Horse Tales
Grade 4-8–In these 14 short stories, the remarkable nature of the horse is revealed. There are difficult horses, such as the intimidating Orange Pony at the stable, a brumby in Australia, and the legendary Bucephalus. There are also dream horses, including the Native American The Mud Pony. The selections featuring Black Beauty and Joey, a farm horse that is trained to be a war horse during World War I, are told from the animals' perspectives. There is a sad tale of a gentle mine pony ironically named Storm and a magical story of a unicorn. The offerings excerpted from novels work well as short stories here and may inspire readers to look for the full-length books. From the Mongolian steppes to Assateague Beach, each horse will win readers' hearts. This is an excellently conceived and executed collection with wonderful art (a full-page, full-color illustration per story). This book captures all of the romance and majesty of horses and their riders.–Carol Schene, Taunton Public Schools, MACopyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.