My favorite horse book... My favorite horse book was Man o’ War by Walter Farley. It’s the story of a famous racehorse, told from the point of view of the stable boy, Danny, who took care of “Big Red.” The thing I remember most about the story was that the jockeys always held Man o' War back, but he always won the race because he was a horse with so much soul and passion. The book builds to a crescendo as Man o' War becomes the greatest race horse of all time. An overachiever myself, I am guessing that element of the story appealed to the 4th grade me. —Amy Myers Jaffe is a university professor whose research focuses on energy and climate change. Her book, Energy’s Digital Future: Harnessing Innovation for American Resilience and National Security, will be published this Spring. ** My favorite horse book is Penny's Worth by Nancy Caffery. My very beloved and well-worn copy has full color plates and lovely black-and-white illustrations. Hard to pick just one, but that is mine. It is told in the format of Black Beauty, narrated by the steady and trusted lesson pony, Penny. The story is charming, the illustrations are lovely, and the book itself, with the full color inserts, is stunningly beautiful. —Margie Wolson, a human resources specialist who lives in northern Virginia, began taking riding lessons at age seven, walking to the stable after school. She got her first pony from the Chincoteague Pony Penning auction in 1970 and has had horses ever since.
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For horse nuts, this was a slam-dunk question: What was your favorite horse book as a child? The hard part was asking us stop naming all the horse books that touched our lives.
My favorite is Summer Pony by Jean Slaughter Doty with illustrations by Sam Savitt. I was a horse-loving kid who couldn’t afford my own. This story enabled me to dream. I read it over and over and outlined the beautiful illustrations with my finger as if they would come to life. I’ve held it in my heart and even now as I ride, I think about lines from the book and give thanks that, as an adult, I am fortunate to have realized that dream. I’ve never forgotten that yearning nor do I take one day for granted. —Amy Wodaski was a participant in the first ever Mrs. George C. Everhart Memorial Invitational Side Saddle Race. ** The book that stuck with me best is Can I Get There by Candlelight? by Jean Slaughter Doty. I love this one. It was about a girl who rode her horse through a time portal. It was the horse and the fantasy imagination that really caught my attention. —Krista Wilson is a life-long horse owner and mounted games rider where ponies rule. ** My favorite horsy book growing up is Mig o' the Moor by Nancy Caffrey. I actually tracked down a copy a few years ago and bought it. It was not exactly what I remembered, but I liked it even better. —Mary Ellena Ward has been riding horses in fantasy and fact for over 70 years. She lives in Lexington, VA, and supports two retired Arabians.
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