The Last Unicorn

By: Peter S. Beagle, Patrick Rothfuss

Narrated by: Orlagh Cassidy, Joshua Kane

Length: 8 hrs and 9 mins

Publisher's summary

INCLUDES A NEW INTRODUCTION BY PATRICK ROTHFUSS

Experience one of the most enduring classics of the twentieth century and the book that The Atlantic has called “one of the best fantasy novels ever.”

The unicorn lived in a lilac wood, and she lived all alone...

...so she ventured out from the safety of the enchanted forest on a quest for others of her kind. Joined along the way by the bumbling magician Schmendrick and the indomitable Molly Grue, the unicorn learns all about the joys and sorrows of life and love before meeting her destiny in the castle of a despondent monarch—and confronting the creature that would drive her kind to extinction....

In The Last Unicorn, renowned and beloved novelist Peter S. Beagle spins a poignant tale of love, loss, and wonder that has resonated with millions of readers around the world.

“Peter S. Beagle illuminates with his own particular magic.”—Ursula K. Le Guin

©2022 Peter S. Beagle (P)2022 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

“Comes alive and stays alive on bright intensity of imagination.”—The New York Times Book Review

“Written in lyrical prose and rife with both whimsical humor and philosophical ruminations on what it means to be human, Beagle spins a quasi-medieval fairy tale that remains timeless.”—Time

“The Last Unicorn is the best book I have ever read. You need to read it. If you've already read it, you need to read it again.”—Patrick Rothfuss

Great Story, Lacking Narrator

The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle is one of my favorite books. I grew up watching the movie, and have always loved the story and the characters. It may be because I love the movie so much that Orlagh Cassidy's narration came across so painfully flat. She's a professional actress, but she didn't really act at all. There are times when characters are scared, times when they're angry, times when they're doing other emotional things, and most of the time she just made them sound either deadpan or flippant. Really disappointing.

great performance of this classic story

Really enjoyed this book, and couldn't have imagined a better reader, to be honest.

A good early fantasy.

I enjoyed this book but was disappointed that the reviews were better than the actual story. I guessed much of the actions early on. I was also disappointed in Patrick Rothfuss' introduction. While this was interesting and raised, my expectations, whole reading this book, I kept wishing that Patrick Rothfuss would have better spent his time finishing up his own trilogy ( as we've been waiting for the "Door of Stone" for years. Narrator did a good job.

Love this book

There was Nothing that I didn’t like about this book. Can’t wait for the next book This way home

Great Story

I'm so happy that this book is finally a audiobook, it's one of my all time favorite fantasy books. I did enjoy the narrator, I think she was a perfect voice for the unicorn, the only complaint I have and this is for Audible, when putting out a sample I wouldn't use the introduction unless it's been spoken by the same narrator of the story. The introduction isn't long and other listeners can't decide whether this may be the right listen for them or not.

I love this story!

Such a beautiful book! The narrator's voice wonderfully portrays the Unicorn's voice! Finally, an audiobook!

Great stuff!

I saw the movie 20 years ago, and I did not realize it was a book, it took me this long but I finally read it, and it is wonderful!

Nostalgia item achieved

I enjoyed the story, and had always wanted to read it since I had seen the animated movie years ago. I prefer more of an action story, but this was full of feelings and the battle between Love and fear.

Most likely won't read it again, but glad I read it once.

Hope

Love the story of the Unicorn mystic magnificent creatures and the sound of freedom.

Wonderful story given mediocre treatment in audio

The Last Unicorn itself deserves all the praise that can be heaped upon it. It is by turns clever, profound, laugh-out-loud funny, sophisticated, heartfelt, and bittersweet, each of these qualities revealed with a deft precision and panache, perfectly balanced each against the other in a deceptively light style that is perfectly transparent to the casual reader.

It is my favorite book, and I own at least ten copies in various editions. This is apparently the only thing I have in common with the introducer, about whose inane scribblings the less said the better. I could not finish the introduction.

The audiobook narration is, even allowing for my high expectations, a bit disappointing. None of the numerous songs and poems are actually sung or dramatized, as the best narrators seem to do (I am relatively new to audiobooks, but thinking of Rob Inglis' LotR or Stefan Rudnicki's Vance narrations here). This alone might be forgivable, but the narrator also fumbles the delivery of much of the book, routinely emphasizing the wrong words in a sentence, though less often in dialog than in expository passages, almost as though she doesn't quite grasp the meaning. Her range of character voices is narrow, with some being more convincing than others (e.g., her Haggard is pretty good, but her Schmendrick doesn't land quite right, a major problem).

Maybe a thorough pre-reading wasn't done, maybe the direction was sloppy, I dunno and don't feel qualified to guess. What I do know is that the end result doesn't quite gel for this listener. I really wanted it to be great, but as it stands I'm repeatedly jarred out of my immersion in the story by these drawbacks.