The Magic of the Unicorn

I won a Choose Your Own Adventure story in a work contest, and I was delighted. Happy nostalgia! Even better, this one is a fantasy story about a hunt for unicorns that is filled with magic, dragons, griffins, and danger. As with all CYOA stories, this one has multiple plot threads that a reader follows depending on choices made while reading. You can go into the cave by turning to page 10, or head to the old church by turning to page 102. That kind of thing. The writing is decidedly mediocre, but then, that's not the point. The goal is to create an interactive reading experience that is made from choices the reader makes, rather than the typical linear story that moves from the first page to the end in the manner the author envisioned. show more It's a gimmick, but a fun one. Certainly, stories that are built with developed worlds and layers of plot and rounded characters are better, and more engaging, but the choose your own adventure format is a nice change of pace. show less

The Choose Your Own Adventure series offered an option every few pages to choose how the story would continue. According to your preference, you would follow its instructions by turning to the appropriate page of the book as indicated by your choice. This was a popular and revolutionary idea when the series was first launched in the early 1980s, driving it to incredible sales levels for many years until it was overshadowed by variants on the idea that took the concept to more elaborate lengths (e.g. Fighting Fantasy) and especially by other interactive media.

The plot: it's 1507 and your little village in Flanders is suffering from a drought. Maybe a unicorn or a sorceress could help you?

Observations: a rare straight-up fantasy entry in show more the series, not seen since The Dragon's Den #33. This author wrote other entries for the series based around Greek and Norse legends, so I'd imagine there's some underlying real legends about unicorns being worked into this one. show less

Love it for talking about making choices.

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