The Phantom Unicorn
City Kids Book #4
It’s lonely being the new kid on the block, especially when your family is “unique.” Q has left California behind to start a new life in New York City with his two moms and baby sister. He can’t wait for his dad to come up for the weekend, but the visit is canceled when Q’s father gets arrested while attending a peace march. A special gift from his father leads to adventure, however, and Q is astonished when a medieval tapestry comes to life while he’s visiting a nearby museum. With the help of two new friends, Q must face his fears and battle a villain who has waited five hundred years to destroy the world!
6″ x 9″ | 112 pages
Rosetta Press
$7.00
ISBN-13: 978-1975659639
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…The Phantom Unicorn has the traditional elements of a fantasy adventure story that will be familiar to readers of the genre. What sets it apart and makes it special is its awareness of the contemporary world and the issues currently being faced by children in marginalized societies. POC children will find mirrors in all of Zetta Elliott’s books but this series especially centres the problems and themes important to them without alienating others.
As I said about The Ghosts in the Castle, I believe The Phantom Unicorn to be potentially invaluable in classrooms and libraries. The City Kids series will prove to be essential springboards for engaged discussions about a plethora of subjects such as social activism, nonconventional family units, and discrimination. Lest you think, however, that the books are little more than didactic volumes, please know that the stories themselves are strong and feature well developed characters living complex lives.
You really need to get these books.
Like the previous three City Kids books, this emphasizes a diversity of backgrounds and friendships, and it brings this diversity to stories most often reserved for white characters, like those with haunted castles, unicorns, time-traveling friends, etc. Introducing enjoyable new characters, this is a fun and fast-paced continuation of an enchanting series.
~ Zara Rix, Booklist