The Dragon's Child and The Night of the Unicorn (Jenny Nimmo)

The Dragon's Child and The Night of the Unicorn
Jenny Nimmo
Recorded Books
Fiction, CH Collection/Fantasy
**** (Good)

DESCRIPTION: Author Jenny Nimmo presents two fantasy stories:
The Dragon's Child: The young dragon Dando, a late bloomer, cannot fly, and is accidentally left behind when the others migrate north... just when vicious monsters known as Doggins approach through the dark woods, and a ship full of dangerous humans arrives.
The Night of the Unicorn: A magical night full of shooting stars brings an old unicorn to the fields near young Amber's farm and starts an epic quest by aging chicken Hennie, a journey that will have consequences for the entire farming community.

REVIEW: As the descriptions likely imply, this pair of stories is fairly light in tone, cozy bedtime tales with some peril, some heart, and some whimsy.
The Dragon's Child was the stronger of the pair (though I may be biased, as I'm more of a dragon person than a unicorn person), telling the tale of a little underdog dragon who has to find a reason to grow up before he can fly - a reason he finds unexpectedly in a girl prisoner of the invading humans (who aren't quite ordinary humans), and the leader's spoiled princeling son. There's a hair more depth to everyone, even the baddies (except for the Doggins, of course), than one might expect in a fairy tale.
The Night of the Unicorn underplays the titular unicorn; it's more about the brave little chicken whose quest to find the old rooster William inadvertently weaves together many lives, human and animal. The result feels a little overlong and scattered and doesn't deliver the payoff that the first story offered, though it's generally enjoyable.

You Might Also Enjoy:
A Glory of Unicorns (Bruce Coville) - My Review
The Dragons at Crumbling Castle (Terry Pratchett) - My Review
The Dragon of Lonely Island (Rebecca Rupp) - My Review