional resonance will likely not mind, but others surely will.

 

Reviewer: Joanne Findon

Publisher: Scholastic Canada

DETAILS

Price: $4.99

Page Count: 139 pp

Format: Paper

ISBN: 0-590-51519-5

Released: Oct.

Issue Date: 1999-12

Categories: Children and YA Fiction

Age Range: ages 8–10