Unicorns Are the Worst!

...Are the Worst! #1

by Alex Willan

A grumpy goblin gets to know his new unicorn neighbors.

It’s an undeniable fact that unicorns are the worst!

Magic is serious business, but all unicorns do is frolic around, have tea parties, and leave glitter all over the place! They’re nothing like goblins—practical and hard-working, who can put magic to good use! Unicorns aren’t helpful at all.

Or are they?

Genres: Picture Books, Fantasy, Unicorns, Childrens, Humor, Storytime, Fiction

32 pages, Paperback

First published September 29, 2020

Reviews

[Kellee Moye]

Happy book birthday to this funny tale! I am a sucker for a funny and unique narrator, and our Goblin in Unicorns are the Worst! fits that bill. You can hear his grumpy voice as he tells of his tales of whoa trying to do his job while unicorns get to just frollick and be happy. You can feel his despair while he gets frustrated with his hardworking life versus the laidback life of the unicorns. But you also witness his realization that his assumptions were wrong. Because the reader has such a connection with him, this realization comes to the reader as well because as you read, you are starting to agree with the goblin. All of this leads to the idea of assumptions, fake news and gossip, propaganda, different points of view on one thing, and envy–all topics that are tough to talk about with young children, but Unicorns are the Worst! gives the perfect context (and is hilarious!).

Full review with teaching tools: http://www.unleashingreaders.com/?p=2...

[La Coccinelle]

There's not really anything objectively wrong with this. I just didn't find it that exciting. Basically, a jealous goblin explains all the reasons why unicorns are the worst, only to have to eat his words when the unicorns save his bacon from a dragon.

Stereotypes and commercial tropes about unicorns are heavily employed here (down to the glitter... and I have a feeling the print version of this book is very sparkly). These unicorns are basically frivolous horses with horns who like to play harps and have tea parties. If that kind of unicorn is your thing, you might like this one.

I'd probably only recommend this to die-hard unicorn fans. There's not much of a story, and the goblin's whining gets old after the first few pages.

[Cristina Di Matteo]

NIENTE È PEGGIO DEGLI UNICORNI! di Alex William. Un bellissimo e simpatico albo illustrato con dialoghi a fumetti, ideale per parlare di amicizia tra un goblin e i magici unicorni. Da 4 anni ❤ https://ilmondodichri.com/niente-e-pe...
#nienteepeggiodegliunicorni #picarona

[Amber]

3.5 Stars.
Super cute story about how awesome Goblins are and how Unicorns are overrated. Except Unicorns are not overrated and our little Goblin friend comes to realize that just because you don't like someone at first, doesn't mean that you won't come to appreciate them after they help save you from a dragon.

[Jeremy]

Of all the books I read at Unicorn storytime last Saturday, this was the one the kids responded to the most. The artwork is top notch, and the grumpy goblin narrator really engages children. If you're going to read it out loud I think it's important to fully embody the exasperation and contempt of the goblin. I channelled Homer's tone from this Simpsons clip:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FNGXo...

Also the story works for kids regardless of how they feel about unicorns. The kids who like unicorns enjoy the story because the unicorns triumph in the end, but the kids who don't like unicorns ALSO enjoy the story, because they love how the goblin talks smack about unicorns.

[Heidi]

Goblin is content documenting spells, as well as gathering and organizing ingredients for spells. He is less than thrilled when a group of unicorns moves in next door and disrupts his work. Most of the book is spent with Goblin complaining about unicorns and their popularity and their partying. But when Goblin runs into trouble, who comes to the rescue?

I appreciated the humor in this book. Goblin's complaints are amusing, and appropriate considering his circumstances. But the things he complains about are the very things that end up helping him later. Goblin seemingly learns his lesson, but maybe not entirely. Old habits die hard after all. The illustrations add to the humor with the cute goblin and the bright, colorful frolicking unicorns. Also, Goblin doesn't like it, but there is plenty of glitter as well. The message that there can be good in things we don't like is swallowed easily. A delightful read from cover to cover.

[Deke Moulton]

Fairly standard “my preconception about a group based on what annoys me about them is changed only once they save my life and I see some value in their existence” style kids book about tolerance.

[Hope]

Ok wow was not expecting to love this like I did

[Audrey]

Our favorite part is the narrator goblin. Especially when he says no one has goblin themed birthday parties

[katayoun Masoodi]

super cute!

[Andréa]

Note: I received an ARC of this book at an ALA conference.

[Dawn]

This book had both goblin booty and an argyle slug. I am well pleased.

[Riana (RianaInTheStacks)]

Unicorns Are the Worst! is such a cute story! The goblin has all the sass and is very skeptical at first about his new Unicorn neighbors. And very curious as to why Unicorns get all the attention and Goblins get none of it. But as he gets to know his neighbors a little bit more, he learns that there's more to them than what he has heard. Maybe, just maybe, they aren't the worst after all. The illustrations are also very inviting, bright, and in a comic sort of style with word bubbles. Very humorous and a fun one for reading aloud.

[Valerie]

This is such a cute story. I read it to my grandsons and they were both watching the pictures with complete attention. It's a story about an elf who's not a fan of the unicorn neighbors. All that glitter. What good were they? Until the dragon shows up and the elf discovers that the pointy horn on a unicorn is perfect for getting rid of the dragon. The unicorns turn into the best neighbors ever. It's a sweet story and my grandsons loved it.

[Colleen]

Really cute book about a goblin who didn't appreciate his unicorn neighbors! LOL! My g'little was so excited when I brought a book about unicorns to read! It has bright, exciting illustrations and a cute story.

[Damien]

The kiddies enjoyed this book. The illustrations stood out to them. I enjoyed the message about having an open mind and being open to friendship to others different than you Is beautiful. I recommend it the kiddos in your Life.

[Jillian]

Cute. Good message about not making assumptions. Unicorn books are a highly requested topic in my elementary library, so I'll purchase.

[Alyssa Mandell]

A super funny book about how Unicorns are the WORST according to their neighbor a goblin. The pictures are small so I would recommend this book for a one-on-one story.

[Doug]

Goblin voice for this is super fun to use. Took 2 or 3 read-throughs before my daughter would let me use the voice, but now we're having lots of fun with it

[Amanda Brooke]

Nominated for the 2022 Washington children's choice picture book award. I just got done reading this to the students at my school - all 363 of them. The publisher has a great resource with coloring pages that the kids loved, especially the make your own spells page and the Goblin or Unicorn quiz. They also loved the are you a unicorn or a goblin quiz.

[Kala lubbers]

Super cute children’s book. Are you team goblin or team unicorn?

[Trish Banda]

Cute story 👌🏾 Pictures are the best 😍

[Diana]

I love this cover-lots of pink and glitter. A goblin tells about the important work he does and then unicorns move in next door. The goblin tells about all of the ways that unicorns are terrible. And then a dragon comes, and the unicorns save the goblin from the dragon. Cute story.

[Dafne]

Hi. It’s me. I’m the goblin

[Jennifer Worrell]

Another delight of a book with surprisingly multi-faceted unicorns. Come for the ninja skills, stay for the goblin butt.

[Lauren]

"Horse + Pointy = Unicorn"

[Aude]

Ce livre a tout pour plaire à ma fille.

Des paillettes, de belles couleurs et.. beaucoup (beaucoup) de licornes.

Et ce qui est cool c’est qu’en plus d’être beau, l’histoire est amusante !

On y suit un petit Gobelin qui fait face à un GROS problème.. des licornes viennent d’aménager près de chez lui et.. il n’aime pas les licornes. Elles sont tout le contraire de lui. Paresseuses, inutiles et elles ne prennent pas la magie au sérieux. Mais le Gobelin devra bien se rendre à l’évidence et admettre qu’elles sont importantes le jour où elles viennent lui porter secours sans hésiter..

Ma fille a tellement aimé sa lecture.

Petite défenderesse de licornes, elle n’était pas du tout d’accord avec le gobelin. Ces créatures magiques sont essentielles à son coeur d’enfant !

Elle a aussi rit fort devant les « foufounes » du gobelin.

Un must pour les fans de licornes.

Gros coup de coeur pour la page couverture scintillante ! Un beau brin de magie. ✨

[Panda Incognito]

This book has a sparkly cover, and is full of vibrant, colorful illustrations. The story comes from the humorous perspective of a goblin, who resents his new unicorn neighbors and is disgusted that people are so obsessed with unicorns, to the neglect of other fantasy creatures, like him. This book even includes a full illustration of a unicorn-themed party aisle at a store, and it made me smile.

Kids who are interested in unicorns will love this, and I believe that parents will like it too. Also, even though many unicorn picture books are just goofy and frenetic, this one also has a strong message about getting to know your unfamiliar groups instead of making prejudicial assumptions about them.

[Shane]

Fun, simple story about a serious Goblin who is jealous of all the attention Unicorns get, while Goblins are overlooked. In the middle of his rant, he suddenly discovers they may not be "the worst" after all. Can be used to teach persuasive writing. 3.5 stars.

[Robin Pelletier]

I had the honor to read this gem of a book at B&N story time today. I love everything about this book series. And reading it in a goblin voice = happiness. I had the most magical time with all the kids today and a surprise unicorn guest. Truly a fun and glitter worthy event.