Unicorn Magic

April 15, 2018
A troubled unicorn wonders what her special power might be.All of Periwinkle's friends have figured out their magical abilities. Ruby can paint the sunrise with magnificent colors. Pearl can spin clouds into playful shapes. And Marigold can plant meadows of flowers with a single twitch of her horn. Periwinkle sits glumly in Mellow Meadow, while glossy tears drip from her eyes, wondering what her magic might be. Her avian friend Birdie gives her the pedestrian advice: "You just need to believe in magic and follow your heart." Variations on this useless advice (it's literally magical thinking) are repeated throughout, and with no action to accompany it, the one-note theme is hard-pressed to carry through to the end. This contrived story of baseless self-confidence gets its sweetness from the sugary ambiance, not necessarily the text. Gibson's (Wolfie Paints the Town, 2017) pastel paradise, constructed from felt, flourishes with sparkles, magical swirls, and of course, flowing manes and unicorn horns. Tiny tots who gravitate toward anything cotton-candy sweet will be enamored with this fuzzy, cozy world.Platitudinous...but pink. (Picture book. 2-6)

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