TEAM UNIHORN AND WOOLLY

The heroes of the beach are here! But what makes someone a hero?

Raina the rhino, Shu the horseshoe crab, and Nigel the narwhal are at Burlap Beach when a chunk of ice containing a woolly mammoth washes ashore. Team Unihorn, as they later dub themselves (as Shu says, a horseshoe crab’s tail definitely counts as a horn), break Woolly and some prehistoric krill out just in time. A massive storm is on the way, along with a blood supermoon eclipse. The moon’s rays endow Raina, Shu, and Nigel with superpowers but leave Woolly unchanged. The storm has left the beach a mess, so Team Unihorn use their abilities to help, but they only make things worse. Meanwhile, Woolly’s feeling left out. But when the prehistoric krill merge to form a giant monster, Woolly steps up. He may not have powers, but he possesses physical strength, unexpected talents, and brains. Endearing Woolly leaves an awkward first impression—peeing in Nigel’s seawater and crushing Shu’s telescope—but his recognition at the end is well deserved, and readers will appreciate the message that anyone can be a hero. Each protagonist has a unique size and silhouette, making them stand out amid the action. The animals are adorable, with round, almost cuddly bodies; the whimsical look of the cartoon images keeps the tone light, no matter how intense the action gets.

A wildly entertaining lesson in heroics.