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The Unicorn in the Garden
The Unicorn in the Garden, the most famous of Thurber's humorous modern fables, first appeared in The New Yorker on October 31, 1939; and was first collected in his book Fables for Our Time and Famous Poems Illustrated (Harper and Brothers, 1940). The fable has since been reprinted in The Thurber Carnival (Harper and Brothers, 1945), James Thurber: Writings and Drawings, The Oxford Book of Modern Fairy Tales, and other publications. It is taught in literature and rhetoric courses.
2 pages, Audio Cassette
First published October 31, 1939
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About the author
James Thurber
357 books608 followersThurber was born in Columbus, Ohio to Charles L. Thurber and Mary Agnes (Mame) Fisher Thurber. Both of his parents greatly influenced his work. His father, a sporadically employed clerk and minor politician who dreamed of being a lawyer or an actor, is said to have been the inspiration for the small, timid protagonist typical of many of his stories. Thurber described his mother as a "born comedienne" and "one of the finest comic talents I think I have ever known." She was a practical joker, on one occasion pretending to be crippled and attending a faith healer revival, only to jump up and proclaim herself healed.
Thurber had two brothers, William and Robert. Once, while playing a game of William Tell, his brother William shot James in the eye with an arrow. Because of the lack of medical technology, Thurber lost his eye. This injury would later cause him to be almost entirely blind. During his childhood he was unable to participate in sports and activities because of his injury, and instead developed a creative imagination, which he shared in his writings.
From 1913 to 1918, Thurber attended The Ohio State University, where he was a member of the Phi Kappa Psi Fraternity. He never graduated from the University because his poor eyesight prevented him from taking a mandatory ROTC course. In 1995 he was posthumously awarded a degree.
From 1918 to 1920, at the close of World War I, Thurber worked as a code clerk for the Department of State, first in Washington, D.C. and then at the American Embassy in Paris, France. After this Thurber returned to Columbus, where he began his writing career as a reporter for the Columbus Dispatch from 1921 to 1924. During part of this time, he reviewed current books, films, and plays in a weekly column called "Credos and Curios," a title that later would be given to a posthumous collection of his work. Thurber also returned to Paris in this period, where he wrote for the Chicago Tribune and other newspapers.
In 1925, he moved to Greenwich Village in New York City, getting a job as a reporter for the New York Evening Post. He joined the staff of The New Yorker in 1927 as an editor with the help of his friend and fellow New Yorker contributor, E.B. White. His career as a cartoonist began in 1930 when White found some of Thurber's drawings in a trash can and submitted them for publication. Thurber would contribute both his writings and his drawings to The New Yorker until the 1950s.
Thurber was married twice. In 1922, Thurber married Althea Adams. The marriage was troubled and ended in divorce in May 1935. Adams gave Thurber his only child, his daughter Rosemary. Thurber remarried in June, 1935 to Helen Wismer. His second marriage lasted until he died in 1961, at the age of 66, due to complications from pneumonia, which followed upon a stroke suffered at his home. His last words, aside from the repeated word "God," were "God bless... God damn," according to Helen Thurber.
Thurber had two brothers, William and Robert. Once, while playing a game of William Tell, his brother William shot James in the eye with an arrow. Because of the lack of medical technology, Thurber lost his eye. This injury would later cause him to be almost entirely blind. During his childhood he was unable to participate in sports and activities because of his injury, and instead developed a creative imagination, which he shared in his writings.
From 1913 to 1918, Thurber attended The Ohio State University, where he was a member of the Phi Kappa Psi Fraternity. He never graduated from the University because his poor eyesight prevented him from taking a mandatory ROTC course. In 1995 he was posthumously awarded a degree.
From 1918 to 1920, at the close of World War I, Thurber worked as a code clerk for the Department of State, first in Washington, D.C. and then at the American Embassy in Paris, France. After this Thurber returned to Columbus, where he began his writing career as a reporter for the Columbus Dispatch from 1921 to 1924. During part of this time, he reviewed current books, films, and plays in a weekly column called "Credos and Curios," a title that later would be given to a posthumous collection of his work. Thurber also returned to Paris in this period, where he wrote for the Chicago Tribune and other newspapers.
In 1925, he moved to Greenwich Village in New York City, getting a job as a reporter for the New York Evening Post. He joined the staff of The New Yorker in 1927 as an editor with the help of his friend and fellow New Yorker contributor, E.B. White. His career as a cartoonist began in 1930 when White found some of Thurber's drawings in a trash can and submitted them for publication. Thurber would contribute both his writings and his drawings to The New Yorker until the 1950s.
Thurber was married twice. In 1922, Thurber married Althea Adams. The marriage was troubled and ended in divorce in May 1935. Adams gave Thurber his only child, his daughter Rosemary. Thurber remarried in June, 1935 to Helen Wismer. His second marriage lasted until he died in 1961, at the age of 66, due to complications from pneumonia, which followed upon a stroke suffered at his home. His last words, aside from the repeated word "God," were "God bless... God damn," according to Helen Thurber.
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
July 15, 2018
James Thurber is one of my heroes! "If I dialed a wrong number - then why did you answer it?"
August 29, 2016
I cannot deny how funny this is, but I'm not excusing the husband. I saw what you did there buddy. I'm watching you....
April 19, 2017
A comic tale about a beautiful unicorn and a rash decision.
Read
December 5, 2025boobs.
(i also think the ending deserves jail. free wife)
(i also think the ending deserves jail. free wife)
July 10, 2012
Loved this story, and funny how wife was eager to get rid of her husband but instead got herself in more trouble. I do think there are two was to take this story.
A. As you've read it.
B. That the wife was crazy and actually brought it on herself.
Its super short and should be taken in quickly but need time to settle. I didn'tlisten to Audio Cassette, it was just first edition that I picked, so I actually read the thing.
A. As you've read it.
B. That the wife was crazy and actually brought it on herself.
Its super short and should be taken in quickly but need time to settle. I didn'tlisten to Audio Cassette, it was just first edition that I picked, so I actually read the thing.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 21, 2022
I love unicorns! So I loved this short story by Thurber. The wife and husband clearly do not belong together, which is sad. My husband is not the one finding the unicorns - I do that. And he lets me keep them. Until it’s time for them to be relocated to a niece’s home or to a friend’s child’s welcoming arms.
January 4, 2017
Super short story read for my genre fiction class. I loved that there is a plot twist in the end and it just leaves you questioning to the point where you gotta reread it because it is very ambiguous.
July 5, 2012
Such an awesome fable! I was at a dinner where a Thurber book was brought out & everyone passed it around & read one - This was the favorite of the night.
May 6, 2014
Don't count your boobies until they are hatched
I love it
It is so funny
I love it
It is so funny
February 7, 2017
Hahaha! A little bit of Thurber is fantastic!
December 19, 2025
This is Thurber’s most distilled parable, compressing marital conflict, epistemology, and absurdism into a deceptively simple fable.
The humour is minimalist, built on refusal rather than escalation. What is denied becomes more powerful than what is asserted.
The prose is skeletal, almost allegorical. Thurber strips away psychology, backstory, and motivation, leaving only action and response. This reduction amplifies meaning, allowing the story to operate simultaneously as a comedy, cautionary tale, and philosophical puzzle.
From a postmodern standpoint, the story interrogates reality as consensus rather than fact. Truth is determined not by observation but by alignment with institutional language. Thurber exposes how authority disciplines perception.
The humour is dry to the point of cruelty. Silence becomes strategy; disbelief becomes vulnerability. Thurber inverts traditional power dynamics, revealing how certainty can be undone by disbelief rather than argument.
There is no catharsis, only resolution through structure. Thurber resists moralising, presenting consequence without commentary. The story’s chill lies in its neutrality.
The Unicorn in the Garden endures because it understands how narratives overpower truth. Thurber offers laughter stripped of comfort, reminding readers that innocence and strategy are not mutually exclusive.
Most recommended.
The humour is minimalist, built on refusal rather than escalation. What is denied becomes more powerful than what is asserted.
The prose is skeletal, almost allegorical. Thurber strips away psychology, backstory, and motivation, leaving only action and response. This reduction amplifies meaning, allowing the story to operate simultaneously as a comedy, cautionary tale, and philosophical puzzle.
From a postmodern standpoint, the story interrogates reality as consensus rather than fact. Truth is determined not by observation but by alignment with institutional language. Thurber exposes how authority disciplines perception.
The humour is dry to the point of cruelty. Silence becomes strategy; disbelief becomes vulnerability. Thurber inverts traditional power dynamics, revealing how certainty can be undone by disbelief rather than argument.
There is no catharsis, only resolution through structure. Thurber resists moralising, presenting consequence without commentary. The story’s chill lies in its neutrality.
The Unicorn in the Garden endures because it understands how narratives overpower truth. Thurber offers laughter stripped of comfort, reminding readers that innocence and strategy are not mutually exclusive.
Most recommended.
April 21, 2024
James Thurber brought his dry, acerbic wit to fairy tales, with sparkling gems like "Even in a nightcap a wolf does not look any more like your grandmother than the Metro-Goldwyn lion looks like Calvin Coolidge. Moral of the story: Little girls aren't a dumb as they used to be."
February 16, 2024
Just call it what it is.. archetypal terror of women. Hilarious.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews