A quirky new series that’s strong out of the gate.
A unicorn gains wish-granting powers—that malfunction.
Sparkleton, a young rule-hating unicorn, wants a shortcut to gaining the ability to grant wishes. His sister has that ability, though, and despite her “Goody Two-horseshoes” aversion to rule-breaking, Sparkleton successfully nags her into granting his wish for wish-granting powers of his own for a day. Delighted, he rushes off to show off his new powers to his fellow young unicorn friends. Unsurprisingly, wish after wish goes wrong in comical ways. Once Sparkleton realizes that the opposite of each wish is happening, he has his friends wish for the opposite of their wish-created problems in order to repair the damage he’s done. He finds, though, that it’s not so easy to restore the status quo. Finally, Sparkleton realizes that the wish problem is caused by his self-centered focus instead of a desire to make his wishers happy, and now he can fix the problems he’s caused. Sparkleton’s flaws make him an accessible character and offer a good source of low-stakes tension. The other unicorns are colorful and easy to differentiate in the illustrations through varied shapes and silhouettes, and his best friends in particular have strong personalities. Careful design elements, such as end-of-chapter progress markers, encourage new readers along. Book 2, The Glitter Parade, publishes simultaneously.
A quirky new series that’s strong out of the gate. (Fantasy. 6-8)Pub Date: June 9, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-06-294792-5
Page Count: 96
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Feb. 25, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2020
It’s formulaic, but the audience it’s carefully calculated to appeal to will probably adore it.
Anthropomorphic magical pegasuses go to a school for magical horses.
Aura, a “magical land” that’s “in a distant galaxy,” has four island realms (Winter, Spring, Day, and Night) that are populated by pegasuses. Some pegasuses are Melowies, marked with a hidden symbol on their wings that indicates magical abilities. Melowies are called to school at the Castle of Destiny in the clouds. Frontmatter details these realms, provides a map of the castle, and offers short profiles on the five main characters. The story opens on the day the new Melowies arrive—which is also the anniversary of Cleo’s arrival day (the day she was mysteriously found at the castle, origins unknown, with no Melowy mark). The book centers on Cleo and Maya, a shy pegasus from Spring. During the entrance test, Cleo mistakenly enters and, when Maya asks her to, stays to help—unsurprisingly, she ends up assisting all of the main characters. Though she wasn’t supposed to take the test, as Cleo passed it, she’s now a student. She’s then gifted a necklace she had when she was found—a mysterious locket that won’t open (at least not until a later book). The brightly colored pegasuses have unicorn horns, highly decorative wings, heavy eye makeup, and long, flowing manes—there is not a hint of subtlety about them. The epilogue’s twist foreshadows a threat to Aura.
It’s formulaic, but the audience it’s carefully calculated to appeal to will probably adore it. (Fantasy. 6-8)Pub Date: Jan. 30, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-338-15174-9
Page Count: 96
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Nov. 12, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2017
A wacky adventure that stands out through highlighting its heroine’s foibles, giving her plenty of room to grow in future...
A tomboy princess wishes to become a knight.
Don’t call her Princess Serena—self-styled Princess Pulverizer is the Royal School of Ladylike Manners’ pre-eminent troublemaker, and she would rather learn to fence than dance. She begs her kingly father to let her attend Knight School. The king—skeptical due to her temperament rather than her gender—will allow it only after she demonstrates knightly virtues. “Even she knew that honor, kindness, and sacrifice weren’t exactly her strong points.” He sends her on a Quest of Kindness, requiring eight good deeds (with proof—the king knows she would cheat if she could). After her first attempt at kindness is a comedic flop, Princess Pulverizer hears of a queen whose jewels have gone missing. She deduces that an ogre must be the culprit and sets off to retrieve the jewels by purposefully getting captured. Getting out isn’t as easy as in, though. Cowardly Knight School dropout Lucas and his friend Dribble, a dragon ostracized because he’d rather cook grilled-cheese sandwiches than terrorize villages, attempt a rescue but with no success—the three outcasts must team up for a gassy escape solution. In the spot illustrations, animator Balistreri plays up the slapstick action and character expressiveness; Princess Pulverizer and her family appear to be white, while Lady Frump and other side characters are depicted with darker skin.
A wacky adventure that stands out through highlighting its heroine’s foibles, giving her plenty of room to grow in future installments. (Fantasy. 6-8)Pub Date: Jan. 16, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-515-15832-8
Page Count: 144
Publisher: Penguin Workshop
Review Posted Online: Oct. 27, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2017
© Copyright 2025 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
