Astra
Platt, a former jockey, adds to her growing list of authentic horse-themed novels with this title, which echoes beloved classics such as Enid Bagnold’s National Velvet. Since her mother, an accomplished rider, was killed in a trail accident, 13-year-old Lily’s father has forbidden her to ride. She is allowed, though, to help out at the neighboring stable, where she cares for Astra, the Arabian her mother was riding at the time of her death. Then, miraculously, Astra’s owner gives her to Lily, who, with generous help, turns the ailing horse’s health around and begins to train her for the grueling Tevis Cup Endurance Race. As Astra grows stronger, so does the tension between Lily and her dad, leading to a triumphant resolution both at home and on the competition trail. Horse-focused girls will enjoy the realistic details about the rigors of care, training, and competing, but even readers with only a passing interest in all things equine will recognize Lily’s universal frustration when her parent’s fear and mistrust hold her back from challenges she knows she is capable of tackling. Grades 3-6. --Gillian Engberg