Review by Woodrow Phoenix

The 17th Phoebe and Her Unicorn collection by bestselling author Dana Simpson is almost identical in appearance to the previous volumes. The drawing hasn’t become any more accomplished and remains simplistic with no detail unless it’s absolutely necessary. The colouring is equally basic: solid pink and purple backgrounds, grass and trees are green, skies are blue, shading and gradients are used sparingly and on special occasions. The day-to-day story content of walks through the woods, conversations about unicorn facts, secrets and revelations, appearances by magical visitors, school time and family time are the same as always. However, there is a noticeable change in the writing, with the philosophical and humorous elements sharper than they used to be, perhaps as Phoebe is more of a tween these days.

Tired of her unrequited crush on Lord Splendid Humility, Marigold decides to send a valentine to his polar opposite unicorn instead: Prince Aspirational Arrogance. “He struts around like he is extremely awesome, but there is a twist!” says Marigold. The twist is, of course, not hard to anticipate for anyone familiar with this series: Prince Aspirational Arrogance is a bespectacled snaggle-toothed geek. But guess what? There’s a second twist. He’s a showoff AND he’s equally full of praise for anyone observing him: “But enough about my incredible wonderfulness! Let us talk about YOUR incredible wonderfulness! You are both so wonderful that you deserve to be in my presence!” When he departs, he leaves Phoebe with a lot to reflect on: “I didn’t see it at first, but now I get it. It feels good being around people who like being around YOU.”

There’s an entertaining encounter for Phoebe and Marigold with their alternate selves from the Dark Dimension where everything is an evil copy of our world. They turn out to be less fearsome than Marigold anticipated, but that’s not great either. If their mirror selves aren’t particularly evil, does that mean her and Phoebe are not particularly good? Phoebe’s friend Sue is always a little challenging. When the two meet again at Summer Camp Wolfgang, Sue tells Phoebe about her dad’s old vinyl records that have made her decide this year’s musical activities are going to be all about punk: “Loud. Angry. Three chords and the truth. … Old people music!” And while the girls practise their instruments, Marigold is rehearsing her Un-Smashing spell: “Now we can smash all the instruments we like, and then re-smash them again as many times as we choose, and still return them to the camp in excellent condition!” As if that isn’t enough, Phoebe develops a crush on a boy. Does he like her too? Is Phoebe and Her Unicorn becoming a tween romance comic?

Next in the series is Unicorn for a Day.