I Want a Pony

**I Want a Pony** is the first book in the *Pony Pals* Series by Jeanne Betancourt, published in 1995. It stars Lulu. It is followed by A Pony for Keeps.

## Publisher Summary

Do you love ponies? Be a Pony Pal! Lulu wants a pony. If only she had a pony, then staying with her grandmother while her father is away would not be so bad. If she had a pony, she could ride with Pam and Anna. And then they could be friends-Pony Pals!

When Lulu finds a pony in danger, she wants to help the wounded animal. Will she be able to save the beautiful pony?

## Plot Summary

After Lulu's father moves from England to the Amazon to study animals, he sends her to live with his mother, Grandmother Sanders, in the town of Wiggins, Connecticut, where Lulu's grandmother runs the Sanders Beauty Salon. At first Lulu is bitter about moving to a very small town with no movie theater, toy stores, and only one diner - so much that when her dad tells her he'll pay her an allowance of $25/week, she complains to him that she'll have nothing to spend it on.

At midnight the night after she arrives, she is awoken by the sound of a pony in her grandmother's yard who had jumped the fence from their neighbors. This pony is Acorn, Anna's pony. She meets her neighbors, Anna and her parents for the first time. She longs to talk to the girl but doesn't get a chance.

The next morning, Lulu hurriedly cleans up the mess Acorn made the night before so her grandmother won't be as mad. While doing so, she feeds Acorn a mangled geranium and watches as Anna calls out to Acorn, mounts him, and goes out for a ride. Lulu is envious and curious, and decides to secretly trail them. The pony and his rider are much faster than Lulu and soon move out of her sight. But she sees that the only place they could have gone is a particular trail through the woods. After about a mile in the woods, the trail opens to a large field and Lulu can see Anna and Acorn stop, and Anna saying hi to her friend Pam and Pam's pony, Lightning.

Just then, Pam's dog Woolie barks and indicates he sees something near where Lulu is hiding. Lulu decides to make a run for it, but Anna recognizes her from the day before. Embarrassed, she runs back to the trail and all the way back to her grandmother's house.

That afternoon, she tells her grandmother she is going on a hike. Her grandmother worries and tells her to make a map while she is out, and Lulu obliges. Lulu finds a white pony in paddock whose owners don't seem to be home, and she feeds the pony an apple and a carrot.

The next day, she goes on a hike to see the pony again, but discovers that something is very wrong. The pony is not where she was the day before, but is in a far corner of the paddock, with a piece of barbed wire wrapped around her leg. Lulu is unsure what to do. Part of the barbed wire is still attached to the fence, and she needs wire cutters to remove it. If Lulu goes for help, any movement the pony makes would dig the wire deeper into the wounded leg.

Lulu stays with the pony, keeping her calm and giving her water while waiting for help. Soon she sees Anna and Pam on their ponies, and waves her sweatshirt so they will notice her. Lulu lets them know what has happened to the pony while telling them not to come closer, so the pony does not become startle and move, thus further injuring her leg.

Pam brings back her father, Dr. Crandal, a veterinarian, to the pony to help. Dr. Crandal gives the pony a painkiller, anesthetic, and wraps the wound in bandages. He hands Lulu a halter, and luckily the pony can stand well enough for Lulu to lead her back to the stable. Pam and Anna run ahead and notice that the water bucket is dirty and the straw needs to be replaced. They think the pony's been neglected, but they don't know who the owner is. Lulu and Dr. Crandal worry that if the pony doesn't heal well enough to be ridden again, she will have to be put to sleep.

Pam and Lulu talk some more and look around the pony's stall, and discover that her name is Snow White. She has also won a lot of award ribbons. Soon, they hear a car come down the driveway. It's Mr. Baxter - and he's not happy with Snow White's injury. He is angry and bames Lulu for trespassing. He is afraid he'll have to pay a lot of money for a pony that could end up being useless to him. He is busy with work and doesn't have time to take care of the pony, and his daughter Rema Baxter is away at boarding school, so Dr. Crandal explains what happened to the pony, but Mr. Baxter is not calmed until Lulu's grandmother arrives and settles the dispute, taking Lulu's side before even learning what happened. Lulu and Mr. Baxter make a deal - he'll pay medical expenses, but Lulu has to pay him back for expenses if the pony needs to be put down. Dr. Crandal leads Snow White to his animal clinic.

Pam invites Lulu for a sleepover at her house, which is where Snow White is being kept. They place their sleeping bags near her, keeping her company through the night. Pam, Lulu, and Anna talk a lot and get to know each other. Anna thinks it would be wonderful if Snow White could become Lulu's pony, because then all three of them would have ponies.

Once Lulu starts school at Wiggins Elementary, she continues to take care of Snow White every morning and afternoon. Soon Snow White is well enough to be returned to the Baxters. Lulu is very sad because she has the time to take care of Snow White and wants to, while Mr. Baxter doesn't have the time and doesn't want to.

Lulu, Pam, and Anna decide to write a letter to Rema Baxter, asking if Lulu can lease Snow White and take care of her while Rema's at school, and Rema can have her during the summer and vacations.

A few weeks later, Lulu receives a letter back from Rema stipulating the terms of their agreement: Lulu will take care of Snow White and pay for her feed, and all other expenses will be paid by Mr. and Mrs. Baxter, and Lulu will send Rema a monthly report about how Snow White's doing. If she does this, there will be no leasing fee. Lulu agrees and is thrilled that she can finally have the pony.

## New Characters

* Lulu Sanders
* Anna Harley
* Pam Crandal
* Dr. Crandal
* Mrs. Crandal
* Grandmother Sanders
* Mr. Sanders
* Rema Baxter
* Mr. Baxter
* Snow White
* Acorn
* Lightning
* Woolie

## Gallery

Snow White collecting card that came in this book.