Scholastic, Inc. -- hc
New York -- ©1994 -- 159pp
ISBN: 0-590-45955-4
autographed
A young girl is sent to Luster ... a world where unicorns reign ... by her grandmother. The girl discovers that her grandmother had many secrets related to this world ... secrets which only slowly reveal themselves as the girl begins a journey with the unicorns.
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Bruce Coville is one of the best fantasy writers out there. Because he tends to write toward the younger market, many adults aren't familiar with him, which is a shame.
I first read this many years ago, when I was reading children's books at a tremendous rate. It's possible that this was one of the first Coville books I read. I immediately became enchanted by the book and by Coville's work, which I have sought out on a regular basis.
This book came off the shelf again the other day as I was looking for something to read aloud to my boys (ages 10 & 12) at bedtime. Although both will read on their own, they enjoy having me read to them. I chose this book because I knew they weren't likely to read it on their own (unicorns and a female protagonist made this seem a little too 'girly' for them). They absolutely loved it!
It was hard to stop at night, because both boys would want 'just one more chapter'.
Coville does a good job here by making the unicorns male, to balance the fact that the main human character is female. Throw in a creature that resembles a half man, half bear; a Disney-ish squirrel-like creature called a Squijum; a dwarf, a dragon, and a whole glory of unicorns, and you have one of the most unique fantasy stories around.
The book is a quick and easy read, and we're already well in to book #2.
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