The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle
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Book Reviews of The Last Unicorn
Book Review: The Last Unicorn: The Last of the Literary Fairy Tales
Summary: 5 Stars
The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle is one of the last, best fairy tales of our generation. It's a great read for an adult or a child; I first read it in fourth grade, and recently re-read it as an adult with no less sense of wonder or awe.It's an often tongue-in-cheek fairy tale about the last unicorn left on a Midaevil Earth, which unicorn represents (of course) the last of the immortal magic that is inevitably represented in good fantasies. The story is set in the usual quest setting, with the expected good and evil dichotomy and characters such as a bumbling yet powerful wizard, a good-hearted lass, a handsome hero, and, last but foremost, the beautiful and sorrowful, immortal unicorn.
What sets this tale apart from others--it is most definitely in the same league as C.S. Lewis' the Chronicles of Narnia, or his more adult Till We Have Faces--is its flowing prose and often unexpected sense of humor. Beagle pokes fun at the fantasy form of story-telling (for the enjoyment of the adult reader), while not allowing the jibes to be too satirical or otherwise distracting from the beauty and grace of the story itself. While the tale stays within the traditional confines and plot of a fairy tale/fantasy, the characters are so well-written and the story so imaginative and well-told, the tale's traditional form only adds to its sense of magic.
In short, it's one of the very best fairy tale/fantasies I've had the pleasure of reading (and re-reading). I unabashedly recommend it to the young and old with five stars.
Book Review: Beautiful and Fantastic
Summary: 5 Stars
No matter how many fantasy books you have read, The Last Unicorn is a fantasy unlike any other. Unlike many other denser books, The Last Unicorn is light in both tone and content. There is a fey air of the absurd about it that makes it all the more magical.While I can put other fantasy books aside, I simply had to read The Last Unicorn from cover to cover in one sitting. It really drew me into its own unique world; a world both beautiful and elusive.
The story is a simple one revolving around a unicorn (she is never named) who leaves her enchanted lilac wood only to find that she is the last surviving unicorn. She decides to go on a quest in order to discover why, and is soon joined by Schmendrick the magician and Molly Grue, a scullery maid. Together, this motley group travels to the castle of King Haggard where they believe the Red Bull has imprisoned all the other unicorns of the world. All does not go as planned, of course, and adventure follows.
I think many people make the mistake of thinking The Last Unicorn is exclusively a children's book. Nothing could be further from the truth as this beautiful, little tale can be read on many levels: as an adventure story or as an exploration of the nature of truth, beauty, reality, immortality and the ultimate purpose of life.
Of all the fantasy books I have ever read, this is my alltime favorite and the one I find most beautiful as well as possessing the most depth and emotion. It is a lovely tale that brings the secrets of life and love into wonderful focus.
Book Review: Glowing Brilliance
Summary: 5 Stars
This book is shimmering with magic and beauty. It is just as otherwordly as the fairy-tales you loved as a child, and yet it somehow more than that. It has its own mood, its own atmosphere. Somehow, it seems as though all the characters are aware of the world they live in, as real people never are. This is not a dream pretending to be real. This reality well aware that it is a dream.The charakters are simple and yet each serves a purpose. Each is distinct and well-drawn, from the amusing Smendrick and the strong Molly the tragic Unicorn and the wrecked king Haggard. And even though you instantly "see" each character, they are all more than what they apear to be. All of them seem to have that second layer wich makes them deeper and more meaningul. They are both simple and many-layered. And all of them are tragic, and yet filled with hope.
The story is written in a language full of delightful images, with so musical lines its almost like poetry from time to time. I've never read anything quite like this book, and that is saying a lot. Scenes and sentenses keep popping back into my head, even when I'm thinking about something quite unrelated.
But the thing that really sets this book apart is that even though it is wonderfuly inreal, it feels true. It feels though the world of the unicorn is more true than the real world. It almost hurts to go back.
Go on. Buy this book. Spend a few hours in a magical dream-land. We all need some enchantment in our lives.
Book Review: No, no. Don't listen to me. Listen.
Summary: 5 Stars
I have read this book a numerous amount of times and I still learn something new every time. It starts out making you think that it's generally about a unicorn who cannot find others like herself in the world. A butterfly comes by and tells her that a creature called the Red Bull has driven all the unicorns into the sea for his owner, King Haggard. This unicorn was the last. So the unicorn sets out on a journey that would forever change her life. Along the way, she meets a want-to-be wizard, but he is only a kindly skinny magician. And a woman named Molly Grue. When finally they reach King Haggard's castle, the Red Bull senses the unicorn's presence. The only way the unicorn can escape and save her people is by turning into something else. So her magician turns her into a human. They get into King Haggard's castle and stay there for a while. And as the unicorn becomes more human, she forgets that she was once a unicorn and she forgets her mission and why she actually came to King Haggard's castle. And through everything, the unicorn learns to love, cry, and even regret. And as her last few touching words, she says, "I am the only unicorn that regrets. I regret. And I thank you for that, too." It's a must read for any emotional lover of fantasy. Or even anyone who isn't. You'll love it. It's an amazing look at the human world of emotions through the eyes of a creature who has just began to feel them.Book Review: Wonderfully written, tearjerking, and bittersweet.
Summary: 5 Stars
Beagle's dreamy prose would be reason enough to read this fantastic fantasy novel, but the interesting plot, memorable characters, and subtle underlying plot about the need for truth and justice in the world is one that every reader will take with them to the end of thier lives. The major characters (the beautiful unicorn who becomes Amalthea, failed magician Shmendrick, and jaded scullery maid Molly Grue) are all very real, relatable characters, and not the ones you'd find in a typical fantasy. Lir is likable and realistic as the "Hero", minor characters such as the cat and the spider are lovable, and even the villains (the people of Hagsgate, Haggard, and Mommy Fortuna) are not typical villains. Beagle makes his novel so memorable, perhaps because instead of relating to the perfect heroine, the reader relates more to Molly Grue, or Shmendrick, or even Haggard. The Bull and the Unicorn are symbols - it is the human characters of this book that make it what it is. The ending of this novel is perfect - it left me in tears, and I couldn't decide if I was happy or sad. I could rant and rave about the splendor and beauty of this novel forever, but it wouldn't make any difference. Peter S. Beagle's novel "The Last Unicorn" is perhaps the best book ever written, certainly the best fantasy novel, and I give it the highest reccomendation I can possibly give. Get it now!