Rereading: THE BLACK STALLION AND SATAN by Walter Farley

Illustrated by Milton Menasco

Thus far, all the Walter Farley horse books have ended with an exciting race. This one begins there, and has a very different sort of race — against fire — at the end. As this fifth book opens, Alec Ramsay is about to try to capture racing’s triple crown with his mighty horse Satan, son of the Black Stallion. They have already won the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness, and are now in The Belmont. Later, at home in Flushing, NY, Alec receives a letter from Arabia from Tabari, the daughter of Abu Ishak, the owner of the Black. Her father has died in a fall from the stallion, and while her instinct is to have him destroyed, she decides her father would have wanted Alec to have his first and best horse back, and is flying the Black to New York, ownership papers will follow.

Alec and his friend and trainer, Henry, decide that the best plan is to buy a farm in upstate New York where they can put the Black to stud and raise a new generation of his children, while continuing to race Satan. Events intervene, and almost against his will, Alec finds himself set to race the Black against Satan and a group of international champions in a new match race in Saratoga, NY. The Black is still a wild stallion, whose first instinct is to fight other stallions rather than race them. Can Alec and Henry bring him around as a race horse in time?

Like all these books, an exciting and well-written story for anyone who loves horses or horse racing. Recommended.

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