Billie the Unicorn

PreS-Gr 2—Billie leaves her ho-hum cornfield in search of adventure. She visits her cousins Rhubarb and Smudge, who live in a "mystical forest" and have the ability to make lush gardens appear. Billie's own flower-growing talents are slow to emerge, and she is coached to "Just be yourself, think about what you like, and the magic will do the rest!" Soon, though, she wonders "what delightful treasures waited elsewhere" and sets off for the Queen's garden. Despite the forbidding steel gates and robotic guards, Billie doesn't hesitate in offering her flower-growing services. Her cousins arrive to find her chained and sobbing, but before they help her escape they strangely admonish her: "You cannot grow real flowers if you are unhappy." Drouhard's color cartoonlike illustrations feature twinkling-eyed, floppy-eared unicorns. Pass on this cliché-ridden tale.—Linda Ludke, London Public Library, Ontario, Canada