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Smoky the Cowhorse

by Will James

3.78 · rating details · 804 ratings · 94 reviews

Smoky knows only one way of life: freedom. Living on the open range, he is free to go where he wants and to do what he wants. And he knows what he has to do to survive. He can beat any enemy, whether it be a rattlesnake or a hungry wolf. He is as much a part of the Wild West as it is of him, and Smoky can't imagine anything else.

But then he comes across a new enemy, one

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Paperback, 336 pages

Published January 8th 2008 by Aladdin (first published 1926)

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Jul 22, 2010

Abigail rated it

· review of another edition

Recommends it for: (With Caveat) Young Horse Lovers

Recommended to Abigail by: The Newbery Book Club

Shelves: childrens-fiction, newbery, pony-books

Winner of the 1927 Newbery Medal, this children's novel about a mouse-colored cow-horse named Smoky has been favorably compared to that classic (and pioneering) pony story, Black Beauty, and I think the pairing is rather apt. Both books follow the same basic narrative trajectory, beginning with a horse whose owners are responsible and kind, following him through his early years of prosperity and well-being, his traumatic middle years, suffering at the hands of less enlightened human beings, and ...moreWinner of the 1927 Newbery Medal, this children's novel about a mouse-colored cow-horse named Smoky has been favorably compared to that classic (and pioneering) pony story, Black Beauty, and I think the pairing is rather apt. Both books follow the same basic narrative trajectory, beginning with a horse whose owners are responsible and kind, following him through his early years of prosperity and well-being, his traumatic middle years, suffering at the hands of less enlightened human beings, and his eventual reunion, as a broken-down older horse, with his original keeper/companion. Both books do an excellent job of capturing the horse's perspective, and both offer a moving portrait of their equine heroes and the humans they encounter.

Of course, Smoky, The Cow Horse is set in the ranching country of the western United States, in the early years of the twentieth century, and Black Beauty in nineteenth-century England. While Black Beauty is a saddle-horse (to begin with, anyway), Smoky spends his first few years in the wild, before being broken as a working horse. And my, how beautifully James captures that early time in Smoky's life, the dynamics of the wild horse herd, the instincts of a young colt! The writing here is highly idiomatic - a sort of western/cowboy dialect that, while not "correct" English, has a poetic and highly descriptive quality to it. Many readers seem to have had trouble with James' language, but I found that, after a period of adjustment, it really resonated with me, and added to the beauty of the story.

There are many things I enjoyed about this book, from the language to the characters, and I will not soon forget the understated pathos of the love that develops between Smoky and Clint, the cowboy who breaks the high-spirited horse in, and becomes his only human friend. The mistreatment that Smoky suffers, after being stolen by a brutal horse thief, and eventually turned into a rodeo attraction, was very difficult to read about, and even the happy ending, with its reunion of horse and man, can't quite take away its sting. The illustrations - done by James himself - are absolutely delightful, although I found myself wishing that I had an older edition, rather than this 1970s reprint, so I could see them as color plates, rather than black and white reproductions.

In short, this was in many ways an excellent book, and had it not been for one thing, I might have awarded it four stars. And that "thing," is the racism to be found in the portrait of "the breed" - the mixed-race horse thief who steals Smoky. The constant references to his dark face/complexion, the way this is tied to his brutal treatment of Smoky, seems too pointed (to borrow a friend's word for it) to be dismissed as simply "of the times." Especially when one considers that the inhumane vegetable seller who ends up owning Smoky (Cloudy by then) towards the end of the story, is also described as dark-skinned. When James describes the horse thief as "a degenerate halfbreed and not fit to be classed amongst humans," it's a difficult thing to overlook.

Thankfully, the section involving the horse-thief (I refuse to call him "the breed!") is short. But although I wouldn't say it was the focus of the story, the racism is pronounced enough that it is a real detraction from the book's appeal. This is one I would recommend only to more mature horse-book lovers, who are old enough to have a discussion about the unfortunate racism to be found within its covers, either with a parent or a teacher.(less)

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Sep 20, 2008

Wendy rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: newbery

So glad I'm finally done with this book.

The written-in-dialect thing is interesting, and occasionally even poetic, and I might have thought this was a fairly good book if it was really, really short. But 300+ pages of double negatives and other grammar mistakes was hard to wade through.

As others have said, it does get more interesting in the last 100 pages (there's a story), but it's still not that great; and there's a dreadful racial stereotype (evil "halfbreed"...more

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Jan 28, 2009

Antof9 rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: 2008-read, animals, depressing, read-the-newberys, wanna-change-the-ending

There were several reasons I didn’t like this book, the main being that the book as a whole is, to me, illustrative of the fact that there just wasn’t quality children’s lit being written around the time that this book was written.

The primary reason I didn’t like this book? The grammar/writing style/tone. It’s one thing to write something “colloquially” for adults. It’s quite another to write poorly for an audience of children. Part of how we learn grammar, vocabulary, and spelli...moreThere were several reasons I didn’t like this book, the main being that the book as a whole is, to me, illustrative of the fact that there just wasn’t quality children’s lit being written around the time that this book was written.

The primary reason I didn’t like this book? The grammar/writing style/tone. It’s one thing to write something “colloquially” for adults. It’s quite another to write poorly for an audience of children. Part of how we learn grammar, vocabulary, and spelling is from reading. If a child sees “creathure” 100 times in a book, they’re going to think that it’s 1. a real word, or 2. the correct spelling for “creature”. I find that irresponsible of the writer and the publishing house.

Another reason I didn’t like it? The underlying racism about “the breed”: “All of him, from the toe of his gunny sack covered boots to the dark face which showed under the wore out black hat, pointed out as the man being a half-breed of Mexican and other blood that’s darker, and noticing the cheap, wore out saddle, the ragged saddle-blanket on a horse that should have had some chance to feed instead of being tied up, showed that he was a halfbreed from the bad side, not caring and with no pride.”

Of course, that preceding paragraph is another reason people under age 40 say “could of”, “should of” and “would of” instead of using the word “have”.

After forcing myself through three-quarters of the book, and starting to care about a certain horse, a little bit, I got to this part, which so disgusted me, I had to call another member of the Newbery Support Group to read it to her over the phone: “But there was no good range in that country, not for many miles. The stable man had lied to save the girl’s feelings, - and instead, realizing that he couldn’t turn the horse loose only maybe to let him starve, and being he couldn’t afford to keep and feed a useless horse, there’d been only one way out. He’d sold him to a man who bought old horses and killed ‘em for chicken feed.”

Nice.(less)

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Aug 17, 2009

Emily rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: good-for-boys, newbery-winner, kids-chapter-books, animals

This 1927 Newbery winner has a bit of a slow start, and occasionally the language is dated (using “tho” instead of “though” is an example). Humans don’t really enter the story until halfway through, which may not bother some readers. This is the story of one horse, Smoky, and his life, including the 4 years where he just grazes free, his time as a working cowhorse, being stolen by a horse thief, years as the star of the rodeo, and time as a pony-for-hire for pleasure rides. It is also a bit o...more

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Apr 04, 2009

Josiah rated it

· review of another edition

"There was so much life wrapped up in that pony's hide that it was mighty hard for him to settle down and behave...he sometimes had to bust out and do things that wasn't at all proper..."

--Smoky the Cowhorse, P.47

"The poor (horse) had sure got a reason to be mean, and I guess he's at the point where he figgers no human is his friend any more." --Smoky the Cowhorse, P. 229

Wow. My expectations for a book with the Newbery Medal...more

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May 12, 2011

Susannah rated it

I read this book when I was 12 and it left a very lasting impression on me. At one point in my life about 15 years ago I was in a book group and I said this book was one of my favorites. My friends, under the influence of wine, laughed. I was mortified. Later, one of them who is a really GREAT friend bought me an original copy from an antique store - which I treasure. There is actually a Will James Society in Montana, so I think I am not crazy when I say that this book contributed greatly to ...more

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Mar 25, 2008

Bronson rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: books-i-read-with-my-kids

We read this a couple years ago and my boy who was about 6 at the time loved it. I enjoyed it as well although I found it difficult to read out loud because the grammar the characters use is terrible! But that really adds to the fun of the story. Its follows the life of Smoky through good times and bad. I would recommend this to anyone who likes horses or longs for the old west.

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Aug 29, 2011

Jill rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: newbery-medal

I'm almost embarrassed to admit the little I know of cowboys and roundups I learned from watching City Slickers. That's pretty bad. So, while I'm not a huge fan of this book, it did "learn" me a lot about that lifestyle. The author chose to write with a slang dialect so I imagined an old cowboy reading the story to me. Crazy, I know, but I appreciated it much more!

"But it was different with Smoky; she was his mammy and there was none other that could take her place. H...moreI'm almost embarrassed to admit the little I know of cowboys and roundups I learned from watching City Slickers. That's pretty bad. So, while I'm not a huge fan of this book, it did "learn" me a lot about that lifestyle. The author chose to write with a slang dialect so I imagined an old cowboy reading the story to me. Crazy, I know, but I appreciated it much more!

"But it was different with Smoky; she was his mammy and there was none other that could take her place. He'd growed up at her side and even tho other little colts had come she was and always would be the mother he knowed when he was wobblety legged and needed her."

"The little horse realized somehow as he sized up the contraption that the end had come to all he'd enjoyed with the freedom he'd had, cool shades, clear streams, and grassy ranges tho all roam on as he pleased had been took away from him; he didn't know what was to come next, but he did know that he was on that creek bottom, close to corrals, and there to stay for a spell."

"The cook drives his chuck wagon, the "flunky" (cook's helper) drives the bed wagon, and the "nighthawk" (rider who herds the remuda at night) drives the wood wagon. Them three wagons which is called "The Wagon" is the cowboys' home while on the range. It carries his grub, his "war bag" (bag of clothes), his bedding, and strips of rawhide which he salts down and sometimes cuts into strings and braids things like "bosals" (nose bands) or such."

"The boys, girls, and grown ups kept a setting on the old horse; and not knowing, but sure and steady, was riding and dragging him down to a death that'd be way ahead of the time when it should come. They'd compared well with a pack of wolves, for like that kind, none of 'em would ever wanted to come within a hundred yards of the horse when he was up and a fighting. None of 'em would ever dreamed of wanting to set on his back when he was The Cougar and hankering to fight and kill, but now and at last he was down; there was no fight in him no more, and like the pack of wolves they compared so well with, they all closed in on him. The only difference was the wolf pack killed their victim quick. They don't leave the life drag on for days, weeks and months, nor let the victim suffer to finally die slow and by degrees. Then again, the wolf killed to eat and live. But there was no blame ever attached to these human wolves who was killing the horse only for the pleasure they'd get in riding him, and the fine exercise that went with it. Most of 'em meant well; only they didn't know."

""Daggone his old hide," says the cowboy, "it looks to me like he's good to live and enjoy life for many summers yet"; then thinking strong, he went on, "and maybe in that time he might get to remembering me again--I wonder." He watched Smoky a while longer and till he got acquainted some, and at last deciding it'd be for the best to let him go, he reined his horse out of the gate and let the bunch run by. The old pony seemed to hesitate some as the bunch filed out. He like their company mighty well but something held him back. ...Clint sat on his horse and watched the bunch lope out over a ridge and out of sight; and with a last glimpse at the mouse colored rump he grinned a little, but it was a sorry grin, and as he kept a looking the way Smoky had gone, he says: "I wonder if he ever will.""(less)

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Nov 21, 2009

Chandra rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: newbery, kids-young-adult, 2009-reads

*2.5 stars rounded up to 3

Smoky is a spirited mouse colored horse. This story follows his adventures and misadventures and largely centers on his friendship with a gentle cowboy named Clint. It’s an earnest story about kindness, loyalty and friendship and I think it has a lot to offer young animal lovers – particularly horse lovers.

But this book does have some things going against it too. The 'cowboy dialect' is really awful. It feels unnecessary in that it’s not jus...more

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May 31, 2010

Eleni rated it

· review of another edition

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Jul 24, 2009

Debbie (Readerbuzz) Nance rated it

· review of another edition

A story of a great horse. Smoky is taught to be an excellent cowhorse, but even in his training, the cowboy teaching him sees the unusual abilities of this horse. Smoky spends many years as a cowhorse with Clint and the other cowboys, but one year, he is stolen by a renegade. The renegade treats Smoky harshly and turns Smoky into a bucking bronco, the fiercest horse in the West. Smoky spends many years establishing a reputation as a killer bronco, but gradually he grows old and tired and is sent...more

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Oct 07, 2011

Wendy rated it

· review of another edition

I first read this book in the fifth grade (oh, so long ago...) and I loved it. I re-read it every year until I graduated high school and loved it every time. I'm not sure I'd still love it quite so much if I was reading it for the first time as an adult, as I haven't read it since, but I look on it with fond memories.

If you have a horse crazy son or daughter, I would definitely add this book to their library, right next to The Black Stallion, Black Beauty, Misty of Chincoteague and M...more

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Sep 23, 2010

Grandma rated it

· review of another edition

Even though I would like to read other works by this author (because of his great insight into animals) I would not recommend this one. I knew nothing about it when I picked the book up at the library, based on the paintings by the author and its old book feel. I really liked the first segment since it is seen from the horse's point of view. Later one man, basically a horse whisperer, enters the horse's life. At this point, tensions in the story are resolved fairly quickly. Later, though, the ho...more

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Apr 06, 2011

Anna rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: 2011, children, fiction, horses, newbery-medal, western, pre-2004

I read at least part of this when I was a kid, but I don't think I finished it. And now that I've returned to it and read the whole thing, I understand why I would have given up as a kid, even when horse stories were my #1 A+ Super Favorite thing to read. The story is slow and the antiquated, proper-grammar-resistant cowboy dialect takes a while to get used to. Who to recommend it for? I guess the rare young reader who is interested in horses, westerns, and is willing to devote some time to a...more

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Feb 05, 2011

Jen rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: kids, newbery, 2008

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. I'm beginning to feel very depressed on behalf of the children who were reading books in the early years of the last century. And before that?! Wow. I challenge anyone who would say that writing children's or young adult literature is easy to read something from the last few years and then compare that to one of the early winners of the Newbery Medal. There's no contest! As the market and demand for well-written kid lit has grown, more and more authors have turned their talents to crafting beaut...more

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Jan 02, 2012

Diane Reed rated it

· review of another edition

I fell in love with this book by Will James as a child because of the author's extraordinary tenderness in depicting the bond between the cowboy and his horse. And his illustrations are superb. Yes Will James is one part raconteur, but the other part of him put aside the common male bravado of the cowboy era and dared to be sensitive about his love for his four-legged partner. Long before the movie War Horse came out, there was Will James, and his charm, honesty, and desire to treat his equine c...more

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Mar 09, 2010

Sjauna rated it

· review of another edition

I read this as part of my quest to read all of the Newbury Award winners. There weren't many on the library shelf when I picked it up, and as I drug my feet through the first couple hundred pages, I could see why it was one of the few that hadn't been checked out, and I almost reconsidered my plan. The writing was awkward, and although I think it was supposed to be on purpose, it sure didn't seem like it. But, like most books that I end up recommending, I was happy to have read it. Sweet and end...more

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Aug 17, 2009

Janis rated it

· review of another edition

The eventful life of Smoky the horse, written and delightfully illustrated by someone who clearly loved horses and the old American West. I loved the dialect used throughout and learned a lot about horses, round-ups, and life on the trail. I came to love both horse and cowboy so felt the story lost some of its punch when one of them disappeared from the narrative for a time. I'd recommend this 1927 Newbery-winner to strong readers (with a caveat -- watch out for insensitive stereotyping).

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Nov 22, 2009

Angie rated it

· review of another edition

Hmmm...not the best horse book I've ever read. The beginning was SO slow and dull - a human didn't even appear in the book until Chapter 4! Also, I am not one for all the cowboy lingo, but that is just a personal preference. I am thinking that this might be kind of a 'boy' book.

Still, the ending was quite good - a little bit like Black Beauty. If you are looking for a good horse book, I would reccomend something by Walter Farley or the Misty of Chincoteague books (Marguerite He...more

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Sep 05, 2011

Connor Van Leeuwen rated it

· review of another edition

I liked this book. It is about a wild colt with alot of spirit. In his earlier life he had open range to run anywhere and he had to fight many dangerous animal such as wolves and mountain lions but there is one predator that he couldnt beat and that was humans. But smokey quickly realizes that clint, a cowboy is a friend and teaches him to be the best cowhorse in the western territory.

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Jan 29, 2012

IndieM rated it

· review of another edition

I read this books a very very long time ago. Like, back when I was ten or eleven. I was super ecstatic for it, especially because it had a horse on the cover and I had just seen the movie Spirit, (which, sad to stay, is still one of my favorite movies). I would say I was a little horse crazy at the time, but that would be a lie. I was very horse crazy. Anyways, since I couldn't have my own horse, this book was close enough for me. I was to young to really pay attention to the detail, setting, di...more

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Jun 19, 2009

Kate rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: newbery-s

What a writer really. A true to the time story that ranks with all the great Horse writers. This is one of those authers that is lost to the modern generation. The story was engaging and fun. The views on the mexican population were racest but it is a book of it's time period. The edition I read had the auther's illstrations as well and they were just beautiful.

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Mar 21, 2011

May rated it

· review of another edition

this is my second favorite book...i really love the horse..it went through a lot of trouble from the day it was born...i even hated the people who wanted to hurt smoky...smoky got a lot of names and have been to a lot of places and he was hurt...but i was really glad when he meet up with his partner again at the end...i even cried..it's no joke...

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May 26, 2011

Nikki rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: children-s-books, fiction, newbery-medal-winners

I didn't read a great many horse books as a child, but this was a favorite. I think my parents found it at a used book sale; I remember the cover, which had a similar illustration to the one pictured, but I think a black border. I'll be interested to reread it when I get back to 1927 in my project of reading all the Newbery Winners.

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Jan 24, 2012

Kristen rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: newbery, 2012, childrens, classic

I don't like horse stories. Never have since I crawled through Black Beauty on my bloodied hands and knees. This one took my fingernails too. Horse fighting. Not organized by crazed humans (thank heavens). Just horses being horses (I guess).

And then the human abuse. At the very least sad. I won't more than mention the politically incorrect references about the abuser.

This was the Newbery Winner in 1927, and I hear it beats the heck out of Shen of the Sea. (The joy I have ...more

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Nov 08, 2011

Matt rated it

My least favorite of the Newbery books I've read so far. The book is largely plotless until the end when dark-skinned people begin doing all sorts of dastardly things. Throughout, the book also adopts a kind of faux-folksy (maybe it actually was folksy and that's just how the author, who I think was a cowboy himself, talked?) voice. So slow pace + difficult writing style to love + racism = book that I really didn't care much for at all. Though I guess I learned some about horses and cowboyin...more

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Aug 07, 2009

Lisa rated it

· review of another edition

I just finished this book because I'm reading all of the Newberry Honor Books thanks to Tammy's great list of them. I loved this book. It is heart-warming and exciting and funny and sweet. It's got some great life lessons in it from the perspective of a good little pony named Smoky.

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Nov 09, 2007

Dixie Diamond rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: classics, western, horses, 1910s, juvenile_fiction, my_books

Black Beauty for the cowgirl.

I understand readers' concerns re: racism and sexism. Obviously I don't condone it, but we do understand, don't we, that those attitudes are par for the course in literature that age? Even Louisa May Alcott wrote rather disparagingly of the Irish in Little Women. Instead of being smug and judgmental about the grammar (which was intentional, anyway) and attitudes, how about using it as a discussion starter about (well, a lot of things): Racial attitudes...more

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Aug 18, 2011

Emeline Brown rated it

The story of a spirited horse, starting off from a colt and growing into a perfect cowhorse then into a man-hater and eventually ending back up with the man who raised him. This book was well-written and captures the spirit of the Old West.

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Mar 11, 2010

Dylan Boles rated it

· review of another edition

DO NOT READ THIS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! This book was so horrible in southern dialogue and grammar I abandoned this book. I have this for a book report I skipped like 80 pages and read the ending.... still DO NOT READ THIS!!!!!!

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About Will James

An artist and author of books about the American west and, in particular, horses, Will James wrote the 1926 book "Smoky the Cowhorse". It was awarded the John Newbery Medal in 1927, and remains in print to this day. Several movie adaptations of the story have been created, including a 1933 version that included Will James himself as the narrator.
In 1991, Will James was named a m...more

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