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Merry and Bright by Tudor Robins

January 8, 2022 by Christine Meunier Leave a Comment

I recently was given access to download a free Christmas short titled Merry and Bright. This novella by Tudor Robins was made available to people on her author email list. It’s based on the characters from the Island Series.

They’re a little older, but Meg doesn’t feel any wiser. Her mother’s constant push to come back into town, step away from the horses and get a law degree nags at her.

Merry and Bright by Tudor Robins | Equus Education
Merry and Bright by Tudor Robins | Equus Education

The decision to take on a rescue horse provides an opportunity for Meg. Through the adventure of picking up a horse, Meg questions her ability and priorities. One malnourished horse leads to more than one and a cold night soon becomes a dangerous snow storm.

As Meg questions her motives in live, her relationship with Jared and how she can do more to take the load off her boyfriend, the horse rescue trip allows her to gain clarity on her life. Merry and Bright is an interesting, horse focused read.

The situation of driving out to collect a horse in need of a new home and some good feed, provides perfect opportunity for Meg to think about her life and where it’s headed. Merry and Bright was an entertaining read with horses featuring heavily. The ending was well thought out and detailed. Recommended.

Author: Tudor Robins
Fiction – young adult
In My Library? As an eBook.

“When I hear somebody talk about a horse or cow being stupid; I figure it’s a sure sign that the animal has somehow outfoxed them.” ― Tom Dorrance, True Unity: Willing Communication Between Horse & Human

Filed Under: Horse Books

The Bumpy Ride by Sally Rippin

December 22, 2021 by Christine Meunier Leave a Comment

My son was gifted a copy of The Bumpy Ride (Hey Jack! #10) by Sally Rippin as an end of year school gift. He completed his first year of schooling this year – an achievement in current COVID times! I was eager to read the book with him, as it has a horse focus.

The Bumpy Ride is actually a book suitable to encourage independent reading, but of course I had to read it! The way it is set out, I can see that it will encourage my five-year-old to read this chapter book and get a sense of achievement from completing it. The text is a good size and well spaced out. There are also illustrations to go with the story.
The Bumpy Ride by Sally Rippin | Equus Education (Affiliate link – click to buy)


Jack is going horse riding in this book and he’s excited. That is, until he learns that most of the other riders have experience – even his best friend Billie. Jack starts to get nervous. This soon turns to annoyance when his dreams of being a cowboy are dashed by being put on the slowest pony.

This story is a simple, effective read that shows things aren’t always as they seem. And that the ‘slow’, reliable pony can often be the best bet for a good ride.

I enjoyed this aspect of the story and the only fault I could find was a reference to Jack’s mount eating straw in a stable. Typically horses eat hay, not straw. Other than this, the story was an enjoyable read and one I am sure my son will benefit from reading by himself in the future.

Author: Sally Rippin
Fiction – children
In my library? It is as an ebook, yes!

“A horse loves freedom, and the weariest old work horse will roll on the ground or break into a lumbering gallop when he is turned loose into the open.” – ― Gerald Raftery

Filed Under: Horse Books

Profile On: Laurie Berglie, Chestnut Pen

December 9, 2021 by Christine Meunier Leave a Comment

I recently stumbled across Chestnut Pen on Instagram and was curious. I reached out to Laurie Berglie and she was kind enough to answer some questions about her horse focused business.

How much of your day/week is related to horses?
The vast majority of my days and weeks are related to horses! On a personal level, I have a small farm, so I keep my three horses at home. I love being able to care for them myself, but it’s so much work! (Absolutely worth it though).

On a professional level, I own Chestnut Pen, which is a boutique marketing agency specializing in copyediting, marketing copy, and other creative ventures for equestrian businesses.

What is it exactly that you do?
If it’s writing or editing related, Chestnut Pen can do it! Years ago, when I was working at my corporate job, I started freelancing on the side to help make a little extra money to support my horse habit. My first client was Horse & Style Magazine, where I became a regular contributor to their lifestyle magazine. I’ve been writing for them for almost seven years now and am responsible for three to five columns for each issue.

That opened me up to writing for a variety of other equestrian publication such as Sidelines, EQ Living, and Covertside.

During this time, I self-published my first equestrian romance novel and immersed myself within the equestrian author community. One of my favorite authors, (who is now a friend!), Carly Kade, asked if I’d be willing to copyedit her second book. With a background in English and a love for grammar, I jumped at this assignment.

In mid-2021, I decided to give my freelance work an official name so I could combine all my efforts, and Chestnut Pen was born! In addition to writing for equestrian publications and copyediting manuscripts, I also develop a variety of marketing and web copy for equestrian brands and small businesses.

I have also published three equestrian romance novels with a fourth on the way. (Hoping to publish that one in February of 2022).

Laurie Berglie, Chestnut Pen
Laurie Berglie, Chestnut Pen | Equus Education
In this field of work, is it possible to be a full-time professional and earning a liveable income?
Yes! While I still work part-time with my husband’s business, (we own a travel agency), I am gradually moving away from that so I can devote more time to Chestnut Pen. I have a handful of wonderful, very regular clients, but I still need to build my base a bit more. While I’m not devoting full-time hours to my company just yet, I anticipate being able to do so in the coming year.

What are the general steps taken to be employed in such a role?
Starting your own business takes courage, but if you are confident in your skills and love what you do, then there’s no reason not to go for it! I believe I have been so successful in growing my business thanks to my social media presence. My personal Instagram account (@marylandequestrian) has a pretty decent following, so I’ve been able to generate a variety of leads through that platform.

Favourite horse memory?
My goodness – this one is hard!! But I’d have to say that my favorite memory was the day we brought our horses home to our farm. My husband and I had saved for years to be able to make this dream come true, so the day my two mares came home is one I’ll remember forever.

Future goals?
Professionally, I’d like to continue growing Chestnut Pen, especially on the copyediting side. Editing is my favorite thing to do, so I’d love to partner with some larger publishing houses for more regular work.

Personally, I’d like to get my newest horse to some shows in the new year. I ride hunters, but I’d like to try a little bit of everything with him!

Best thing about your sport/profession?
The best thing about owning my small equestrian business is that I get to be surrounded by horses, but in a way that benefits my talents of writing and editing. I always knew I wanted to be in the horse industry, but knew I was never a good enough rider to ride professionally or train others.

I briefly considered vet school, but I knew it wasn’t for me. For a while, it felt like there weren’t any other paths, and my skills didn’t align with the traditional professions you think of when thinking about a life with horses. But then it all came together when I started blogging about my mare, (this was back in 2011), and then it went from there. I realized that I could still be part of the horse industry but in a way that fit me – which is by writing about them.

Filed Under: Business, Career, Horse Books, Profile On

Runaway Alex by Natalie Keller Reinert

October 24, 2021 by Christine Meunier Leave a Comment

It’s been a little while since I’ve read The Head and Not the Heart, the original first book in the five book Alex and Alexander series but this prequel was a delightful read. Runaway Alex although a prequel, was actually published five years after the first book in series.

Horse racing isn’t for nice girls like Alex. She’s been told again and again: stick to horse shows, stick to riding lessons, stick to the relative safety of the suburban equestrian center where she has been a working student since grade school.”

I loved learning about Alex’s life before she and Alexander were training together. Her experience riding ex-racehorses and bringing them on to become performance horses after racing, sets Alex in good stead when she considers what she really wants in life. Her parents are insistent she gets a college degree and settles into a well paying job. Alex is desperate to ride racehorses and explore the thoroughbred racing world. The only problem is, there is no way for her to do this where she currently lives.

Runaway Alex by Natalie Keller Reinert | Equus Education (Affiliate link – click to buy)

When Alex’s ability to work with horses is taken from her, she runs away to Ocala. It seems the perfect time to pursue her dream of breaking into the thoroughbred racing world. A chance meeting with charming racehorse trainer Alexander Whitehall seems like fate. Alex jumps at the opportunity. She soon finds herself with a job interview at the destination of her dreams.

Falling in love, learning to ride racehorses and proving to her parents that her passion is not a phase she’ll grow out of all take their toll on Alex as she delves deeper into the thoroughbred racing world. Can she make it work?

Runaway Alex is a beautifully realistic look at the racing world. It explores the passion and grit it takes to pursue a career you love whilst everyone else is telling you to ignore the passion and settle for a safer career. Highly recommended.

Author: Natalie Keller Reinert
Fiction – adult
In my library? It is as an ebook, yes!

Filed Under: Horse Books

Profile On: Miriam Grau, Wild Horses Valley

October 18, 2021 by Christine Meunier Leave a Comment

Recently on Instagram I became aware of an account that was posting very unique, very beautiful horse graphics. Looking a little further, I found about about this online horse game that is free for users. One of the developers, Miriam Grau was kind enough to answer some questions about this game she and her father have developed!

How much of your day/week is related to horses?
Personally, I spend almost every day of my week with horses! We have one horse of our own and a few horses that we help to take care of. For the game itself I draw horses at least every week, additionally I frequently photograph horses to create new reference photos to draw from.

What is it exactly that you do?
I am the game developer of the webgame “Wild Horse´s Valley“, together with my father I am creating this free game about the life of wild stallions and their herds. We are an independent game developer team, which means that we are not working with a big studio and have to do everything around the game ourselves. I am the artist, game designer, marketer, community manager and much more for the game!

In this field of work, is it possible to be a full-time professional and earning a liveable income?
For us personally it is only a hobby, unfortunately we would not be able to earn a living wage with the game. Our game has been online for over 2 years now and has a free-to-play, with optional purchases, monetization model. We are able to cover the costs of the game with the purchases made in the game, but do not earn any money for our work time. Luckily, we are in a position to spend lots of our free time to work on the game as our hobby.

Profile On: Miriam Grau, Wild Horses Valley
Profile On: Miriam Grau, Wild Horses Valley
What are the general steps taken to be employed in such a role?
Since we are an independent development team, we did not need to have any degrees in game development. My father has a programming degree and has been programming for over 40 years. I have been designing games and drawing horses in my free time for almost 10 years now. To create an independent game studio, I would recommend acquiring skills in programming, game design and art before creating your first game. If you want to specialize in one of these fields, it would be best to attend a game design school and get a degree in game design or programming!

Favourite horse memory?
This is hard to choose! Of course our own horses are very high on my list, for example riding tackless with our mare, even though she is a very difficult horse. Though, my absolute favorite memory is probably of a Lusitano stallion that I have ridden. It was a very beautiful stallion that played the main horse character in a series that I had watched prior to riding this horse. It was incredible to meet the horse in real life and get the honor of riding him on my own!

Future goals?
Our future goals for the game are to one day have over 100,000 players! Currently the game has over 30,000 players. We have many ideas for new features and content for the game and want as many people as possible to enjoy the game. Additionally, it would be amazing to earn at least the minimum wage with the game at one point, this would enable us to continue adding new things to the game up into the far future!

Best thing about your sport/profession?
The best thing about being a game developer is to see the creations you made “come to life” and so many people enjoying the world that you have created. I love creating new content that surprises the players and makes them curious for more! I have stacks of paper and hundreds of different documents with new ideas for the game and those files get bigger every day. I can’t wait to add all of them to the game some day!

Filed Under: Free Resource, Profile On

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