The Unicorn Alphabet

Author Marianna Mayer and illustrator Michael Hague revisit the subject of unicorns in this second picture book devoted to those magical creatures, following upon their earlier collaboration, The Unicorn and the Lake. Here there is no real story, as such. Rather, Mayer describes a series of plants,

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animals and legendary figures—one for each letter of the alphabet—that have some relation to or significance for the unicorn. Her brief descriptions, which often highlight folk beliefs around each subject being discussed, are paired with breathtakingly beautiful full-page illustrations. Decorative borders on each page surround both the panel with the text, and the paintings, created using pen and ink, watercolor, and gouache. A brief author's note at the front discusses the figure of the unicorn, while the significance of the border flowers used in each illustration are explained in a two-page note at the rear.

I have known Michael Hague's work since early childhood, having grown up with and loved his version of L. Frank Baum's The Wizard of Oz, but while I always enjoy his artwork, I wouldn't generally list him as one of my all-time favorite illustrators. That being said, I think the visuals in The Unicorn Alphabet are simply outstanding, perhaps the best I have ever seen from Hague, and I would definitely include this book in any list of personal favorites, when it comes to illustrated picture book fantasy, fairytale and folklore. My only critique of the book would be that it was sometimes difficult for me to see a direct connection between some of the plants and animals depicted and the lore of the unicorn, but I suppose an argument could be made that they are all also a part of the general medieval European lore that was concurrent with and intermingled with specific unicorn lore. Perhaps some of them were used in the beautiful tapestries featuring unicorns, or mentioned in ballads or folktales about these marvelous horned creatures. However that may be, so beautiful was the artwork here, and so much did I appreciate the wealth of folk references and botanical lore, that I wasn't too bothered about whether each plant, animal or person was directly connected to unicorns. Highly recommended to all unicorn lovers, and to anyone who appreciated beautiful picture book art. For my own part, I definitely want to own my own copy of this book!

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