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Judy Moody & Friends #16
Judy Moody and Friends: Sophie and the Runaway Unicorn
It has a golden horn. It has a purple mane and white wings. Could it be? Stink’s friend Sophie takes the lead in this final, buoyant Judy Moody and Friends adventure.
“Don’t let the unicorn get on the bus!” yelled Sophie.
Unless Sophie’s eyes are playing tricks on her, a real live unicorn is on the loose! In her town! Sophie knows that if you touch a unicorn, you’ll be happy forever. She also knows that unicorns have healing powers and can poop rainbows! Sophie needs that unicorn. But unicorns are almost impossible to catch. Can her friend Stink, her faith in magic, and a bunch of carrots help make Sophie’s wildest birthday wish come true?
“Don’t let the unicorn get on the bus!” yelled Sophie.
Unless Sophie’s eyes are playing tricks on her, a real live unicorn is on the loose! In her town! Sophie knows that if you touch a unicorn, you’ll be happy forever. She also knows that unicorns have healing powers and can poop rainbows! Sophie needs that unicorn. But unicorns are almost impossible to catch. Can her friend Stink, her faith in magic, and a bunch of carrots help make Sophie’s wildest birthday wish come true?
64 pages, Hardcover
Published July 1, 2025
About the author
Megan McDonald
321 books751 followers"Sometimes I think I am Judy Moody," says Megan McDonald, author of the Judy Moody series, the Stink series, and THE SISTERS CLUB. "I'm certainly moody, like she is. Judy has a strong voice and always speaks up for herself. I like that."
For Megan McDonald, being able to speak up for herself wasn't always easy. She grew up as the youngest of five sisters in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Her father, an ironworker, was known to his coworkers as "Little Johnny the Storyteller." Every evening at dinner the McDonalds would gather to talk and tell stories, but Megan McDonald was barely able to get a word in edgewise. "I'm told I began to stutter," she says, leading her mother to give her a notebook so she could start "writing things down."
Critically acclaimed, the Judy Moody books have won numerous awards, ranging from a PUBLISHERS WEEKLY Best Book of the Year to an International Reading Association Children's Choice. "Judy has taken on a life of her own," the author notes, with nearly 3 million Judy Moody books in print. Interestingly, the feisty third-grader is highly popular with boys and girls, making for a strong base of fans who are among Megan McDonald's strongest incentives to keep writing, along with "too many ideas and a little chocolate." And now -- by popular demand -- Judy Moody's little brother, Stink, gets his chance to star in his own adventures! Beginning with STINK: THE INCREDIBLE SHRINKING KID, three more stories, and his own encyclopedia, STINK-O-PEDIA, Stink's special style comes through loud and strong -- enhanced by a series of comic strips, drawn by Stink himself, which are sprinkled throughout the first book. About the need for a book all about Stink, Megan McDonald says, "Once, while I was visiting a class full of Judy Moody readers, the kids, many with spiked hair à la Judy's little brother, chanted, 'Stink! Stink! Stink! Stink! Stink!' as I entered the room. In that moment, I knew that Stink had to have a book all his own."
More recently, Megan McDonald has recalled some of her own childhood with the warmth, humor -- and squabbles -- of three spunky sisters in THE SISTERS CLUB.
Megan McDonald and her husband live in Sebastopol, California, with two dogs, two adopted horses, and fifteen wild turkeys that like to hang out on their back porch.
For Megan McDonald, being able to speak up for herself wasn't always easy. She grew up as the youngest of five sisters in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Her father, an ironworker, was known to his coworkers as "Little Johnny the Storyteller." Every evening at dinner the McDonalds would gather to talk and tell stories, but Megan McDonald was barely able to get a word in edgewise. "I'm told I began to stutter," she says, leading her mother to give her a notebook so she could start "writing things down."
Critically acclaimed, the Judy Moody books have won numerous awards, ranging from a PUBLISHERS WEEKLY Best Book of the Year to an International Reading Association Children's Choice. "Judy has taken on a life of her own," the author notes, with nearly 3 million Judy Moody books in print. Interestingly, the feisty third-grader is highly popular with boys and girls, making for a strong base of fans who are among Megan McDonald's strongest incentives to keep writing, along with "too many ideas and a little chocolate." And now -- by popular demand -- Judy Moody's little brother, Stink, gets his chance to star in his own adventures! Beginning with STINK: THE INCREDIBLE SHRINKING KID, three more stories, and his own encyclopedia, STINK-O-PEDIA, Stink's special style comes through loud and strong -- enhanced by a series of comic strips, drawn by Stink himself, which are sprinkled throughout the first book. About the need for a book all about Stink, Megan McDonald says, "Once, while I was visiting a class full of Judy Moody readers, the kids, many with spiked hair à la Judy's little brother, chanted, 'Stink! Stink! Stink! Stink! Stink!' as I entered the room. In that moment, I knew that Stink had to have a book all his own."
More recently, Megan McDonald has recalled some of her own childhood with the warmth, humor -- and squabbles -- of three spunky sisters in THE SISTERS CLUB.
Megan McDonald and her husband live in Sebastopol, California, with two dogs, two adopted horses, and fifteen wild turkeys that like to hang out on their back porch.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
June 6, 2026
This addition to the Judy Moody and Friends series follows Stink and his friend Sophie as they wish for a unicorn to visit Sophie's birthday party. The adventure ensues when they start chasing what they think is a unicorn around town just as her party begins. This beginning chapter book offers large time, full page color illustrations and short chapters. It is full of action and dreams, a great addition to collections for the emergent readers. I would recommend this book for purchase especially where Judy and Stink have a following or where beginning chapter books are popular. This book was provided by the publisher for professional review by SWON Libraries.
September 21, 2025
62 pages not 64
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews


