So the Saddle Club series by Bonnie Bryant was perhaps one of the first lot of horse books that I was introduced to as a child.  I’ve been pondering the idea of writing a christian horse series for pre teens and this seemed the perfect opportunity to read some books that are written for this demographic!

Horse Crazy is the first title in the Bonnie Bryant series about three young girls who are mad about horses.  Carole Hanson, Stevie Lake and Lisa Atwood are very different people, but they have one thing in common: their love of horses.

Pine Hollow, the riding school that they all take lessons at, is planning a Mountain Trail Overnight for it’s riders and the girls are all keen to go.  Lisa is new to horse riding, and has to overcome the obstacle of convincing her mum that it’ll be good for her; Stevie isn’t focused enough on her schoolwork and has to pick up her math grade to be able to go.

Although the odds seem stacked against them, the girls work together to ensure that all three of them will be able to enjoy the MTO.

Horse Crazy is a great introduction to the 3 main characters of the Saddle Club series.  There were a couple of points that I felt were a bit beyond the reach of the reading demographic however:

• there is one point where Carole is riding with her horse riding instructor and she follows him in a lead change at the canter – I am unsure if this means that a 12 year old is competently carrying out flying changes, which seems an incredible feat to me!
• the horse that Carole is riding is owned by another 12 year old girl.  He is a thoroughbred stallion – again, not something I would expect for such a young girl to be doing.

Aside from this, the book is great at focusing on horses, learning about them and showing how friendship can help people work through problems.  A recommended read for young horse enthusiasts.

Author: Bonnie Bryant
Fiction – pre and early teenage years.
In My Library? Indeed!  Perhaps one day I’ll have the whole series 🙂
Want it? Get it now on Amazon.

tag: horse story, equine book review, bonnie bryant, equine author, horse library, horse writing

Check out other book reviews and what is currently in my equine library.

“How to ride a horse: step One – mount the horse, step two – stay mounted…” – Author unknown.

It feels like forever since I’ve done a book review!  Or maybe it’s just that I feel I’ve not done a lot of reading of late.

Well I’m excited to say that this review is of the first ebook ever that I’ve read – I know, about time!  Author Price McNaughton was kind enough to gift me a copy of her book after she was profiled on Equus Blog.

Murder is Ugly is a fictional piece based around young woman Jinx Delany who has been unexpectedly invited to stay with a friend for the summer.  Jinx accepts and moves her horse to be boarded nearby before being introduced to the community where her friend Brynn lives.

Jinx is initially in awe of a beautiful set of houses that seem as immaculate as the people that inhabit them.  However, as Jinx spends time with Brynn’s family and neighbours, she realises that a lot of the ‘perfection’ is a façade and evil lives under the surface.  A neighbour is found dead, but the death can be explained through a health condition.

It’s only as another body is found that Jinx starts to question if the first was through natural causes, or caused by someone.

Amongst the mess that she has suddenly found herself in, Jinx is questioning what she wants in life and what she wants to do with herself.  Plagued with uncertainty, she finds her time focused on trying to work out the members that make up the neighbours in Brynn’s community.

Murder is Ugly is first and foremost a murder mystery.  Secondly, it is written by a horse lover who has included this gorgeous animal in the story.  I feel that horses could feature more in this novel to make it a ‘horse story’ but Murder is Ugly isn’t put forward as a horse story and it does cover the mystery category well!

An interesting read and one that had me not wanting to be alone at night when reading it! 😉

Author: Price McNaughton
http://www.talebearers.com/
Fiction – murder mystery
In my library? Yup – my first ebook!  A very entertaining read.
Want it? Get it now on Amazon.

“If you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything at all.”

It may be of no surprise to readers of this blog that I love collecting horse books.  The greater scheme of owning so many horse books is to have a library available on my hubby’s and my future property so that horse crazy kids can read about horses when they’re not out working and playing with them.

I’m a bit behind on the ebook phase, but am currently researching methods to make my novel available this year (I finished writing it it Februrary!).

I have a copy of iBooks on a work iPad that I was able to download for free, and decided to research how books are displayed as an electronic copy.  A search in the store for horse brought up many books that are available to download for free!

• A Horse’s Tale by Mark Twain
• Funny Horse Cartoons – Exposes the Truth written and illustrated by Kay Thornton
• Dexter the Last Navy Horse by Valarie M. Vine
• The Legends of Arth – the Horse in the Night by Randy Massey

I’ve downloaded 7 books at this stage, including those listed above.  Many have been free short stories, but one is a non fictional piece and two are the length of novels.  I’m up for even more reading!

For those who have iPads or a kindle or another form of technology in which they can access eBooks, I’d encourage you to do a search for free horse books – who knows what gem you may find!

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If you’re interested in all things horse related that are free, be sure to follow Equus Education’s Free Horse Resources board on Pinterest!

“I was lying, bolstered up in bed, reading, when I heard a rush of flying feet, and in an instant, with a loud joyful neigh, she checked herself infront of my window.”