The Last Unicorn
The 30th anniversary of a fantasy classic from Peter S. Beagle!
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The Last Unicorn is one of the great fantasy novels of the 20th Century. Since its publication in 1968 it has never been out of print, with 6 million-plus copies sold around the world, and it has been translated into more than 20 languages. The animated movie, version released in 1982, has been seen by hundreds of millions of people, and after 25 years is still showing regularly on cable and satellite. In 2005, author Peter S. Beagle finally returned to his classic characters—Shmendrick the Magician, Molly Grue, King Lir, and the unicorn herself – in a coda story called “Two Hearts.” Readers everywhere were thrilled, and “Two Hearts” went on to win the Hugo Award for Best Novelette of the Year. This Deluxe Edition of The Last Unicorn brings the original classic tale and its extraordinary sequel together in one volume for the first time.
\ School Library JournalGr 6 Up—A beloved story is now a graphic novel in this excellent adaptation. A unicorn leaves her forest home to find out if she is the last of her kind, befriending Schmendrick, a hapless magician, and Molly Grue, a bandit leader's runaway wife. These are vivid and lovable characters, and the story is filled with action, romance, and humor. Much of the original novel's lyrical language has been included, and readers will be eager to find out if the unicorn will give up her quest for love, or if any of Schmendrick's spells will ever turn out right. The legendary creature resembles the one in the film, but De Liz's artistic vision is original. This unicorn shimmers and glows, her mane framing her face with Art Nouveau-style tendrils. The illustrations are graceful and detailed, and inked in warm, glowing colors. This is a worthy successor to the classic novel and film.—Lisa Goldstein, Brooklyn Public Library, NY\ \ \ \ \ Library JournalBeagle's odd fable has collected millions of fans since its 1968 publication and is considered a fantasy classic. Fearing that she's the last of her kind, a unicorn—accompanied by an incompetent magician and the former girlfriend of a cowardly outlaw—journeys to free the other unicorns from evil King Haggard. It's a mashup of quest tales, heroic and otherwise, about seeking family (the Unicorn), love (Haggard's son, Prince Lir), power (Haggard), competence (Schmendrick the magician), and adventure (Molly). Yet beyond archetypes, the engaging characters carry the narrative, which becomes a quasi-Rorschach for readers to find in it what they will. Gillis and De Liz's adaptation succeeds with overall visual loveliness and striking design and coloring, although some details don't quite fit. The Unicorn, for example, seems too My Little Pony about the head, while her human persona, Amalthea, looks childishly dim-witted. But De Liz shines with the ornamentally grotesque Mommy Fortuna and her harpy. VERDICT Many fans of the story should enjoy this comics version, and new readers will find it an easygoing and beautiful read. Recommended for tweens and up.—M.C.\ \ \ Gr 6 Up—A beloved story is now a graphic novel in this excellent adaptation. A unicorn leaves her forest home to find out if she is the last of her kind, befriending Schmendrick, a hapless magician, and Molly Grue, a bandit leader's runaway wife. These are vivid and lovable characters, and the story is filled with action, romance, and humor. Much of the original novel's lyrical language has been included, and readers will be eager to find out if the unicorn will give up her quest for love, or if any of Schmendrick's spells will ever turn out right. The legendary creature resembles the one in the film, but De Liz's artistic vision is original. This unicorn shimmers and glows, her mane framing her face with Art Nouveau-style tendrils. The illustrations are graceful and detailed, and inked in warm, glowing colors. This is a worthy successor to the classic novel and film.—Lisa Goldstein, Brooklyn Public Library, NY\ \
