a cruelty-free trap for unicorn comic lovers

Phoebe and Marigold are back for new adventures and all the magic. They start a landscaping company, where unicorn Marigold Heavenly Nostrils will eat the grass and bushes, and Phoebe will receive payment. But they have no customers, mostly because Marigold already keeps the neighborhood looking good with her daily meals. And then, when Phoebe suggests that Marigold turn a neighbor’s shrubbery into a lovely sculpture, Phoebe can’t make it happen because she filled up on bread first (unicorn magic).

When Phoebe’s dad starts talking about being a kid at summer camp, she starts to wonder what he was like as a kid. When she mentions it to Marigold, her unicorn says that she has a time travel token and offers Phoebe the chance to go back in time and meet her dad when he was still a kid. Phoebe decides to try it, and the results surprise her.

When Phoebe learns that Marigold can turn the sound of the world off, in order to enjoy some peace and quiet now and then, she is jealous. So Marigold uses her unicorn magic to give Phoebe a mute button. It’s her belly button, and when she pushes it, it turns off all the noise, including the voices of other people talking to her. At first, Phoebe uses her power carefully, but then she finds herself using it more and more, especially when other people are talking to her. But then she figures out that she needs that information that people keep telling her, after having to go to in disguise just to find out what her friend had told her.

Marigold is up for an award. It’s he Marigold Heavenly Nostrils Award, and despite the fact that it was named for her, it’s never been her year to win it. But Marigold is hoping that this is her year, finally, until Phoebe shows up to the awards ceremony and makes so much noise that the judges offer her the award just to get to her to be quite and go away. She refuses the award, but she learns an important lesson about how to get things done.

Unicorn Time Machine is book 20 in Dana Simpson’s Phoebe and Her Unicorn series. Blending colorful illustrations with inventive stories, these books tell the story of a special friendship. Marigold is beautiful and self-involved, and Phoebe is smart and a little nerdy. And somehow they make their friendship work. They are supportive of each other while still calling each other out on their questionable choices. There is a lot of love, a lot of respect, and a very healthy amount of snark between these friends, and it makes for a charming graphic novel for kids of all ages.

I have been a fan of Phoebe and Marigold for years, and I was so happy that this book felt just as fun and imaginative as the first one I read. I love Simpson’s illustrations and her cheerful but realistic take on life and friendship. I always enjoy myself when I set the world aside and go hang out with unicorns, and Unicorn Time Machine was another strong book in the series. I am well past the 8-12 year age suggestion, and I keep reading these for their sweetness, their humor, and their heart.

Egalleys for Unicorn Time Machine were provided by Andrews McMeel Publishing through Edelweiss, with many thanks.