Layla, the Last Black Unicorn

by Tiffany Haddish, Jessica Gibson (Illustrator), Jerdine Nolen

Overview

Notes From Your Bookseller

Tiffany Haddish's debut picture book has everything you need for a fun, insightful, empowering Storytime. Co-written with Jerdine Nolen and paired with Jessica Gibsons' terrific art, Haddish's Layla encourages embracing who you are and celebrating what makes each of us special. We'd follow Layla through the Fiddle Dee Deep Forest any day!

From beloved comedian, actress, and New York Times bestselling author Tiffany Haddish comes Layla, the Last Black Unicorn, a hilarious, original picture book tale about a lovable but awkward unicorn who learns why her uniqueness is her biggest strength.

It’s not easy to fit in when you stand out. When Layla arrives for her first day of school at Unicornia, the school for unicorns, she realizes that she’s not like the other kids there. They’re all pastel colors and know the rules to Horn Ball and none of them come from the Woods like Layla does. Try as she might to make friends, Layla’s just . . . different. But when her class gets lost during a field trip to the Fiddle Dee Deep Forest, it’s up to Layla to step up and save the day.

Layla, the Last Black Unicorn is a hilariously heartwarming picture book about self-acceptance, self-esteem, and standing up for standing out by New York Times bestselling author, Grammy Award-winning comedian, and actress Tiffany Haddish and Jerdine Nolen, author of the Coretta Scott King Honor Book Thunder Rose.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780063113879
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	05/10/2022
Pages:	32
Sales rank:	175,871
Product dimensions:	10.10(w) x 10.10(h) x 0.50(d)
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

Tiffany Haddish is a comedian, actress, host, and producer who was the breakout star of the smash comedy Girls Trip. Her additional film and television work includes The Afterparty, The Card Counter, Here Today, Bad Trip, Tuca & Bertie, Kids Say the Darndest Things., Night School, The Carmichael Show, Keanu, and a turn as host of the 2018 MTV Movie and TV Awards. Her Emmy-nominated and Grammy-winning comedy special, Tiffany Haddish: Black Mitzvah, debuted on Netflix in December 2019. Haddish became the second black woman ever to win a Grammy for Outstanding Comedy Album and the first since Whoopi Goldberg won in 1986. She also Executive Produces and hosts Tiffany Haddish Presents: They Ready through She Ready Productions and both seasons are available on Netflix. In November 2017, she made history by becoming the first black female stand-up comedian to host Saturday Night Live which earned her the 2018 Emmy Award for “Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series.” Haddish also founded The She Ready Foundation to help and support foster kids in need. She currently lives in Los Angeles.

Jessica Gibson is a mostly self-taught freelance illustrator who graduated from Wayne County Community College with an associate of arts degree. Though she primarily illustrates children’s books, Gibson also creates artwork for magazines and has an interest in character design. With a pen and tablet by her side, she loves creating adorable, whimsical, and sometimes quirky illustrations, ready to brighten up everyone’s heart. You can visit her at www.jessicamgibson.com.

Jerdine Nolen is the author of a diverse range of picture books, from the thoughtful In My Momma's Kitchen to the wildly imaginative Harvey Potter's Balloon Farm, which was made into a TV movie. Jerdine Nolen lives with her children in Ellicott City, Maryland.

Editorial Reviews

04/18/2022

Layla, a jet-black unicorn with a curly gray mane, has had a fun summer exploring her home of Overlook Woods in this picture book by Haddish and Nolen. But when she starts school for the first time at Unicornia, her confidence is badly shaken: the cliquey, pastel-colored unicorns all seem to know one another, and they quickly dub Layla both “newbie” and “woodsy.” After two awkward, lonely days, a forest field trip presents Layla with the opportunity to become class hero, when she rescues a teacher from the Ouchie Wowchie Shrub and calls on a friend—a huge minotaur—to help her class find their way back to school. It’s a familiar story whose messaging feels shoehorned into often twee prose (“They just don’t know how special you are yet... your time to shine will come”), but in Gibson’s fanciful, textured art, Layla has both determination and style to spare. Ages 4–8. (May)

Publishers Weekly

A great read for children who need reassurance about going to school and making friends as well as for those who feel they don’t fit in.” — Booklist

“Layla has both determination and style to spare.” — Publishers Weekly

“The colorful, cartoon-style illustrations show refreshing diversity in the world of fantastical beings, and the striking black unicorn will do wonders for cultural perceptions of beauty. A winner on many levels.” — Kirkus Reviews

"This book needs to be in every collection." — School Library Journal

From the Publisher

A great read for children who need reassurance about going to school and making friends as well as for those who feel they don’t fit in.

Booklist

A great read for children who need reassurance about going to school and making friends as well as for those who feel they don’t fit in.

Booklist

05/01/2022

PreS-Gr 2—Layla, a spirited black unicorn from the Overlook Woods, is nervous about starting school. Trevin, a black troll and Layla's cheerful caregiver since she was a foal, assures Layla that she's ready. On her first day at Unicornia, Layla is mocked by the perfectly groomed, brightly colored unicorns for her "woodsy" ways. Defeated, Layla refuses to return to school, but Trevin rallies her spirits and inspires her resilience. When a class trip to her familiar woods turns disastrous, can Layla take the reins and swiftly employ her woodland knowledge to lead her class back to safety? Haddish's picture book is loosely adapted from her autobiographical essay collection, The Last Black Unicorn. It is unique in its depiction of a black unicorn, diverting from the conventional white or pastel colored unicorns, and offers a rare portrayal of dark-skinned trolls, fairies, and goblins. Gibson's digital cartoon illustrations are warm, vibrant, and sure to attract young readers who enjoy the unicorn stories in Rhiannon Fielding's "Ten Minutes to Bed" series. Unfortunately, Haddish's unicorn tale suffers from a rushed and underdeveloped resolution. The text briefly describes Melvin Minotaur as Layla's friend at the beginning of the story, but he does not appear in plot or illustration until his contribution to the story's conclusion. The outcome just isn't convincing. VERDICT Despite its flaws, for representation alone, this book needs to be in every collection. It offers a mild lesson of resilience but a rarely seen cast of diverse fantasy woodland characters.—Emily Brush

School Library Journal

2022-04-22
In Haddish’s picture-book debut, co-written by Nolen, a unicorn has a rough start trying to fit in at school.

Layla is a curious, free-spirited black unicorn with a coily mane and tail who loves spending summertime exploring Overlook Woods. When it is time for Layla to start going to school, though, she worries that she isn’t ready. Her guardian, Trevin Troll, assures her, “She ready.” At Unicornia, Layla’s attempt to join the other unicorns’ game is unsuccessful, and they call her “woodsy.” Layla tries dressing up with hair clips and sparkles, but this only makes things worse. Finally, when the class takes a field trip into the woods and the teacher has a mishap, Layla’s know-how and friendships with other forest dwellers get her frightened classmates back to school safely. Her friend Melvin Minoatur assures them that there’s no need to be afraid of the dark; when he met Layla, he learned “when something’s black, it’s really just where all the colors meet.” Readers will feel for Layla. While her problem fitting in at school is far from original, the details of her world make this a fresh take, a fun way to explore aspects of identity and culture (Layla feels like a stand-in for the Black actress/comedian, who often calls herself “the Last Black Unicorn”) or just to enjoy at surface level. The colorful, cartoon-style illustrations show refreshing diversity in the world of fantastical beings, and the striking black unicorn will do wonders for cultural perceptions of beauty. (This book was reviewed digitally.)

A winner on many levels. (Picture book. 3-8)

Kirkus Reviews