How old was I when I first read Peter S. Beagle’s THE LAST UNICORN? Not that young — I must have been twelve or thirteen at least — but I really can’t remember. I can’t even remember where I found it, or how. It feels like it’s been one of #thebooksthatmademe forever. . I tried reading a few other books by Beagle, but none of them set fire to my imagination or captured my heart the way UNICORN did. There’s just something about the fairytale setting, the mythic scope, the wry wit and solemn poetry of the language, that makes this story unique for me. Beagle’s sheer genius with metaphor and simile, the ease with which he juggles piercing, otherworldly beauty with the homely and comical and mundane, is breathtaking. And he strikes such a wonderful balance with character — the remote elegance of the unicorn and the Lady Amalthea would be admirable but hard to love if it weren’t for the much more down-to-earth earnestness and human follies of Schmendrick the wizard, Molly Grue, and Prince Lir. . There’s a movie too, of course, and the screenplay’s better than average because it was written by Beagle himself. It’s not a bad watch if you don’t mind Rankin-Bass’s peculiar, somewhat dated style of animation and the occasionally sub-par singing. But it’s not good enough to merely watch this story acted out, not when the words Peter S. Beagle used to tell it are so marvellous. . THE LAST UNICORN is beautiful and funny and majestic and silly and melancholy and poignant and hopeful all at once, and it will break your heart in the best way. If you love fantasy and you haven’t read this book, please do. . . . #thelastunicorn #thelastunicornmovie #petersbeagle #fantasy #unicorn #bookstagram #books #bibliophile #igreads #bookish #booklover #booknerd #reading #readingaddict #mybookfeatures #alwaysreading #ilovereading #booksofinstagram #writinginfluences https://www.instagram.com/p/B-nFpcdAcLZ/?igshid=13zeddeks0u8s
