NICKY MITTENS AND THE HUNGRY UNICORN

In Marsella’s picture book debut, a young boy and his little sister track down and befriend a unicorn.

Nicky is a budding young activist who dreams of feeding fruit to the hungry people of the world. Nicky’s backyard is a cornucopia of juicy strawberries and blueberries—but somebody’s been eating the blueberries! Nicky and his sister, Chloe, set out to track down the thief, but whoever it is strikes again while they’re sleeping. Next time, they set a trap and catch the thief…which turns out to be a white-winged, purple-and-green-maned unicorn! Fortunately, Nicky and Chloe are empathetic rather than angry, and they happily feed their exciting new friend. Marsella tells a sweet tale with a clear moral: “At first they thought the unicorn, / should be captured in a net. / But you can’t judge someone’s character, / before you’ve even met.” Unfortunately, the meter is inconsistent and the vocabulary seems chosen more for its rhyme than its reason. Scabuso’s digital illustrations depict only a limited range of human expressions. The backgrounds, however, offer a rich tapestry of outdoor colors and textures, the illustrator’s rendering of flowers and fruit is particularly delightful.

A bighearted tale marred by awkward meter and word choices.