Sparkleton #1: The Magic Day

Sparkleton #1

by Calliope Glass, Hollie Mengert (Illustrator)

A shaggy purple unicorn does everything he can&;except his homework&;to get wish-granting powers in the first book of this glitterrific, highly illustrated early chapter book series.

Sparkleton begs his big sister to give him wish-granting magic for one whole day so he can prove what a glitteriffic wish-granting unicorn he can be. But all the wishes he grants come out opposite!

Can Sparkleton&;s friends Willow and Gabe help him undo the magic before sunset? Or will every day be opposite day?

HarperChapters build confident readers one chapter at a time! With short, fast-paced books, art on every page, and milestone markers at the end of every chapter, they're the perfect next step for fans of I Can Read!

Genres: Fantasy, Chapter Books, Childrens, Fiction, Middle Grade, Magic, Unicorns

96 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2020

About the author

Calliope Glass is an editor and the writer of several popular titles for licenses like Star Wars, Marvel, and the Disney Princesses. She lives in New York City with her family.

Reviews

[Katie Lawrence · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was hoping I'd love this since unicorns are always so popular! This was just ok to me. Mostly I found Sparkleton to be really annoying haha and kind of selfish. I love the way the Harper Chapters books have an indicator at the end of each chapter that shows how far you've read. I love the ending bit that showcases how many pages, words and chapters you read and the activities included too. Kids will love this, I just found Sparkleton to be a hero I wasn't sure I could support (I can't believe I wrote this haha). I may have struggled too because there were so many characters that it was hard to latch onto anyone in such a short time. I also read the first Trouble at Table 5 book today and that one seemed to feature less characters who are slightly better developed.

[Tanya · Rating 1 out of 5]

I found another unicorn book! Here I was stuck at the desk and I found this little gem!

Have you ever wondered if mid-elementary aged kids were unicorns?! Wonder no more! They are equally as annoying and selfish as the humans but with magic. Little shits.

I didn't have high hopes for this one and quite rightly so. Sparkleton is an obnoxious little hoofer who doesn't have magic yet but he wants it real bad. His older sister grants him a wish that will let him grant wishes for the day. And wish-granting shenanigans ensue. And he doesn't learn his lesson!

Only two positive aspects are the illustration (they are quite fitting) and it's a super short read. Thirty minutes top.

[Natalie Tate · Rating 1 out of 5]

With so few total words in this measly chapter book, it's hard to believe that I could come to despise the purple prancing Sparkleton with all the fibers of my being. And yet, here we are, screaming inside our hearts. What a horrifying little twit.

[Naomi · Rating 2 out of 5]

Cute, not much substance and a bit of an annoying ending. But cute.

[Lucy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome book! Very excited to read the next one!

[Cricket · Rating 1 out of 5]

Characters are entirely unkind to one another. Describing each other in mildly (but unnecessary) derogatory ways: labeling each other as annoying etc. The ending was completely unsatisfactory in that the main unicorn learned that he can be unkind and not listen to rules and still things will turn out just fine. Pros for the book: love that after each chapter it shows you your progress on the journey of reading an entire young chapter book. Also like they the main character unicorn is a purple male (boy), which challenges the gender stereotypes especially among the unicorn fan groups. Overall, I very unimpressed with this book and will not be continuing the series with my son, as kind language and actions between characters is important to us, and there is further no redeeming moral.

[Bethany Bennett · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read this with my son who LOVES unicorns. He is 6 years old and even he was like why are Sparkleton and Willow so crazy and not nice. I don’t like that everyone was so ok with the blatant bullying of Twinkle when she was the only one who had any sense. Sparkleton did not even learn his lesson in the end. I will not be reading anything more in the series.

[Dawn · Rating 2 out of 5]

Beginner chapter book about unicorns and full of colorful pictures and large font.

Not a fan. Sparkleton is a brat, but not a fun to read about brat for me. He bullies his friend, Gabe, but it’s played for laughs. Very heavy handed moral, but Sparkleton doesn’t really learn his lesson.

[Lisa Murphy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I love the format of this book, and the illustrations are super nice. That being said the story was horrible and Sparkleton is the worst character. Probably will keep these away from my daughter.

[Shelli · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am reviewing an Advance Reader's Copy.

What a fun and cheeky book for young readers! I really enjoyed the story, and the different unicorn designs and colors. (Though the advanced copy had black and white illustrations, the cover and inside covers had some excellent examples of the bright jewel-tone illustrations.) I liked that the main character was a shaggy unicorn, which made him more pony-like and made him stand out from the other characters.

The book introduces each character with a little illustration with character facts floating around them, which I loved.

Also at the end of each chapter is a "progress bar" that shows how many chapters the child has read, and how many are left. I have to admit, as an adult I found this idea to be very distracting. My eyes kept dragging down to the bottom of the page at the end of each chapter, when I wanted to just continue reading the story. However, I think it will work well for its intended audience of young readers. A bit of a break from the story will most likely be appreciated by them.

The only thing I didn't like was the ending, where the main character admits he learned nothing from all the events of the story. It seemed to me to make the whole story feel pointless, if the character didn't learn anything from the experience. However, I think this was done because this is the first book of a series. I don't doubt that Sparkleton will admit to learning more things as the stories progress. But because of this, reading just the first book left me with a bit of a "Huh" moment at the end.

[Tammy Landgren · Rating 3 out of 5]

We received this as the summer reading reward at our local library, so I assumed it would be a great book. Some of the elements were cute and the writing style was fun. My 6-year-old really enjoyed it. It is about a super obnoxious and self-centered unicorn who really wants magic that he's not ready for, and when it is granted he causes all sorts of problems for his friends. I feel like this is the type of situation that young kids could find themselves in and relate to. This could have been a great book if it weren't for the huge missed opportunity of having the main character learn from his mistakes, but instead, he feels no empathy or personal responsibility for what he has done to his friends. I will definitely not be getting any more from this series for my child.

[Martha · Rating 3 out of 5]

Chapter books on unicorns, especially ones in full color are in high demand. Sparkleton is a fun story about a young unicorn unable to wait until he's mature enough to earn his special magic powers. Kids who are at the age to relate to this story, will empathize with his problem. There are pictures on almost every page, entertaining challenges caused by the multiple problems of the young unicorns, as well as their endless curiosity, making this funny tale a hit. Sparkleton has just the right amount of suspense to keep readers hooked. The Magic Day will fly off the shelf. Be prepared, young readers will be demanding the sequel.

[Miss Pippi the Librarian · Rating 2 out of 5]

I picked up Sparkleton to see if this would be a good recommendation for readers of The Princess in Black. The illustrations are fun and bright. There is more text in Sparkleton than in Princess in Black. I appreciated the end of the chapter encouragements for young readers. The end of the book also shared book facts (chapters, pages, word count) which is fun and included "Unicorn Games" which are really content questions and story stretchers (clever!).

The story was very off putting with snarky, sarcastic comments and character attitudes.

Big fan of the book style, but not a fan of the story itself.

[Liz · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sparkleton doesn't have magical powers yet, so he asks his sister to give him wish-granting powers for 1 day. None of his wishes go right, and he needs some help from his sister and grandma to return things to normal. I wish Sparkleton actually learned something more than remembering the rules for granting wishes, like how to be a better friend! Maybe that happens throughout the series? It's a unicorn first chapter book, so it doesn't have to be amazing for it to be popular. The illustrations are perfect!

[Megan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Emily read this entire series (all 5) before I read this one and ugh, Sparkleton is not a great main character. He loves to break the rules, is selfish, sneaky… I thought there’d be a redemption at the end of the book but he doesn’t really get it. I guess it’s a little funny if the kid reading it can pick up on that! The illustrations are fantastic - I love full color on basically every page. The reviews for book 2 are more positive so maybe I should read that one before knocking the whole series …

[CR · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful little story!! I know that I am way to old for this story being almost 10 years old. But I thought it was way adorable and cute. This book would be great for kids that can read or can read with their parents.

The story was way cute and I loved the glitter and the unicorn. It was a fast read and was very light and great for right now. It gives kids problems to help Sparkle though.

[Jessica · Rating 1 out of 5]

I'm glad that after reading the reviews there were other parents and readers who felt the same way I did. The characters in this book stunk. The tone of the book was very disrespectful. I read this to my daughter, and we were able to have a good conversation about how Sparkleton was not a kind friend. We won't be reading any more in this series. The ending was not redeeming whatsoever. I don't think selfishness and disrespect should be applauded.

[Steph · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you put a unicorn on the cover of a book, it will be checked out by kids at the library - and so this series will be, without a doubt. Other perks? The illustrations in this story are adorable, and I absolutely love that these HarperChapters books count pages and words so kids feel successful at the end of the story.

[Samantha Small · Rating 4 out of 5]

People are being so harsh about this book when it's supposed to be fun! Just like a real kid Sparkleton isn't going to stop being self-centered and learn from just one day! This is a series and I'm excited to see where it goes because the artwork and characters are so funny and lovable!

[Kiara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome

[HappyGay Bakunzi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Adorable 🥰

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Appropriate for: all ages!

The story wasn't amazing, but I and my daughter love the full color pictures and it has a good message.

[Elizabeth · Rating 2 out of 5]

I liked the cheering on the reader at the end of the chapter. The Illustrations were cute, but the story bothered me because Sparkleton clearly didn't learn from his mistakes.

[Raini Fitch · Rating 5 out of 5]

My daughter and I have been reading these books the last few months and they are just the cutest!

[Molly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very cute! Fun to have so many unicorns.

[Brandy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read the Advanced Copy.

I’d rank closer to 2.5 or 2.75 because HarperCollins has created a really encouraging early reader where kids see their progress towards completing the book with some inspiration quotes to keep going. I think this is super helpful and kids will love it!

The story itself should be more entertaining and come to life every better when published in four colors when it comes out in May 2020. Also, when introducing a character, there is a diagram of the character and many of their traits. I thought this was helpful as a reader, though as a teacher, I want my students to do that work!

The story itself did have a good moral though somewhat silly. I think it’s also worth noting Sparkleton, the protagonist, identifies as male so that could be a step forward in the gender conversation. I didn’t connect to it but giving to my niece next to see if she has more thoughts on it in case a change in stars is needed.

[Satangan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reading Source: Overdrive / LIbby App / VBPL
Format: Ebook

Rating: 3.75, but settled more on a 4


I do love me some unicorns and stories about them.

This story was interesting to read.
Each unicorn is unique in their own way and I liked the descriptions of them.

I do got to say though, Sparkleton was kind of one selfish unicorn..... He wasn't too bad, just a bit self-aborbant and low attention span (unfocused).
Also, sparkleton comes off a little mean (my pov at times), especially toward Twinkle; she is so nice (the good nice and not the sarcastic kind of nice) and pretty.

At least that is what I thought at the beginning and kids are kids; or in this case young unicorns.


more to edit..........

[Shana Frazin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Solid addition to the beginning chapter book genre. Glass does a beautiful job of increasing the trouble and tension across the story which will result in readers who keep turning pages and won’t put the book down until they’ve finished it. There are stars at the end of each chapter to track how much you’ve read and how much remains. Some chapters end with ‘go reader go!’ words of encouragement and one even even with a provocative question to consider as you reads on. And, most importantly to some - #Unicorns!

[Teresa · Rating 4 out of 5]

What Winslow Reads:
Sparkleton is the best. He did not have powers yet so he asked his sister to give him wish granting powers. Then when he did stuff with his magical horn it was actually bad. He tried again and again but it was still bad. He learned that magic isn't easy and to control his powers. I am excited for the next book but I hope it is pretty cool."
Direct quote from my 5yo daughter, Winslow

[Andréa]

Note: I accessed a digital review copy of this book through Edelweiss.