BOOK NOOK REVIEWS: Jane Yolen

Title: A Plague of Unicorns

Author: Jane Yolen

Illustrators: Jody Langley, John Rowe, Tom McGrath, Matthew Van Zomeren

Publisher: Zonderkidz

Ages: 9-11

Synopsis: Monks, unicorns, and a duke's son come together in an epic battle over delicious apples. James, who is almost nine years old, has more questions than his family can handle so he is shipped off to the local Abby. Abbot Aelian has more unicorns in his golden apple orchards that he would like, and needs help to save the Abby from ruin. Will the Abby fall or will a local hero come to save the day?

Why you should read it: Jane Yolen has been called the Hans Christian Anderson by Newsweek or the Aesop of the Twentieth Century by the New York Times. After I read this book I could understand why. It's not so much that Ms. Yolen tells a great story appealing to readers young and old. More the way she weaves an enchanting web of sights and sounds to draw her readers back in time to a simpler place where unicorns still exist. It's this suspension of disbelief which allows me to entertain the possibility unicorns are real and heroes can come in all shapes and sizes.

Like-o-meter Rating: 5 out of 5...grab it!

(Disclaimer: Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookLook Bloggers http://booklookbloggers.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255 http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx 03/16cfr255 03.html ("Guides Concerning the use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.")

This & That

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Inside every fat book is a thin book trying to get out. - Unknown

The long-lived books of tomorrow are concealed somewhere amongst the so-far unpublished MSS of today. - Philip Unwin

The art of writing is the art of applying the seat of the pants to the seat of the chair. - Mary Heaton Vorse

A story isn't about a moment in time, a story is about the moment in time. - W. D. Wetherell

I never want to see anyone, and I never want to go anywhere or do anything. I just want to write. - P. G. Wodehouse

I'm writing a book. I've got the page numbers done. - Stephen Wright

It is my contention that a really great novel is made with a knife and not a pen. A novelist must have the intestinal fortitude to cut out even the most brilliant passage so long as it doesn't advance the story. - Frank Yerby

Exercise the writing muscle every day, even if it is only a letter, notes, a title list, a character sketch, a journal entry. Writers are like dancers, like athletes. Without that exercise, the muscles seize up. - Jane Yolen