Enhjørningers hemmelige liv

by Temisa Seraphini, Sophie Robin (Illustrator)

Du ved da godt, at der har eksisteret enhjørninger, ikke? Forskellige arter, forskellige steder på jorden - med hver deres særlige egenskaber.
En række verdensberømte enhjørningeksperter deler ud af deres viden og giver dig en hel ny indsigt i enhjørningernes hemmelige verden.
Men mon der stadig findes vilde enhjørninger derude?

Genres: Unicorns, Picture Books, Fantasy, Childrens, Animals

64 pages, Hardcover

First published April 2, 2019

Reviews

[D. George · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am sooo thrilled I picked this magical book to review. I loved it so much, I sent a copy to friend, and she loves it too!

This book is the same idea as the Lady Cottington series of fairy journals - as in, non-fiction, and it posits that unicorns are real. It has three sections: "What is a Unicorn?", "Unicorns of the World", and "Unicorns and Humans". It shares some of the history of unicorns (they feature in many of our folktales), and even how to track your own unicorn! (Which is good advice for anything in life, really: "Begin peacefully and calmly.")

What really sets this book apart is the illustrations. (This is the illustrator's first book!) They are so detailed and beautiful. It's also great how different sections use different color schemes, but they clearly belong together). The cover was lovingly produced, with silver foil on a nice mint-green hard cover.

My only disappointments are a few typos here and there (nothing most people would notice), and that my post person shoved the book into my mailbox and caused a bit of damage to the cover.

I received this free as part of the Amazon Vine review program, and all opinions are my own.

[Melle · Rating 3 out of 5]

Eight year-old Melissa would have loved this book and may have even made it her personal bible. Adult Melissa is a little less unquestioning and uncritical and thinks, for unicorn nonfiction, that this has NOTHING on the 1985 Magical Beasts volume of the Time-Life Enchanted World series, though, admittedly, I might be jealous that children are growing up in a world where love of unicorns is encouraged and fostered and celebrated. (This was not how things were in the '80s when young Melissa's poor mother was bombarded daily with unicorn facts, unicorn drawings, unicorn lore, etc.)

[Marisa Costa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Doctora Temisa Seraphini es el seudónimo de Angela Sangma Francis, escritora de libros infantiles como "Everest". En esta ocasión hace gala de su gran imaginación para crear un pequeño bestiario sobre uno de los seres mitológicos más aclamados, el unicornio. Sophie Robin, una joven ilustradora británica, la acompaña en este proyecto haciendo de él su debut.

"La vida secreta de los unicornios" pone al alcance del lector una guía en el que la autora expone una amplia documentación sobre unicornios.

El libro está dividido en tres partes: "Qué es un unicornio" expone su origen, anatomía, descendencia y hábitat. "Los unicornios del mundo" pone en conocimiento los diferentes tipos existentes de estos seres, sus características y mitos y, por último, "Unicornios y hombres" crea una relación entre ambos a partir de leyendas y arte, entre otros.

Cada página se encuentra bellamente ilustrada con unas deliciosas imágenes de trazo perfecto, hechas a lápiz en tonos tierra y aguamarina pastel, cuentan con múltiples detalles otorgándole al texto su toque de ternura al mismo tiempo que le ayuda a cobrar vida.

Es asombroso cómo la autora ha conseguido crear un amplio universo entorno a esta figura con tantos detalles, sin dejar ni un solo ámbito posible sin tocar, ya que inventa personajes "unicórlogos" o descubrimientos arqueológicos y los entremezcla con la historia universal a través de la identificación de fechas y países o la recopilación de leyendas nórdicas y medievales que relacionado con sus propios datos ficticios, otorga al libro un carácter científico y bastante creíble.

Dada la buena documentación expuesta, he de confesar que durante su lectura me he sentido transportada a ese mundo fantasioso creado por Angela, llegando a dudar por momentos incluso de la posibilidad de su existencia y soñando con vestirme como una "unicórloga" y salir en busca de la investigación de estos mágicos seres.

Sin duda alguna lo he disfrutado enormemente. He viajado a mi infancia y he explorado el universo unicornio que tanto les apasiona a niños y grandes.

Al finalizar, la autora lanza un mensaje de concienciación con el medio y la naturaleza haciendo apología hacia la limpieza y cuidado del medio ambiente.

En conclusión, "La vida secreta de los unicornios" es un manual al más puro estilo documentativo en donde la autora, a través de un vocabulario sencillo y un estilo directo, consigue que el lector se sienta inmerso en este mundo de magia y fantasía, permitiéndole desconectar, soñar y disfrutar de estos místicos seres y sus leyendas.

https://www.anikaentrelibros.com/la-v...

[Katherine Magyarody · Rating 5 out of 5]

For anyone who has read guides to pony care, horseback riding, and equine breeds, this is the book for you! If you know an eight-year-old girl who loves horses, you should get this for her NOW!

Seraphini and Robin successfully use the conventions of children’s non-fiction nature books to create a convincing (if tongue in cheek) guide to unicorns. The book provides a biological overview (evolution, horn physiology, magical properties, life cycle), an overview of unicorns in legend, and, most inventively, a history of famous (and diverse!) unicornologists.

The illustrations are a delightful blend of cartoon and scientific diagram. My favourite section has to be the double spreads devoted to species, ranging from the Icelandic Volcanic Unicorn (ridged horn, eats pine resin) to the Nepalese Mountain Unicorn whose hair-infused soup helps hermits live 600 years. But who wouldn’t love to pore over the illustration of different horn-types, whether pearlescent or smooth?

Though The Secret Lives of Unicorns touches on the history of unicorn legends, from Odin’s messenger Sleipnir and the Qilin of Ancient China, the book wears this heritage lightly.

In style, it’s reminiscent of Graeme Base’s lovely The Discovery of Dragons (1996) and to a lesser extent, Dugald Steer’s entertaining Dragonology (2003) and Wizardology (2005). Lovers of mythological creatures and those eager to suspend their disbelief will heartily enjoy The Secret Lives of Unicorns.

For more unicorn book reviews, go to https://offbeatunicorn.com/unicorn-bo...

[Leah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Finally....another book I can put onto the Approved Unicorn Literature list!!

Twelve-year-old me would have been ecstatic with this book - my personal childhood bible was The Secret World of Unicorns, and this one absolutely blows that one out of the water. And if I may say, twenty-four-year-old me is also ecstatic with this book.

The art style is charming, sweet, and beautiful, giving the right amount of ethereal beauty to the unicorns it depicts. While it firmly positions unicorns as creatures of this world, creatures that evolved alongside horses from a similar shared origin species into forms that fit their environments and having natural life cycles, they still retain that sense of being somewhat outside the world, both deeply connected to the land and its natural beauty as well as being magical and otherworldly.

I have to admit that if I have any complaints, it's that it's too short! I would have loved a little more than just a two page spread per unicorn species, a few more pages of art. This is definitely aimed towards a younger audience, so for them, I think it's just the right length - I think for what I want, I'm going to have to write it myself haha.

All in all, an excellent little book of unicornology, and I'm super pleased to find that such a gem is out there giving out the respect that unicorns deserve!

[Lauren · Rating 4 out of 5]

A delightful diversion into the zoological study of my favorite endangered species: the unicorn. Fine work done here by my fellow unicornologists, although I wish they had used some of the many recent photographs taken by individuals such as myself instead of resorting to illustrations. It is a sad state of affairs that unicornologists are so selfish with the copyrights on their photographs. It appears that the rumors I heard on the secret message boards are true: that the publishers of this book gave up fighting to use any of the well-known, documented photographs due to unicornologists demanding too high a price for their photographs, or by denying such usage by parties other than their funding source. Our latest professional journal recounted how the publisher decided to forego photographs altogether due to so few of examples the various species being released for use. It is a shame because I have an excellent photo of a unicorn pegasus from when I first began my ph.d in unicorn studies, which is still my personal favorite, and a particularly majestic image of a Moorland unicorn from my team's recent visit to Norway. It took 5 months to gain the unicorn's trust, but it was well worth it for the image and data collected. Hopefully in future editions of this reference manual, the copyrights can be secured and more photographs can be incorporated.

[April Gray · Rating 5 out of 5]

1980 me wants this book so much! It's written under the supposition that unicorns are real (and I'm not saying they aren't, for the record), and gives us a history and overview of the various species of unicorns throughout time, including an explanation and chart of the evolution of the species. The information is presented by the author, one of the world's top unicornologists, and is the result of many years of research. I learned some interesting things, I greatly enjoyed it! The illustrations are just lovely, and invite the reader to pour over them for hours. 4.5 stars rounded to 5, I took a half star off for some not particularly good advice in the part about tracking unicorns. It is recommended to bring along some bread for the birds, so you can listen to their song for clues, but bread isn't very good for birds, it has no nutritional value for them. If you must, bring the good stuff- organic, whole grain bread, preferably with nuts and seeds in it, spread with peanut or another nut butter (the protein is good for them), maybe sprinkle on some bird seed or fresh fruit pieces. For birds in the wild, this would essentially be like bringing them a treat, like candy or a pastry. That was my only issue, otherwise, a great addition to any unicorn library!

[Beverly · Rating 4 out of 5]

This mixture of folklore and fiction is narrated by Seraphini, pen name of Sangma Francis, who calls herself a unicornologist. She describes unicorns and their magical properties, as well as six species of unicorns: Mountain, Volcanic, Moorland, Desert, Northwood, and Winged. The six species live in different habitats scattered across the planet. She also discusses unicorns in legend and other "famous" unicornologists. This is a fun book with very nice illustrations.

[Holly L'Heureux · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was so fun. Not only was it "Historical" but it was amazing how much effort went in to creating the information on how unicorns came to be around the whole world. These types of books are by far my favorite and I really hope this author comes out with more.

[Ash.O · Rating 3 out of 5]

This may be a book written for children, but it is definitely enjoyable for anyone who likes unicorns. With illustrations and descriptions, it takes you through the "history" and various species of unicorns. It also includes some stories and unicorn lore throughout history. It was a fun, quick, and interesting read. It's worth it for the illustrations alone, but the copy is great too.

[Simon Says Hellooo · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this history and study of unicorns. Very little could make me enjoy it more, but different art styles showing different time periods of unicornologists would have added something special. It's a great addition to my unicorn collection either way!

[mairead! · Rating 4 out of 5]

A picked this up from Book Table with Sham and Nana. Love the illustrations and the WHIMSY-- will be a great read for her in different ways in the future over the years.

[Alyssa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really cool, magical book. Text could maybe use a little editing here and there, but the illustrations are gorgeous and inspiring. Hope there are more books like this to come about other creatures!

[Hannah · Rating 4 out of 5]

exactly the kind of book i would’ve loved as a kid

[LudmilaM · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars, one of better books for kids about unicorns.

[Aurora · Rating 4 out of 5]

I get the feeling 10yo me would have really loved this.

[Meredith Hourihan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really like this book. I like the art and I love unicorns. I want to be a unicornologist and work with Dr Temisa Seraphini when I grow up.🦄❤️🦄❤️🦄

(Review by Naomi)

[L M]

A charming blend of history, lore, and fiction

[Hana · Rating 5 out of 5]

Simply wonderful.

[Andréa]

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

[China · Rating 5 out of 5]

Different types of unicorns and we finally get to see the alicorn outside of mlp universe