Phoebe and Her Unicorn is a daily comic strip by American cartoonist Dana Simpson. Originally called Heavenly Nostrils, the strip debuted as a webcomic on April 22, 2012, in Universal Uclick's GoComics website. It was later launched in more than 100 newspapers on March 30, 2015, under the current name. The strip begins when 9-year-old Phoebe Howell, a girl in the fourth grade, skips a rock across a pond and accidentally hits a unicorn in the face. Freed from her own reflection, the unicorn—named Marigold Heavenly Nostrils—gives Phoebe one wish, which she decides to use by making the unicorn her best friend. Marigold, like all unicorns in the series, is experienced in magic. Through various "spellcraft", she is able to perform such feats as divert or redirect rain and send text messages and broadcast a Wi-Fi hotspot through her horn. However, her most frequently-used spell is "The Shield of Boringness", which causes humans to view her as nothing out of the ordinary and allows her to interact with them on a daily basis. Phoebe deals with childhood challenges both mundane and magical with Marigold, her friend Max and even her arch frenemy Dakota in a quick-witted romp through a little girl's world.
Influences
The design of the unicorns draws inspiration from Medieval depictions, including the series of tapestries entitled The Lady and the Unicorn and The Hunt of the Unicorn. Marigold is drawn with cloven hooves and a swan-shaped body. The latter set of tapestries was referenced in the opening sequence of The Last Unicorn. Simpson has stated that the book was one of the inspirations for her comic strip.
Publications
In addition, a translation of the comic is published in Poland, Germany and Russia.
On June 18, 2020, it was announced that would receive an animated adaptation, which will air on Nickelodeon.
Awards
Washington State Book Award, Scandiuzzi Children’s Book Award, 2015: Books for middle readers for Phoebe and Her Unicorn: A Heavenly Nostrils Chronicle
