A Unicorn Named Sparkle (Hardcover) by Amy Young

About the Book

A picture book about a little girl who desperately wants a beautiful unicorn as a pet, but winds up with a less than desirable one instead.

Book Synopsis

When Lucy sees an ad in the newspaper for a unicorn, she sends in her twenty-five cents and waits four to six long weeks for her very own unicorn to arrive. She imagines the flowers that she'll braid into his beautiful pink mane, and she even picks the perfect name for him: Sparkle. But when Sparkle arrives, his ears are too long, his horn is too short, he smells funny--and oh, he has fleas. Lucy isn't pleased, but in the end she warms up to Sparkle and realizes that even though he wasn't exactly the unicorn she wanted, he might be just the one she needs.

Review Quotes

The pencil, pen, and watercolor illustrations, done in a simple, loose style, offer expressive, playful character poses. And Young hits all the visual beats, creating something likable and appealing...A tale about coming to love someone--or something--for who they are and not what one hopes them to be: a pleasant addition to the odd-couple shelf. --Kirkus

"She had to admit: sometimes he made her smile and sometimes he made her laugh," writes Young (Don't Eat the Baby!), whose storytelling and watercolor cartooning are spot-on in their comic timing. Her message to readers is clear: self-awareness and finding a soul mate don't always come easily. --Publishers Weekly

About The Author

Amy Young was born in Boston, Massachusetts, and though she trained and practiced as a lawyer, she has always wanted to be an artist. Her first picture book, which she wrote and illustrated, was Belinda the Ballerina. Since then, she has written and illustrated many picture books. She lives in Spring Lake, Michigan, with her husband.