Horse Tales

by June Crebbin (Collected by), Inga Moore (Illustrator)

For any child with a passion for horses, this collection of fourteen tales, gloriously illustrated by Inga Moore, is the perfect equine companion.


Saddle up, take the reins, and prepare for an exhilarating ride through this field of horse tales! Here you'll find difficult horses and dream ponies, ponies in danger, and horses that ride to the rescue. June Crebbin's collection of fourteen stories draws on a wide range of places, times, and there are tales from Ancient Greece, fourteenth-century Mongolia, and France in the Middle Ages; traditional tales from Russia and Native America; and stories from the present day, too. The horses and ponies themselves are equally diverse — of all colors and characters — each magnificently rendered by award-winning artist Inga Moore.

Genres: Horses, Animals, Short Stories, Middle Grade

152 pages, Hardcover

First published March 7, 2005

Reviews

[Kerri · Rating 4 out of 5]

First of all, this book has such a beautiful cover! I pretty always enjoy this type of anthology collection, though they always make me want to reread almost all of the novels that feature. The choices in this one are lovely, covering classics like Black Beauty and Misty of Chincoteague and one of my childhood favourites, The Snow Pony by Alison Lester. The extract from War Horse reminded me that I must finally read that book --- I have a copy, but I keep delaying reading it because I think it will be heart-wrenching.

Inga Moore's illustrations were wonderful, and I was pleased to see that she has illustrated books such as The Wind in the Willows and The Secret Garden, which I look forward to reading again so I can see more of her lovely artwork.

[Katt Hansen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overall I enjoyed this collection of horse-related short stories and excerpts. I used to read a lot of books like this as a child and finding a brand new collection like this made me smile. The illustrations and layout of the book was beautiful and truly this was a pleasure to read.

My only complaint is in lack of introduction. While most of the stories in this book were short stories, there were a handful of chapters from longer books that I wish there was a better set up for - a little more explanation as to the book these stories came from perhaps? Otherwise this is an excellent book and one I'm glad I picked up.

[Elizabeth S · Rating 2 out of 5]

Some stories were interesting. But in general, I am rather frustrated by a tease of the story. A couple of stories are from books I already read, making it more obvious how the short segment was a pale representation of the whole. Overall, I more enjoyed the stories that were retellings of fables/folktales.

[Anna Brown · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book! It has captivating perspective and illustrations that bring the stories alive, it is a good read for the young and old :)

[Melody · Rating 4 out of 5]

Horse lover stories with lovely illustrations.

[Cindy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Checked this out of the library to read to my horse loving granddaughter.
A collection of short stories taken from longer novels.

[Makaylad]

I thought that the book "Horse Tales"was a great.On a scale from 1 to 10.DING,DING,DING......this book scores a 10!!!It was so advensurous and many other emotions.I honestly thoght the auther wrote these many stories with feeling and detail.I felt like I was watching from the sideline.It sounded so real,some of the stories I didn't get though.My favorite story was the Mud Pony,It was was so DETAILED!!!I thought I was going to pass out because I stopped breathing for a part off a story because it was so interesting.It was the best book ever!!!I am so going to read it again.There's no doupt bout that.that book lifted my spirits off my shoulders.It made me so calm.That all folks!!!!!! :-)

[Emily · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fun anthology with selected chapters of various horse stories written throughout the last century or so. (Even three year-old Micah gets pulled in to listening when we read this one aloud.) There are about two nice illustrations per chapter in this book--wish there were more for the sake of families with younger siblings.

[Maeleah · Rating 2 out of 5]

If the reader is looking for teasers to get them interested in other books, perhaps they would want to try this. However, as a self contained collection of short stories--this is not. I only read a couple of the stories but they leave you hanging.