I was at Village Books one morning recently. They were playing Simon and Garfunkel, which put me in a nostalgic frame of mind. I came home, put my Simon and Garfunkel cds in the player ... and decided to write about favorite horse books from my past! (I guess there's no direct route in time travel to the past). (Which brings to mind a quote from Doctor Who, but that's for another post). ;-)

As I mentioned in an earlier post ... any and all of the horse books by Marguerite Henry!

A delightful read, but an adventure that I'm sure is much too tame for even young readers today, Pat Rides the Trail, by Genevieve Torrey Eames and illustrated by Dan Noonan, has been a favorite of mine for decades. There's a pesky younger brother, who is not all that much of a pest, an evil character who is not all that evil by today's standards, and the hazards, well, they aren't really all that hazardous. Still, it's about a girl and her horse, a challenge and a good (if not the expected) resolution.

I'll Take Cappy, by Lee McCabe and Norbert Fagan and illustrated by Wesley Dennis (!), is a book is about a boy and his horse. (It came out in 1948, I don't know if that had anything to do with it or not). Unlike the fancier horses at the Hunt Club, Cappy is just a common little pony so Sam is surprised when someone offers to buy him. Since his father needs money, Sam comes up with a clever solution to both earn some money and keep his beloved horse.

To my great delight when I was young, there was a series of books called "Famous Horse Stories" and needless to say, I read every one I could find. (Justin Morgan Had a Horse by M.Henry was included in the series). There was one about Midnight (a champion bucking horse) by Rutherford Montgomery, and this one, Mountain Pony: a Story of the Wyoming Rockies by Henry V. Larom with illustrations by Ross Santee. (Larom also wrote Ride Like an Indian mentioned in an earlier blog). Andy buys the horse that will be known as Sunny from an abusive owner. In time they become close companions, and with his uncle and Sally (who works at the dude ranch) they have several adventures (including one with rustlers). Again, probably tame now, but lots of fun 'back then'. :-)

Dorothy Lyons wrote wonderful horse books, all with a color in the name. I read them all and had a few favorites: Blue Smoke, Dark Sunshine, and Red Embers. It's been a long time since I read these, but I remember good characters, and horses acting like horses (didn't always happen).

"He doth nothing but talk of his horse." -- William Shakespeare -- (Consider this a warning)!

Reading Hermit With Dog