Product Description

A unicorn, a haphazard wizard, and a spunky scullery woman journey to the dreaded kingdom of Haggaard, an evil ruler who, with the help of a bull-shaped demon, imprisons all the unicorns of the world. Reissue.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #13768 in Books
• Published on: 1991-01-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 304 pages

Amazon.com Review
The Last Unicorn is one of the true classics of fantasy, ranking with Tolkien's The Hobbit, Le Guin's Earthsea Trilogy, and Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland. Beagle writes a shimmering prose-poetry, the voice of fairy tales and childhood:

The unicorn lived in a lilac wood, and she lived all alone. She was very old, though she did not know it, and she was no longer the careless color of sea foam but rather the color of snow falling on a moonlit night. But her eyes were still clear and unwearied, and she still moved like a shadow on the sea.

The unicorn discovers that she is the last unicorn in the world, and sets off to find the others. She meets Schmendrick the Magician--whose magic seldom works, and never as he intended--when he rescues her from Mommy Fortuna's Midnight Carnival, where only some of the mythical beasts displayed are illusions. They are joined by Molly Grue, who believes in legends despite her experiences with a Robin Hood wannabe and his unmerry men. Ahead wait King Haggard and his Red Bull, who banished unicorns from the land.

This is a book no fantasy reader should miss; Beagle argues brilliantly the need for magic in our lives and the folly of forgetting to dream. --Nona Vero

About the Author
PETER S. BEAGLE is one of the world's best-loved fantasy authors. His works include the novels A Fine and Private Place and The Folk of the Air, as well as nonfiction books and the screenplay for the animated film version of J. R. R. Tolkien's The Hobbit. He lives in Davis, California.

PETER S. BEAGLE is one of the world's best-loved fantasy authors. His works include the novels A Fine and Private Place and The Folk of the Air, as well as nonfiction books and the screenplay for the animated film version of J. R. R. Tolkien's The Hobbit. He lives in Davis, California.

From AudioFile
Peter Beagle reads an abridged version of his classic fantasy, first published in 1968. The story recounts the journey of the last unicorn to find "her people," unicorns who have been imprisoned by the evil King Haggard. This abridged version of the fable retains the texture and wonder of the original. The author gives a semi-voiced performance, skillfully conveying the emotional atmosphere of the story. Bridges of classical guitar music contribute to the mood of the story. Suitable for older children and young adults as well as adults, this production will bring this lovely story to many who missed the book. It's a classic of its genre and deserves a place in most audio collections. M.A.M. (c)AudioFile, Portland, Maine

Customer Reviews

Point Taken
Peter Beagle's THE LAST UNICORN is always a discovery for me, however often I encounter it. Only with reluctance would I name the book one of my favourites, for it employs throughout devices I routinely find annoying in modern fantasy writing. Chief among these is an awareness on the part of the characters that they ARE in a kind of faerie tale and, as such, have generally defined roles they are expected to play. I prefer to lose myself in a story rather than be reminded continually that it IS a story. The 1982 animated film adaptation, though following the plot and dialogue of the book with unusual faithfulness, had problems of its own. Too often it tended toward the melodramatic, and some of the line-delivery could only be described as 'shrill'.

Yet it was the animated version I discovered first and, whatever the imperfections, I have re-watched it many times over the years. Clearly, something in it touched me as few films ever do. And I must concede that Beagle's novel is even more affecting.

Set in a world of vaguely mediaeval elements laced with what has been called 'intentional anachronism' and populated with towns and kingdoms that never were, this is the story of a solitary unicorn who learns that all others of her kind have disappeared from the world. She therefore leaves the security of her enchanted forest in order to discover what became of them. Not unexpectedly, on this quest she encounters various individuals whose destinies will be realized by how they help or hinder her. Yet there is more melancholy than magic in this, for few are pleased with what they gain. A bitter old man is what he is precisely because he has spent his life in a relentless and uncompromising search FOR lasting happiness. A younger man becomes a hero to win the woman he loves, but instead he gains a kingdom for which he had no desire. And then there is Molly, who chased a dream in her youth, only to wind up in used and disillusioned drudgery. The most heart-breaking moment of the entire work may be when she first sees the unicorn and cries out, 'Where have you been? ... What good is it to me that you're here now? Where were you twenty years ago, ten years ago? ... How dare you come to me now, when I am this?'

There is humour in the tale as well, albeit most often wry, sardonic, or simply playful. And there is a happy ending overall, if somewhat ambivalent for the individuals themselves.

Ultimately, however, UNICORN evades the foreshadowed cynicism and achieves poignance. For me, what makes it work most is the unique 'poetry' of its prose. Beagle's metaphors and similes are particularly compelling, fashioned on unexpected images that really do work. 'One owl-less autumn evening, they ... saw the castle ... thin and twisted, bristling with thorny turrets, dark and jagged as a giant's grin.' A vast monster 'was the color of blood, not the springing blood of the heart but the blood that stirs under an old wound that never really healed.' A young girl's 'skin was the color of snow by moonlight.' Later she 'fell as irrevocably as a flower breaks ....' 'Things happened both swiftly and slowly as they do in dreams, where it is really the same thing.' The genius of such descriptions is that they often evoke a sense, rather than an image. We may not actually KNOW what colour is blood under an old wound, but we FEEL its darkness and grim persistence.

THE LAST UNICORN is a story of the bittersweet, of melancholy joy, of wonder mingled with resignation, of oppressive gloom and extraordinary beauty, of wit and of wisdom and of poetry. It does not LOOK like 'great literature', but it teaches throughout that appearances are deceiving -- and goes on to prove the point.

A unique and magical fairy tale
I picked up this book after reading the Nebula award-winning novelette "Two Hearts," which is really a sequel to The Last Unicorn. Had I not read "Two Hearts," I would have passed on this book, based on the title alone. Unicorns - along with rainbows and ponies - are for little girls. Right? If not for "Two Hearts," I would have never purchased The Last Unicorn, and I would have missed out on one of the most enchanting and beautifully written books I have ever read.

With a little over two hundred pages, this book is not long, but it's not a children's book - not really - and it's not an especially easy read. The writing is thick with metaphor and simile. Where another book might present you with an original figure of speech here or a new turn of phrase there, and you might smile at the cleverness, The Last Unicorn turns up ten on every page. This book will sparkle in your mind long after you set it down.

The story is a fairy tale. Not a retelling, not a twist on a story we all know, but a unique and original story. The world and the characters are wonderfully drawn, their dilemmas are real, and the story is by turns both humorous and profound. This book as achieved the status of a fantasy classic, and very deservedly so. If you count yourself a fan of the fantasy genre, and haven't read this book, then you should.

great movie and book
this is a really good book but the movie was really good as well and faithfull to the book.