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The Last Unicorn: The Lost Journey
Introduction by Patrick Rothfuss
Preface by Carrie Vaughn
Original illustrations by Stephanie Law
Peter S. Beagle first imagined his beloved heroine when he was twenty-three, half a decade before she sprang into the world. Now the Last Unicorn’s fantastical origins are recaptured in this lovely commemorative hardcover. Here you will discover the eighty-five page genesis of Beagle’s masterpiece, his own wry musings upon his early career, charming original illustrations, and tributes from modern fantasy legends Patrick Rothfuss and Carrie Vaughn.
In this wonderfully strange adventure, a brave unicorn leaves her solitary life behind, determined to discover if she is the last of her kind. She is forewarned by a forlorn dragon and befuddled by a chatty butterfly; her unfamiliar traveling companion will be an exiled demon with a split personality and a penchant for philosophy.
Somewhere between mythology, modernity, and magic, the Last Unicorn has found herself on the road less traveled by . . . until now.
Preface by Carrie Vaughn
Original illustrations by Stephanie Law
Peter S. Beagle first imagined his beloved heroine when he was twenty-three, half a decade before she sprang into the world. Now the Last Unicorn’s fantastical origins are recaptured in this lovely commemorative hardcover. Here you will discover the eighty-five page genesis of Beagle’s masterpiece, his own wry musings upon his early career, charming original illustrations, and tributes from modern fantasy legends Patrick Rothfuss and Carrie Vaughn.
In this wonderfully strange adventure, a brave unicorn leaves her solitary life behind, determined to discover if she is the last of her kind. She is forewarned by a forlorn dragon and befuddled by a chatty butterfly; her unfamiliar traveling companion will be an exiled demon with a split personality and a penchant for philosophy.
Somewhere between mythology, modernity, and magic, the Last Unicorn has found herself on the road less traveled by . . . until now.
150 pages, Hardcover
Published November 26, 2018
20 people are currently reading
756 people want to read
About the author
Peter S. Beagle
222 books3,870 followersPeter Soyer Beagle (born April 20, 1939) is an American fantasist and author of novels, nonfiction, and screenplays. He is also a talented guitarist and folk singer. He wrote his first novel, A Fine and Private Place , when he was only 19 years old. Today he is best known as the author of The Last Unicorn, which routinely polls as one of the top ten fantasy novels of all time, and at least two of his other books (A Fine and Private Place and I See By My Outfit) are considered modern classics.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 123 reviews
November 21, 2018
Just published! 3.5 stars. Final review, first posted on Fantasy Literature:
Marking the fiftieth anniversary of Peter S. Beagle's gorgeous, iconic fantasy The Last Unicorn, he unearthed this long-buried first version of that novel, written one memorable summer in 1962 when twenty-three year old Beagle was renting a cabin in the Berkshires with an artist friend, Phil, and working on his writing craft. The Last Unicorn: The Lost Journey starts off nearly identical to the novel, painting a beloved character with these familiar words:
The setting of The Lost Journey is modern times: the unicorn is mystified, and disturbed, by paved roads and cars and dirty cities. This different setting lends itself to some social commentary about the shortcomings of modern society.
It’s interesting to see the seeds of the later novel in this shorter work. Personally, I think Beagle kept the best bits from The Lost Journey in the novel; you can see the reasons why he later abandoned the rest of its plot. Azazel and Webster are amusing, but not ones to engage my heartstrings, and the story overall is bleaker. Also, The Lost Journey really doesn’t have an ending, more or less stopping mid-stream. It reads exactly like what it is: an unfinished story. So set your expectations accordingly.
But the sense of whimsy is still here, though slightly darker and more muted, and Beagle’s writing is often entrancing. There are some gorgeous pen-and-ink illustrations by Stephanie Law, and those, along with Beagle’s afterword reminiscing about the sixties and the process of writing of The Last Unicorn, are almost worth the price of admission by themselves.
And in the end, any chance to spend more time with the wonderful unicorn is time well spent.
I received a review copy of this book from Tachyon Publications. Thank you!!
Marking the fiftieth anniversary of Peter S. Beagle's gorgeous, iconic fantasy The Last Unicorn, he unearthed this long-buried first version of that novel, written one memorable summer in 1962 when twenty-three year old Beagle was renting a cabin in the Berkshires with an artist friend, Phil, and working on his writing craft. The Last Unicorn: The Lost Journey starts off nearly identical to the novel, painting a beloved character with these familiar words:
The unicorn lived in a lilac wood, and she lived all alone. She was very old, though she did not know it, and she was no longer the careless color of sea foam, but rather the color of snow falling on a moonlit night. But her eyes were still clear and unwearied, and she still moved like a shadow on the sea. … [T]he long horn above her eyes shone and shivered with its own seashell light even in the deepest midnight. She had killed dragons with it, and healed a king whose poisoned wound would not close, and knocked down ripe chestnuts for bear cubs.But after the first couple of pages, The Lost Journey veers off from the path of the novel, heading down a road that is new and unfamiliar to both readers and the unicorn. It begins with the oily, sulphurous reek of a maudlin dragon, who informs the unicorn that all of the other unicorns have disappeared. So the unicorn sets off on a journey to try to find the others and (after a couple of additional familiar scenes from the later novel) comes across a two-headed demon, who accompanies her on her travels. The dizzily mad butterfly makes his appearance, but there’s no red bull (notwithstanding the cover image on this book), no wizard named Schmendrick, nor insightful woman named Molly Grue - the “true heart of The Last Unicorn,” according to Beagle in his afterword.
The setting of The Lost Journey is modern times: the unicorn is mystified, and disturbed, by paved roads and cars and dirty cities. This different setting lends itself to some social commentary about the shortcomings of modern society.
Whatever it was that screamed in the city had broken its prison long before and invaded them all. It was their screaming now, their own crushing rhythm, and if it had suddenly stopped and they had stood still to hear themselves speaking, to understand what others were saying to them, they would have gone mad with fear instantly, instead of slowly.The disturbing imagery of a great, dark city is reflected, in somewhat lighter fashion, in the ancient two-headed demon who keeps the unicorn company. One head, Azazel, is the more traditional demon, bound to the old ways they did things in Hell and disturbed by change; the other head, Webster, cheerfully thrives on anarchy (his destructive actions got them both exiled from Hell). Beagle comments in his afterword that their snarky interactions with each other reflect the way he and his friend Phil talked with each other (still do, in fact).
It’s interesting to see the seeds of the later novel in this shorter work. Personally, I think Beagle kept the best bits from The Lost Journey in the novel; you can see the reasons why he later abandoned the rest of its plot. Azazel and Webster are amusing, but not ones to engage my heartstrings, and the story overall is bleaker. Also, The Lost Journey really doesn’t have an ending, more or less stopping mid-stream. It reads exactly like what it is: an unfinished story. So set your expectations accordingly.
But the sense of whimsy is still here, though slightly darker and more muted, and Beagle’s writing is often entrancing. There are some gorgeous pen-and-ink illustrations by Stephanie Law, and those, along with Beagle’s afterword reminiscing about the sixties and the process of writing of The Last Unicorn, are almost worth the price of admission by themselves.
And in the end, any chance to spend more time with the wonderful unicorn is time well spent.
I received a review copy of this book from Tachyon Publications. Thank you!!
December 1, 2018
The Lost Journey is the earliest rendition of what would later become Beagle's beloved work of literary fantasy, The Last Unicorn. Some passages glimmer with possibility and hint at the masterpiece that was to come, while others beg to be chopped and tossed. Ultimately, The Lost Journey gives testament to the significant role both patience and maturity play in penning timeless literature.
But the girl was another matter, for she smelled like a forest far more beautiful than the unicorn's own, a wood full of birds bright enough to blind; of strange, singing beasts, and of trees like waterfalls. This is the way that virgins smell, and unicorns, who dream of that forest whenever they sleep, serve and guard all virgins, and come when they call, and know when they marry.
November 12, 2018
Ahoy there me mateys! I received this fantasy eARC from Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review. So here be me honest musings . . .
This book is being issued in celebration of the 50th anniversary of the publication of the last unicorn. If ye be one of me crew that has never read the last unicorn, stop what ye be doin’ and go get a copy right now. And then once ye have read and savoured that delightful book, go out and get the 1982 animated movie and relish the experience of that splendid film (the author wrote the screenplay). Then go out and get this one if ye want a glimpse into the origin of this unicorn story. I would not read this it ye have not yet experienced the story in its current form. For those who love the classic fantasy masterpiece that is the last unicorn and are curious about its beginnings, then this be for ye.
Because me hearties, what this book contains is the first draft of the story ye all should know and love. And it is different, oh so very different. For writers, ye get to see into the author’s writing process and see how the first draft can change form and characterization from the final product. For readers, ye get glimpses of what eventually become a favourite character. For both there be elements of the beloved story that remain in the version we know today. In addition this book has tributes from authors Patrick Rothfuss and Carrie Vaughn. Ye also get charming original illustrations and an afterword of Mr. Beagle’s reminiscing of the summer when he was 23 and a unicorn captured his fancy.
I can’t say that I love the 85 page short story that is the beginning of the unicorn’s journey. It is a bit disjointed and more then a little strange. It ends abruptly. It is rather dark. The butterfly seems insane. Ye won’t see beloved figures like Molly, Schmendrick, or Prince Lir. Ye will see a disgruntled dragon and a two-headed demon with heads named Azazel and Webster. While weirdly fascinating, I don’t think a person new to Beagle’s writing should start here. I be so glad that Mr. Beagle’s final edition cut out the demon and changed directions in story telling.. I adore the version published in 1968.
This seems to be the same story published in a limited edition by Subterranean Press in 2006 under the name the last unicorn: the lost version. For fans of the last unicorn, this might be worth yer while. If ye haven’t yet read this wonderful story, then pick up a copy and join me crew, Arrr!
So lastly . . .
Thank you Tachyon Publications!
Check out me other reviews at https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordp...
This book is being issued in celebration of the 50th anniversary of the publication of the last unicorn. If ye be one of me crew that has never read the last unicorn, stop what ye be doin’ and go get a copy right now. And then once ye have read and savoured that delightful book, go out and get the 1982 animated movie and relish the experience of that splendid film (the author wrote the screenplay). Then go out and get this one if ye want a glimpse into the origin of this unicorn story. I would not read this it ye have not yet experienced the story in its current form. For those who love the classic fantasy masterpiece that is the last unicorn and are curious about its beginnings, then this be for ye.
Because me hearties, what this book contains is the first draft of the story ye all should know and love. And it is different, oh so very different. For writers, ye get to see into the author’s writing process and see how the first draft can change form and characterization from the final product. For readers, ye get glimpses of what eventually become a favourite character. For both there be elements of the beloved story that remain in the version we know today. In addition this book has tributes from authors Patrick Rothfuss and Carrie Vaughn. Ye also get charming original illustrations and an afterword of Mr. Beagle’s reminiscing of the summer when he was 23 and a unicorn captured his fancy.
I can’t say that I love the 85 page short story that is the beginning of the unicorn’s journey. It is a bit disjointed and more then a little strange. It ends abruptly. It is rather dark. The butterfly seems insane. Ye won’t see beloved figures like Molly, Schmendrick, or Prince Lir. Ye will see a disgruntled dragon and a two-headed demon with heads named Azazel and Webster. While weirdly fascinating, I don’t think a person new to Beagle’s writing should start here. I be so glad that Mr. Beagle’s final edition cut out the demon and changed directions in story telling.. I adore the version published in 1968.
This seems to be the same story published in a limited edition by Subterranean Press in 2006 under the name the last unicorn: the lost version. For fans of the last unicorn, this might be worth yer while. If ye haven’t yet read this wonderful story, then pick up a copy and join me crew, Arrr!
So lastly . . .
Thank you Tachyon Publications!
Check out me other reviews at https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordp...
March 16, 2025
The original draft. Interesting for people who want to see how things can change. It's a dragon that tells her she's the last in the world, at that, and her interactions with the butterfly seem to convey more. (Hard to tell, it's incomplete.)
I think the plot and characters did not jell as well, partly because some elements are incongruous. But it has charming moments that had to go.
I think the plot and characters did not jell as well, partly because some elements are incongruous. But it has charming moments that had to go.
February 5, 2019
When a Unicorn finds out she is the last of her kind, she decides to go on a journey to try to find the rest of them. It is only when she meets up with an exiled demon that their world has been changed for the worst. Want to know more? Read on for yourself.
This was a good first draft of the cult classic book The Last Unicorn which the author wrote when he was 20 but I'm glad he rewrote it to be the book we all have come to love today. If you want to see this book in its uncut rough first draft, check it out for yourself at your local library and wherever books are sold.
This was a good first draft of the cult classic book The Last Unicorn which the author wrote when he was 20 but I'm glad he rewrote it to be the book we all have come to love today. If you want to see this book in its uncut rough first draft, check it out for yourself at your local library and wherever books are sold.
May 8, 2021
This first draft of The Last Unicorn makes me appreciate the novel even more. I love the story as it was first published, and while this edition lacks much of the magic and adventure from it, I enjoyed understanding the unicorn’s origins. The dragon and demon were unexpected companions for the unicorn and me, and I had fun with the quirkiness and philosophy they both added to the story. Admittedly, though, the final book is much better having Schmendrick, Molly, and everyone else. Thanks to Beagle for allowing this draft to be published, so his fans could read what was first deemed not the book to put out into the world.
January 13, 2019
the lost journey is charming in its own way, as a satire about hell and modern humanity, but azaezel, despite his funny as hell (ha) dialogue, didn't make for a particularly good unicorn story. it ended up being less about her than a story entitled the last unicorn should be.
in this sense it's obvious it's a draft, but definitely worth reading if you love tlu and are curious about its origins.
in this sense it's obvious it's a draft, but definitely worth reading if you love tlu and are curious about its origins.
April 25, 2019
The Last Unicorn is one of my favorite all time books. It is a cornerstone of fantasy literature, beautifully written with wonderful characters and a story that reaches deep into my soul. I gain something different every time I read it. It's magical. The Lost Journey is the very first draft of what will become one this favorite of mine.
It's quite remarkable to read. You can absolutely see the origins of what the story will eventually become though the original draft is quite different from the end product. It's a story about the loss of magic because the modern world is shoving it out. There really isn't much of a plot being more of an exploration of ideas. It also shows the power of letting an idea develop and change over time before it comes the final product.
It's quite remarkable to read. You can absolutely see the origins of what the story will eventually become though the original draft is quite different from the end product. It's a story about the loss of magic because the modern world is shoving it out. There really isn't much of a plot being more of an exploration of ideas. It also shows the power of letting an idea develop and change over time before it comes the final product.
August 20, 2018
Let me start by saying that getting the chance to receive and review this book was an honour itself. I adore Peter S. Beagle, have since I watched and fell in love with the movie The Last Unicorn as a little kid and later the novel when I was older. It's a story that has stayed with me and in many ways has made me who I am today. But enough about me, let's get on to the book.
The Last Unicorn: The Lost Journey is a look at the beginnings of Peter S. Beagle's beloved novel The Last Unicorn and what paths the unicorn could have taken on her journey to find the other unicorns. Reader's meet a cast of old and new characters as well as a new journey that is just as enticing as the one fans of The Last Unicorn are familiar with.
I'm really not surprised that I loved The Last Unicorn: The Lost Journey, I love everything I've read of Beagle and this is no different. I loved seeing what parts of Beagle's original story of the unicorn made it into the final novel, what changed, and what characters and aspects were given to others and which aspects were dropped all together. Probably the most interesting thing about The Last Unicorn: The Lost Journey is how different the journey of the unicorn is from the book we know and love, not in terms of the new characters we meet but in the setting. I won't spoil anything because 1) this is a review of an ARC and 2) this book is so good you should already have it on your TBR, or at least put it on after reading this review, but the setting was easily the most intriguing part of the journey. I'm glad I got to see a glimpse at what could have been and this setting that Beagle was constructing, even if it didn't branch out in the end because it really gives a new meaning to the story.
I loved the new characters that were introduced as well as the old familiar butterfly. Though different in many ways from the final product, The Last Unicorn: The Lost Journey reminded me again of why I love this book so much, and it still held that charm and beauty despite all the differences.
And the illustrations! If the cover alone wasn't enough to get you excited for this book then Stephanie Law's illustrations will! They add a whole new kind of magic to the story and are absolutely stunning to look at.
My copy of the ARC also included an Afterword by Peter S. Beagle (though not the Introduction by Carrie Vaugh or the Foreward by Patrick Rothfuss, though I hope to read both when the novel is officially released) and offered an honest look at the artist at work and one I highly enjoyed reading. Beagle talks about his struggles writing The Last Unicorn and how and where The Lost Journey in particular was written. I liked reading his insight on his work, how long it took to write this book that is loved by so many and which characters came first and which came later.
The Last Unicorn: The Lost Journey is a must-read for any fans of The Last Unicorn who want to see the bones of the story they love and a journey and experience like no other. The magic is still there, as is the love for this amazing story, only in a different way.
The Last Unicorn: The Lost Journey is a look at the beginnings of Peter S. Beagle's beloved novel The Last Unicorn and what paths the unicorn could have taken on her journey to find the other unicorns. Reader's meet a cast of old and new characters as well as a new journey that is just as enticing as the one fans of The Last Unicorn are familiar with.
I'm really not surprised that I loved The Last Unicorn: The Lost Journey, I love everything I've read of Beagle and this is no different. I loved seeing what parts of Beagle's original story of the unicorn made it into the final novel, what changed, and what characters and aspects were given to others and which aspects were dropped all together. Probably the most interesting thing about The Last Unicorn: The Lost Journey is how different the journey of the unicorn is from the book we know and love, not in terms of the new characters we meet but in the setting. I won't spoil anything because 1) this is a review of an ARC and 2) this book is so good you should already have it on your TBR, or at least put it on after reading this review, but the setting was easily the most intriguing part of the journey. I'm glad I got to see a glimpse at what could have been and this setting that Beagle was constructing, even if it didn't branch out in the end because it really gives a new meaning to the story.
I loved the new characters that were introduced as well as the old familiar butterfly. Though different in many ways from the final product, The Last Unicorn: The Lost Journey reminded me again of why I love this book so much, and it still held that charm and beauty despite all the differences.
And the illustrations! If the cover alone wasn't enough to get you excited for this book then Stephanie Law's illustrations will! They add a whole new kind of magic to the story and are absolutely stunning to look at.
My copy of the ARC also included an Afterword by Peter S. Beagle (though not the Introduction by Carrie Vaugh or the Foreward by Patrick Rothfuss, though I hope to read both when the novel is officially released) and offered an honest look at the artist at work and one I highly enjoyed reading. Beagle talks about his struggles writing The Last Unicorn and how and where The Lost Journey in particular was written. I liked reading his insight on his work, how long it took to write this book that is loved by so many and which characters came first and which came later.
The Last Unicorn: The Lost Journey is a must-read for any fans of The Last Unicorn who want to see the bones of the story they love and a journey and experience like no other. The magic is still there, as is the love for this amazing story, only in a different way.
March 16, 2019
Just as achingly lovely as the novel that this became. Often sad and yet surprisingly funny at the same time. At first I really missed Schmendrick and Molly, Prince Lir and even the Red Bull. But Azazel and Webster were such engaging characters, arguing about what had gone wrong with hell and they were what drew me into the story:
“Now you show me where it says in the Bible that demons are all crazy mad for heat. We’re damned too remember. Some of us like to make things a little easier for ourselves, a little more civilized. You understand, I’m sure.”
“Shoo,” Webster cackled. “Some of us don’t even call them the damned anymore, we say our unfortunate clientele. Some of us were going to have our horns crew-cut, that’s how civilized we were.”
Also this:
“After all, we are trying to create a good public image, to attract a respectable class of customers. And what mortal would sell his soul to a demon he suspected of associating with unicorns? Webster, my little Doré-Bible buddy, you ought to think of things like that. They won’t have any confidence in us, and the demon who can’t inspire confidence might as well be human.”
I got the feeling Hell had become a suburb. And its demons could be the salesmen from Glengarry Glen Ross.
I loved the unicorn but she broke my heart. In a way what happened to her world was worse... the Red Bull didn’t chase the unicorns into the sea. They vanished because all of the wild, magic places were paved over, built over. What do you have left when magic doesn’t exist anymore?
This little story doesn’t really have an ending. That is the point, I think. It is a first draft. With the Forwards and the Afterword it is only 145 pages long. I really enjoyed Peter S Beagle’s Afterword, telling the story of how this came to be written as well. For anyone who really loves The Last Unicorn, I do recommend it, the scene with the butterfly is a bit different and there are other changes and while I loved the book more, this filled me with more of the same wistful feelings, and it made me laugh.
“Now you show me where it says in the Bible that demons are all crazy mad for heat. We’re damned too remember. Some of us like to make things a little easier for ourselves, a little more civilized. You understand, I’m sure.”
“Shoo,” Webster cackled. “Some of us don’t even call them the damned anymore, we say our unfortunate clientele. Some of us were going to have our horns crew-cut, that’s how civilized we were.”
Also this:
“After all, we are trying to create a good public image, to attract a respectable class of customers. And what mortal would sell his soul to a demon he suspected of associating with unicorns? Webster, my little Doré-Bible buddy, you ought to think of things like that. They won’t have any confidence in us, and the demon who can’t inspire confidence might as well be human.”
I got the feeling Hell had become a suburb. And its demons could be the salesmen from Glengarry Glen Ross.
I loved the unicorn but she broke my heart. In a way what happened to her world was worse... the Red Bull didn’t chase the unicorns into the sea. They vanished because all of the wild, magic places were paved over, built over. What do you have left when magic doesn’t exist anymore?
This little story doesn’t really have an ending. That is the point, I think. It is a first draft. With the Forwards and the Afterword it is only 145 pages long. I really enjoyed Peter S Beagle’s Afterword, telling the story of how this came to be written as well. For anyone who really loves The Last Unicorn, I do recommend it, the scene with the butterfly is a bit different and there are other changes and while I loved the book more, this filled me with more of the same wistful feelings, and it made me laugh.
December 16, 2018
I didn't quite realize going into The Last Unicorn: The Lost Journey by Peter S. Beagle that this wasn't the complete story that I only sort of knew from the animated movie. This is actually the early and unfinished draft of that story from what I gathered.
It still makes for an interesting read though. The story is still picturesque and reminiscent of fairy tales or just fantasy stories. There's possibly a touch of Monty Python or Mel Brooks to it as there were moments I felt like there jabs being made at modernity.
The story, short as it is, is about a unicorn that learns she is the last unicorn in the world. She doesn't quite believe, doesn't want to believe it, so she sets out on a journey to find others of her kind. Along the way she meets a talking butterfly who speaks mostly in songs or bizarre not-quite rhymes, a two headed demon, another demon, possibly, and a handful of people who want to capture her because she's a beautiful "horse."
As I mentioned, this isn't the full story like I initially thought, so things get kind of put to a hault about midway though the journey. While this was a tad disappointing from a reader's point of view, I mean, who likes an unfinished story anyway? It does seem rather interesting from a writer's point of view. Again, I say this was Peter's early draft for the story we all know and love. That things don't progress very far is upsetting yet the journey we did take was quite interesting.
I feel like Peter was one of those writers ahead of his time! I mean, to incorporate what feels like true modernity into what's clearly a fantasy read makes for an interesting story world. You don't really know what time you're in in the story. It feels like your basic fantasy but then a few things get said or mentioned and it totally changes everything you thought you knew!
This is a rather short review since this is an incomplete story. I did enjoy the forewords and afterword from the selected people and author. It was interesting getting Peter's background on the story he struggled to write but just wouldn't leave him. Kind of gives me the motivation I need for my own work!
While this is not the complete story of The Last Unicorn, it was still an interesting version to see how Peter got it all started. I would definitely recommend this particular book to other inspiring writers, like myself, as it kind of gives you that reassurance that it's okay to take your time with your WIP, just don't give it up!
Overall Rating 4/5 stars
It still makes for an interesting read though. The story is still picturesque and reminiscent of fairy tales or just fantasy stories. There's possibly a touch of Monty Python or Mel Brooks to it as there were moments I felt like there jabs being made at modernity.
The story, short as it is, is about a unicorn that learns she is the last unicorn in the world. She doesn't quite believe, doesn't want to believe it, so she sets out on a journey to find others of her kind. Along the way she meets a talking butterfly who speaks mostly in songs or bizarre not-quite rhymes, a two headed demon, another demon, possibly, and a handful of people who want to capture her because she's a beautiful "horse."
As I mentioned, this isn't the full story like I initially thought, so things get kind of put to a hault about midway though the journey. While this was a tad disappointing from a reader's point of view, I mean, who likes an unfinished story anyway? It does seem rather interesting from a writer's point of view. Again, I say this was Peter's early draft for the story we all know and love. That things don't progress very far is upsetting yet the journey we did take was quite interesting.
I feel like Peter was one of those writers ahead of his time! I mean, to incorporate what feels like true modernity into what's clearly a fantasy read makes for an interesting story world. You don't really know what time you're in in the story. It feels like your basic fantasy but then a few things get said or mentioned and it totally changes everything you thought you knew!
This is a rather short review since this is an incomplete story. I did enjoy the forewords and afterword from the selected people and author. It was interesting getting Peter's background on the story he struggled to write but just wouldn't leave him. Kind of gives me the motivation I need for my own work!
While this is not the complete story of The Last Unicorn, it was still an interesting version to see how Peter got it all started. I would definitely recommend this particular book to other inspiring writers, like myself, as it kind of gives you that reassurance that it's okay to take your time with your WIP, just don't give it up!
Overall Rating 4/5 stars
August 23, 2018
I don't always enjoy the cultural obsession with how the sausage gets made — I tend to just want to watch a film or read a book or look at a painting, not see all the rough drafts and false starts and rightfully cut scenes and preliminary sketches that lead up to it. But The Last Unicorn is such a profound favorite of mine, and Peter Beagle is one of my all-time favorite authors. How could I resist a look at where the story might have gone?
This early, uncompleted draft of Last Unicorn starts off much like the published version, but there's no Red Bull, no King Haggard, ultimately no explanation for where the unicorns went. Instead, there's a fading, fussy dragon and a demon exiled from hell, and a lightly sketched setting that appears to be completely modern, with cars and cigarettes and highways. There's also a lengthy afterward by Beagle himself, talking about the summer when he began this book, how he was living, and what was on his mind.
It's pretty slight — just over 150 pages — and the kind of thing that whets the appetite for even more of this alternate-universe take on a beloved classic. But it's still very exciting to see how fully formed Beagle already was as an author back then, and to get new characters from him, and a familiar old character drawn in different ways, and placed in a different world. I don't think this will make anyone regret how the actual novel turned out, but it's a fascinating side-trip into a forgotten, discarded, but well-realized corner of Beagle's world.
This early, uncompleted draft of Last Unicorn starts off much like the published version, but there's no Red Bull, no King Haggard, ultimately no explanation for where the unicorns went. Instead, there's a fading, fussy dragon and a demon exiled from hell, and a lightly sketched setting that appears to be completely modern, with cars and cigarettes and highways. There's also a lengthy afterward by Beagle himself, talking about the summer when he began this book, how he was living, and what was on his mind.
It's pretty slight — just over 150 pages — and the kind of thing that whets the appetite for even more of this alternate-universe take on a beloved classic. But it's still very exciting to see how fully formed Beagle already was as an author back then, and to get new characters from him, and a familiar old character drawn in different ways, and placed in a different world. I don't think this will make anyone regret how the actual novel turned out, but it's a fascinating side-trip into a forgotten, discarded, but well-realized corner of Beagle's world.
February 1, 2019
I loved this look into the beginnings of the wonderful novel that is the Last Unicorn. The book starts off familiar enough if you have read the Last Unicorn, but as soon as the unicorn meets Azazel and Webster, a couple of wandering demons, the Lost Journey takes off into unknown territory. I quite enjoyed the philosophy of Hell that the demons discuss with the unicorn and how their visions are so different. The original story also concludes with some surprising knowledge about what Azazel has been up to in regards to humans and some of our most enduring mythologies. I like that he interacts with Satan as he does and how Beagle shows how Hell has changed dramatically. Fun stuff.
In the end the novel just kinda ends but that is what makes this look into the origins of a classic so enjoyable, at least to me. The afterword is also not to be missed. Lots of insight for fans of this wonderful writer.
In the end the novel just kinda ends but that is what makes this look into the origins of a classic so enjoyable, at least to me. The afterword is also not to be missed. Lots of insight for fans of this wonderful writer.
April 21, 2020
Come on another adventure with your favorite unicorn in this lost edition of Beagle's beloved book! The Lost Journey may be darker, more socially minded, and more contemporary than its final draft would be come, but it is no less relevant and maybe even more entertaining. Just don't get too excited for an ending - that, like unicorns, has disappeared on the sea foam.
June 17, 2019
When you think the library sends you "The Last Unicorn" and you get this instead, it will mess with your head. It was well written but not what I wanted. It was a bit darker than I expected. All I can say is mankind is a mess.
June 20, 2019
Conditional recommendation with this one. I love Peter Beagle and The Last Unicorn. This is sort of a rough draft of that. A lot of things don't work in this story (especially the demon) and you can see why they were cut or changed in the published version of the novel. So it's interesting to see what might have been, but I was hoping for a new side story about our beloved characters.
The afterward by Peter explaining his mindset at the time and thought process at the time is pretty good though. Well worth it just for that.
Also, the art in this book is great. Love the artwork used here.
The afterward by Peter explaining his mindset at the time and thought process at the time is pretty good though. Well worth it just for that.
Also, the art in this book is great. Love the artwork used here.
August 6, 2025
I picked this up alongside a copy of the plain old Last Unicorn under the impression that it was just an illustrated version with like an author's note added.
It wasn't until I wasn't almost fully done that I went back and read the preface to learn that it's actually a first draft.
Reading this first before the original (although technically this is the original original) was really interesting! As a writer I really loved seeing what changed and what stayed and where the story was born from.
It wasn't until I wasn't almost fully done that I went back and read the preface to learn that it's actually a first draft.
Reading this first before the original (although technically this is the original original) was really interesting! As a writer I really loved seeing what changed and what stayed and where the story was born from.
March 5, 2020
So I have loved the animated movie since my childhood, and despite being a big reader I somehow made it to adulthood without knowing it came from the mind of an author and the pages of his book. So I wanted to fix that and accidentally did not get the whole novel but part of it, or the parts that began what would become the finished novel. I still loved reading it, the writing is beautiful and artwork stunning. I just need the original novel now to round it out.
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March 30, 2019Interesting to read the original draft which maintains the novel's elegiac feel whilst bringing the unicorn into contact with the modern era. Still, I can see why it was rewritten,
July 11, 2019
I am deeply glad that my favorite book turned out differently than this one... but it was still fun to see under the hood of what might have been.
June 3, 2023
Short, so easy to read in one sitting!
It's a good story, which I really enjoyed. I see why it was rewritten, the story moved along quite quickly and parts were a bit all over the place.
It's a good story, which I really enjoyed. I see why it was rewritten, the story moved along quite quickly and parts were a bit all over the place.
September 4, 2025
Weird little book. Not sure what it means.
June 20, 2025
a beautiful first draft to an even greater final
November 17, 2019
A deceptively short read that I'd like to come back to. It was interesting to see how the Last Unicorn was first imagined. Though the fantasy elements are obviously there, this is a much more modern version of the story, set in a much more modern world.
June 26, 2019
Probably for fans of the original only. An attempt at satire that failed and ultimately turned into the fantasy legend we know today. I loved it!
January 12, 2022
I have never read anything by Peter S. Beagle, and I have wanted to for years. I thought The Last Unicorn would be a good place to start. I did not realize, when I borrowed this from the library, that it was not actually that novel, but rather a first draft, written when Mr. Beagle was very young. And--
First things first: it's incredible for a first draft. The language is often lovely, and you get a clear sense of the characters and also a clear sense that Mr. Beagle has something to say. At times, he reminded me of The Master and Margarita, and that is high praise.
But it is also dated, in a way Bulgakov's classic is not. It's very much a hippie book. with its city/evil versus country/good dynamic and its rather psychedelic overtones. And, in the end, though it describes a journey, I was not quite sure it got anywhere.
I did admire it. I enjoyed it. But I didn't love it as I expected to. I am nevertheless going to try to find The Last Unicorn and read it. I'm very interested to discover what this talented writer did to this story when he revised it. For there is no doubt about his talent.
First things first: it's incredible for a first draft. The language is often lovely, and you get a clear sense of the characters and also a clear sense that Mr. Beagle has something to say. At times, he reminded me of The Master and Margarita, and that is high praise.
But it is also dated, in a way Bulgakov's classic is not. It's very much a hippie book. with its city/evil versus country/good dynamic and its rather psychedelic overtones. And, in the end, though it describes a journey, I was not quite sure it got anywhere.
I did admire it. I enjoyed it. But I didn't love it as I expected to. I am nevertheless going to try to find The Last Unicorn and read it. I'm very interested to discover what this talented writer did to this story when he revised it. For there is no doubt about his talent.
January 31, 2021
What might not seem clear to the reader--or at least it wasn't to me when I bought this book--is that it is NOT a new adventure of "The Last Unicorn." It is the first draft of The Last Unicorn, which I, like many others read when it first came out decades ago. Peter S. Beagle wrote this one in the 1970s, near-child prodigy that he was in his early 20s. Is it as good as the version that was eventually published? Of course not. But it's pretty amazing for a first draft. The Unicorn is the same; other characters were replaced in the final version. And the ending is kind of a cliff-hanger. But the illustrations--ink drawings by Stephanie Law--are lovely, and the 20-page afterword by Beagle, describing the summer he came to write it, is well worth reading. If you haven't read the finished novel already, though, don't mistakenly read this one.
May 22, 2022
For what it was - a glimpse into the "behind the scenes of writing a book" first draft style - it was great. I enjoyed seeing this, and reading the afterward about the process.
But as a story, it really wasn't that great (forewarned - its not a complete story either) I hate it when someone takes something like a demon, and makes them rather pitiful, pathetic, with awkward banter. This isn't the only book I've read with that style! It lacked the magic the finished product overflows with, which was a huge basis of my childhood and into my adulthood!
But as a story, it really wasn't that great (forewarned - its not a complete story either) I hate it when someone takes something like a demon, and makes them rather pitiful, pathetic, with awkward banter. This isn't the only book I've read with that style! It lacked the magic the finished product overflows with, which was a huge basis of my childhood and into my adulthood!
December 28, 2018
I didn't realize it wouldn't be a complete story and the references to modern technology were confusing, I think if I had read this story first I would have enjoyed it more but the other story and movie are so ingrained into my memory it was hard to shift gears towards something similar yet so different.
September 12, 2025
It's always interesting getting to read an early version of a book you really like. You get to see the what could have been of an earlier draft, meet different versions of characters and even different characters altogether. Sometimes you're left wishing that bits of that early version had survived into the final form. But I can safely say that after reading this, I'm glad we got the published version of The Last Unicorn and not whatever the full version of this would have been.
Peter S. Beagle first made an attempt at writing The Last Unicorn in the early 60s, when he was living in a rented house for the summer with a painter friend. As he himself notes in his afterward, he mostly did it because he felt he needed to be doing something when his friend was clearly so productive with his painting. And so he began a story of a unicorn who discovers she's the last of her kind and sets off on a quest to find where the other unicorns have gone.
And in fact the first chapter or so of the book is fairly similar to the final novel, in that the unicorn finds out from an outsider intruding into her beautiful forest that no other unicorns have been seen in a long time. There are some other surviving bits, like the butterfly, the bluebird and his wife, and even a mention of horns that will some day become the Red Bull. But even from the first chapter the differences are also quite apparent, though it takes a few chapters before it becomes clear that this version was doomed.
Here, the unicorn is not told she's the last by a couple of hunters, but instead by a dragon who's come to the forest to die after seeing what humanity has made of the world. Because one of the biggest differences is this version is set in the modern day. Man's road is an asphalt highway, with towns and cities, and cars that run over dragon's tails and policemen that try to arrest them. Though while it's clearly the modern day there's still the same vagueness about specific setting that the final version has. This is a unicorn wandering through somewhere in our world, not a unicorn bumming around, say, California. This part of things I don't necessarily mind. While I prefer the medieval fantasy setting of the final novel with it's bevy of fairy tale tropes that get played with, a modern setting is a neat idea and does feel a little more appropriate to the cynicism of people leaving them unable to recognize a unicorn.
The real problem with this version of the story comes a couple of chapters in with this book's choice of travelling companions for the unicorn. While Almathea is of course the star of the show in the final book, so much of the story is also about Schemendrick and especially Molly Grue and how they relate to the very last unicorn. Here instead we meet Azazel and Webster, conjoined demons who have been cast out of Hell but not before stealing a still burning coal of the infernal flames. It seems Azazel and many other demons are trying to modernize Hell, corporatize it, but Webster is a traditionalist and having now been cast out, wishes to start his own Hell. (Though no word on whether there'll be blackjack and hookers a la Bender.)
And the thing is, I don't actually dislike Azazel and Webster. They're neat characters and apparently based heavily on Beagle's dynamic with the friend he was living with. The problem is that the moment they appear the book really stops being The Last Unicorn and starts being all about the demons. The only threat that appears in this version is another demon, who is completely unconcerned by the presence of the last unicorn. The unicorn herself feels like she starts to fade away and become diminished, to the point that this draft ends not with her but with Webster making a snarky crack about something. In essence, it feels like Beagle had two reasonable ideas for a story but he made the mistake of trying to bolt them together when it's clear that there's enough room for a unicorn or a demon but not both.
So in the end, I'm glad he abandoned this version and mostly started off from scratch when he came to write the final novel later in the 60s. I am kinda sad that Azazel and Webster never got their proper shot - I think I'd enjoy reading their book, about two demons on a quest through cynical 60s America to try to find the true meaning of damnation. But I'm also glad that if we had to get just one book, we got the unicorn's. I do think there's not a lot of reason to read this unless you're a hardcore Beagle fan or just really interested in the process of writing, especially since this isn't at all a completed work but instead peters out after about six chapters.
Peter S. Beagle first made an attempt at writing The Last Unicorn in the early 60s, when he was living in a rented house for the summer with a painter friend. As he himself notes in his afterward, he mostly did it because he felt he needed to be doing something when his friend was clearly so productive with his painting. And so he began a story of a unicorn who discovers she's the last of her kind and sets off on a quest to find where the other unicorns have gone.
And in fact the first chapter or so of the book is fairly similar to the final novel, in that the unicorn finds out from an outsider intruding into her beautiful forest that no other unicorns have been seen in a long time. There are some other surviving bits, like the butterfly, the bluebird and his wife, and even a mention of horns that will some day become the Red Bull. But even from the first chapter the differences are also quite apparent, though it takes a few chapters before it becomes clear that this version was doomed.
Here, the unicorn is not told she's the last by a couple of hunters, but instead by a dragon who's come to the forest to die after seeing what humanity has made of the world. Because one of the biggest differences is this version is set in the modern day. Man's road is an asphalt highway, with towns and cities, and cars that run over dragon's tails and policemen that try to arrest them. Though while it's clearly the modern day there's still the same vagueness about specific setting that the final version has. This is a unicorn wandering through somewhere in our world, not a unicorn bumming around, say, California. This part of things I don't necessarily mind. While I prefer the medieval fantasy setting of the final novel with it's bevy of fairy tale tropes that get played with, a modern setting is a neat idea and does feel a little more appropriate to the cynicism of people leaving them unable to recognize a unicorn.
The real problem with this version of the story comes a couple of chapters in with this book's choice of travelling companions for the unicorn. While Almathea is of course the star of the show in the final book, so much of the story is also about Schemendrick and especially Molly Grue and how they relate to the very last unicorn. Here instead we meet Azazel and Webster, conjoined demons who have been cast out of Hell but not before stealing a still burning coal of the infernal flames. It seems Azazel and many other demons are trying to modernize Hell, corporatize it, but Webster is a traditionalist and having now been cast out, wishes to start his own Hell. (Though no word on whether there'll be blackjack and hookers a la Bender.)
And the thing is, I don't actually dislike Azazel and Webster. They're neat characters and apparently based heavily on Beagle's dynamic with the friend he was living with. The problem is that the moment they appear the book really stops being The Last Unicorn and starts being all about the demons. The only threat that appears in this version is another demon, who is completely unconcerned by the presence of the last unicorn. The unicorn herself feels like she starts to fade away and become diminished, to the point that this draft ends not with her but with Webster making a snarky crack about something. In essence, it feels like Beagle had two reasonable ideas for a story but he made the mistake of trying to bolt them together when it's clear that there's enough room for a unicorn or a demon but not both.
So in the end, I'm glad he abandoned this version and mostly started off from scratch when he came to write the final novel later in the 60s. I am kinda sad that Azazel and Webster never got their proper shot - I think I'd enjoy reading their book, about two demons on a quest through cynical 60s America to try to find the true meaning of damnation. But I'm also glad that if we had to get just one book, we got the unicorn's. I do think there's not a lot of reason to read this unless you're a hardcore Beagle fan or just really interested in the process of writing, especially since this isn't at all a completed work but instead peters out after about six chapters.
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