Unicorn Academy 14 – Phoebe and Shimmer

Julie Sykes' Phoebe and Shimmer is a Unicorn Academy story for 7 year olds about a girl who can't help making every story just a little bit bigger.

What happens

Phoebe loves drama. If she spots a teacher dabbing her eyes, by the time she's told her dorm there were LOTS of tears and a nose-blow like an elephant trumpeting. Her friends Zara, Lily and Aisha roll their eyes. Her unicorn Shimmer, on the other hand, thinks every word is brilliant.

Then a school inspector turns up. Mr Longnose has a clipboard, a dark suit and a habit of asking students whether they feel safe. Phoebe tells him the academy is exciting because there's always some huge drama going on. You can probably guess how he writes that down.

That isn't the only trouble. A volcano that's been quiet for over a hundred years starts rumbling, and Mr Longnose insists the whole school goes camping on the coast to study it. There's a village flooded by a freak tide, a creepy ruined cottage and a stranger in a tall hat who's been seen hanging about.

And that's where Phoebe's habit really catches up with her. She says she saw a man in the cottage. She didn't (it was a seagull). But Zara, who keeps a detective notebook, is soon planning a midnight stake-out.

It's a gentle take on the boy who cried wolf. Phoebe feels awful when Zara finds out and won't speak to her. Then something genuinely exciting happens to Shimmer, and after all those tall tales, why would anyone believe her?

The nice thing is that Phoebe is never made the baddie. She's funny and warm, and her impression of the grumpy head gardener is spot on. Shimmer is just as loveable, even if he's a bit too quick to tell her she's perfect. Between them they work out that being trusted matters more than being listened to.

If your reader has ever added a teeny bit extra to a story to make everyone pay attention, they'll recognise Phoebe straight away (and so might you!).

It sits a little way into the series. Phoebe's dorm have already faced some purple tornadoes, and one of their unicorns has found her magic. Nothing here is hard to follow without that, though.

What to read next

For another Unicorn Academy story, this time about a girl who's quietly sure she'll mess things up, try Isla and Buttercup. Isla's little unicorn has just discovered her magic, and it's a very handy one for finding lost things.