title: Convert unicode special symbol in python
body: <p>I read the symbol <code>°C</code> using <strong>xlrd</strong> library. I get the unicode value as <code>u'\xb0C'</code>. However I want to use it as a normal string.</p>
  
  <p>I went through a couple of posts including the below link</p>
  
  <p><a href="https://stackoverflow.com/questions/1207457/convert-unicode-to-string-in-python-containing-extra-symbols">Convert a Unicode string to a string in Python (containing extra symbols)</a></p>
  
  <p>It seems to be working for many special signals. but in this case I am seeing only <code>C</code> that is without <code>°</code> (degree). any help would be much appreciated</p>