Books For Keeps
  • Home
  • Reviews
  • Articles
  • Past Issues
  • Latest Issue
  • Authors and Artists
  • Latest News
  • Search
  • Menu Menu
May 1, 2018/in Picture Book Under 5s Pre-School/Nursery/Infant /by Ellie
BfK Rating:
BfK 230 May 2018
Reviewer: Andrea Reece
ISBN: 978-1471145629
Price: £6.99
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Children's UK
Genre: Picture Book
Age Range: Under 5s Pre-School/Nursery/Infant
Length: 32pp
Buy the Book

Sophie Johnson: Unicorn Expert

Author: Morag HoodIllustrator: Ella Okstad

Sophie Johnson, Unicorn Expert is a beautifully conceived and executed picture book, and a thoroughly joyful reading experience.

Little Sophie Johnson is a unicorn expert, proudly announcing that she lives with 17 unicorns. A look at the pictures reveals that most things – your toys, dog, little brother – can be transformed into unicorns by the addition of a cardboard horn, or toothbrush if you’ve run out of cardboard.  Sophie takes her responsibilities for looking after her unicorns very seriously, and has a lot to do.  Teaching them everything they need to know, she starts with magic, and is so busy that she doesn’t notice when a real unicorn joins the party.  Indeed, as Sophie plays happily all day, she never notices the little unicorn quietly participating in the action, though her baby brother and dog both do.

Ella Okstad’s gorgeous illustrations perfectly capture the bustle and liveliness of a nursery age child’s life, and the little unicorn – small, round, white but sparkling with magic – provides a small patch of unmissable quiet in the proceedings.  At the end of the day, while Sophie is enjoying her tea, head buried in a unicorn book, the little unicorn trots out of the door, leaving slightly more possibility of return than that other magical visitor, the tiger who came to tea. The story is told through a particularly skilful combination of text and illustration, each supporting the other while still leaving gaps for the reader to fill in. It’s a delightful representation of ordinary life, but with the perfect emphasis on children’s awareness of the ever-present possibility of magic.

Share this entry
  • Share on Facebook
  • Share on Twitter
  • Share on WhatsApp
  • Share on Pinterest
  • Share on LinkedIn
  • Share on Reddit
  • Share by Mail
http://booksforkeeps.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/bfklogo.png 0 0 Ellie http://booksforkeeps.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/bfklogo.png Ellie2018-05-01 16:37:492021-04-09 16:40:41Sophie Johnson: Unicorn Expert

Search for a specific review

Author Search

Search







Generic filters




Filter by Member Types


Book Author

Download BfK Issue BfK 255 July 2022
Skip to an Issue:

About Us

Launched in 1980, we’ve reviewed hundreds of new children’s books each year and published articles on every aspect of writing for children.

Read More

Follow Us

Latest News

Sarah Hagger-Holt wins the 2022 Little Rebels Award for Radical Children’s Fiction 2022

July 21, 2022

Maisie Chan and her editor Georgia Murray of Piccadilly Press win the 2022 Branford Boase Award

July 14, 2022

Valerie Bloom wins the CLiPPA 2022

July 8, 2022

Contact Us

Books for Keeps,
30 Winton Avenue,
London,
N11 2AT

Telephone: 0780 789 3369

ISSN: 0143-909X (this is our International Standard Serial Number).

© Copyright 2022 - Books For Keeps | Proudly Built by Lemongrass Media - Web Design Buckinghamshire
The Goose Road The Story of Tantrum O’Furrily
Scroll to top