In the first book in the Winnie the Horse Gentler series, young Winnie Willis comes across a beautiful grey Arabian mare known as Wild Thing. She is owned by the Spidell family that seem to own most things in town. Winnie works for them as a stable hand but when she sees the unmanageable mare in their care, she is desperate to earn more to purchase the beautiful horse.

Winnie’s sister Lizzy is keen for the pair to hatch a plan to stay in the town they are now living in. Their father struggling with the loss of their mother hops from town to town, after having sold their horse property.  Winnie hasn’t ridden since her mother was lost in a car accident that she blames herself for. In spite of this, horses are in her blood and she still loves them and works with them.

It seems she even has a gift for mismanaged horses as she slowly makes progress with Wild Thing. But then an act by the Spidell brother and sister pair undoes all her hard work to tame Wild Thing.

Winnie is adamant she has to buy the mare and save her from a horrible fate. As she works to earn more money to purchase her, she, her sister and some new friends come up with a scheme to make some money – and quick. It will cash in on Winnie’s gentling skills and provide much needed funds to purchase the mare.

Through the process of gentling a horse and settling in this new town, Winnie battles with the guilt she feels from her mother’s death. And it seems that Winnie’s father feels the same.  She can’t seem to have a normal conversation with her father and feels his silence keenly. In amongst all of this loss, Winnie is left questioning why God has abandoned her. Once a young woman of faith, she finds herself feeling alone, vulnerable and without direction. Wild Thing explores the act of natural horsemanship with horses, finding faith again and redeeming family relationships. The horse information is very factual and consistent throughout the book. A great read for young ones.

Author: Dandi Daley Mackall
Fiction – children
In My Library? As the first book, I am glad it is!

Fantastic Facts about Mules is a part of the Fantastic Facts series. Of course, the focus being on mules is what draws my attention! This is a short read full of factual, interesting information. It also contains many photos for children to look at.

Fantastic Facts about Mules looks at what makes a mule. It explores the cross between a male horse and a female donkey and a male donkey and a female horse. Although the book focuses on mules, it also highlights what a hinny is.

The fact that mules can’t reproduce is discussed, as well as their different attributes depending on the breed of horse that they come from. Why people would choose a mule as a working ‘horse’ is also explored. Their hardiness and ease of keeping weight when compared with horses is also looked at.

Although the book is non fiction and filled with many facts, it is sure to engage young readers. Each ‘chapter’ is made up of a title, a photo and a couple of pages of information. Readers are then able to move onto the next chapter to learn something different about the care and use of mules.

The chapters look at the saying ‘stubborn as a mule’ and where it comes from. They also explore a mule’s eating habits, their genetics, their sturdiness and much more. Although this book is short, it is packed full of information.  Whether you’re a horse fan or a donkey fan, this book is sure to be interesting.

Author: Miles Merchant
Fiction – children
In My Library? As an eBook.

“A tree in the middle of a giant rock may grow up if it is stubborn like hell! Sometimes to be successful in life is simply made up of being stubborn as a mule!” ― Mehmet Murat ildan

Recently I downloaded a bundle of books for young unicorn lovers. The Unicorn Bundle is made up of four books for young readers by Mary K. Smith. These are:

• Sparkly the Unicorn
• The Tiniest Pony
• The Lost Unicorn and
• Goldie the Unicorn

The Unicorn Bundle

This four book bundle is made up of short stories that feature unicorns. To engage young readers, the writing is descriptive and graphics are provided to help the imagination. These images may be of the unicorn in the story, a princess or fairy involved or perhaps the giant castle that features in the story.

Whatever it is, the graphics used are colourful and bound to engage young readers. Each story in the Unicorn Bundle is short enough to keep their attention but long enough to wrap up the story with a happy ending. Often too, there is a moral to the story that young readers will enjoy learning.

With a focus on fairies and unicorns, each novel is from the fantasy world with words that describe the beautiful land that these creatures live in. For horse fans, stories about unicorns are often well received, too. Especially for the younger reader with a good imagination. The benefit of buying a bundle of books is that you get more than one with similar themes in them.

Author: Mary K. Smith
Fiction – children
In My Library? 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

In a follow on from the first book in the Pine Hollow series, the Trail Home further explores the repercussions of a car accident. Steve was driving and Carole was in the car alongside new character Callie Forester. In a horrific storm, Stevie collides with a runaway terrified horse, Fez.

Fez just happens to be Callie’s horse and Stevie suffers with incredible guilt over the horse’s condition – and Callie’s. Carole is working alongside stable hand Ben to ensure that Fez is as comfortable as possible. This is in spite of her struggle to work with Ben. He stays aloof with people and Carole can’t work out what his deal is.

Lisa is in California away from all the activity as she catches up with her father and step mother. Suddenly the three girls aren’t together and aren’t helping each other out with problems as they arise.  In fact, Lisa seems so far removed that it appears she is saying all the wrong things over the phone.

The Trail Home explores well the value of therapeutic riding for permanently and temporarily disabled people. It also looks at the difficult task of recuperating horses that cannot weight bear on all four legs. Although it’s typical for things to be tied up neatly in novels, this isn’t the case in the Trail Home. Stevie and Carole come to realise that not every problem can be solved and it looks like readers have to wait until the next instalment to see how things progress.

Author: Bonnie Bryant
Fiction – teenagers
In My Library? It is, along with others in the series.
Want it? Get it now on Amazon.

If you’re familiar with the author Lauren Brooke, it may be for her Heartland series that went on to become a television series. Following the Heartland series she created Chestnut Hill. This follows the lives of a group of teenage girls in a boarding school. The school has an equestrian team and it seems that most of the girls in the group are on it. Making Strides is told from the point of view of Malory. She made it into Chestnut Hill through a scholarship and her lack of money is often an issue.

Still, Malory has riding talent and an obvious empathy for horses. It’s what scored her the scholarship. In Making Strides, Malory finds herself connecting with a troubled young horse by the name of Tybalt. Convinced he has something other than good looks, Malory is instantly drawn to the gelding that reminds her so much of her own horse.

He may be similar in looks, but he is very different in personality.  Malory finds proving his worth to be a challenge. She is convinced she has a connection with the horse unlike uptight rich girl, Lynsey. So when she finds herself having as much trouble riding him, she is dismayed and cannot work out where to go next.

A little help from Heartland star Amy Fleming, and Malory questions if she may be able to acquire a second chance for Tybalt after all. Making Strides shows Malory’s growth as a teen and a rider in amongst a clique of rich girls.

It touches on a potential romance and also explores the concepts of join-up with horses and T touch. The second book in the Chestnut Hill series, it is sure to entertain and enlighten horse fans.

Author: Lauren Brooke
Fiction – teen
In My Library? That it is.
Want it? Get it now on Amazon.