Review - Unicorn Training

Unicorn Training
by Amanda Brandon
illustrated by Mike Byrne
Date: 2019
Publisher: QED Publishing
Reading level: C
Book type: picture book
Pages: 28
Format: e-book
Source: NetGalley

Tilly Teasel loves working at the Unicorn Rescue Center but what she really wants, more than anything else, is a unicorn of her very own.

When Splodge shows up at the center, looking a bit scruffy and a little sad, Tilly decides he’s perfect! When she brings him home, however, Mr. and Mrs. Teasel aren’t so convinced especially when he eats Mr. Teasel’s slippers, whines all night and gets sparkly hoof prints all over the couch! Will Tilly convince her parents that all Splodge needs is a little training?

A touching story about patience, perseverance, and the responsibility of owning a pet.

(synopsis from Goodreads)

Unicorn Training is about the responsibility of pet ownership. Really, the animal could be everything (in fact, if you switch the unicorn out for a dog, the story still works). Tilly does everything she can to try to turn Splodge into the perfect pet. But it takes perseverance and patience (and a lot of treats) to make this happen.

My complaints about this book are mostly of the technical variety. For some reason, a new trend in picture books seems to be italicizing people's speech. I don't understand the purpose of this, and it could potentially confuse kids who are just learning what italics are actually used for. I'm also not completely impressed with the grammar; it's a bit shaky in places. And, finally, I really don't see the purpose of the last page with tips for parents. The "projects" for kids are kind of boring, and I don't see many parents actually sitting down with their children to do them. (That part of the book might be better for teachers, but again, the "projects" aren't very interesting.)

I can see this being a good book for kids whose parents are looking into getting a pet. It shows the importance of taking responsibility for the critter under your care. The illustrations are cute, too, and there are just enough poop and fart jokes to amuse kids. Because of the technical issues with the writing, I think this might work best as a read-aloud book (so that nobody gets confused by sentence fragments or the weird use of italics).

Thank you to NetGalley and QED Publishing for providing a digital ARC.

Premise: 3/5
Meter: n/a
Writing: 2/5
Illustrations: 3/5
Originality: 3/5

Enjoyment: 3/5

Overall: 2.83 out of 5