The Black Stallion's Shadow

Black Stallion Returns #2

by Steven Farley

It has all the makings of a glorious day--the Black has just won the America's Cup! But the fruits of victory quickly sour when it is learned that the Black's challenger, shying at a shadow on the track, has suffered a fatal fall. Now, the Black himself is hobbled by a fear of shadows, a problem that could end his brilliant racing career. Will the Black become the next victim if he is not cured of his fright?

Genres: Horses, Animals, Fiction, Young Adult, Childrens, Classics, Juvenile

192 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1996

About the author

Steven Farley is the son of Walter Farley, the man who created the Black Stallion and wrote twenty stories about the best-loved literary horse of all time. A freelance writer based in Manhattan, Steven travels frequently, especially to places where he can enjoy riding, diving, and surfing.

Reviews

[Rena Sherwood]

I remember being so excited when I walked into Border's one day (remember Border's?) and discovered that there was a BRAND NEW BLACK STALLION BOOK. Yes, I knew it was son Steven but I had kinda enjoyed his collaboration with Dad (Walter Farley) in The Young Black Stallion. I took a hardback copy to the cafe, bought a cuppa and cracked open the book, thinking I was opening a treasure chest.

Oh, how wrong I was.



I wound up putting it back on the shelf. In the first 50 (or so) pages, I'd caught at least three major factual errors about thoroughbred racing in America. These were easy facts for even the brain-dead to check. Obviously, no one at the publishing company cared to proofread in their urge to make money off of Black Stallion fans. The disappointment in the blatant crass commercialism of a once-beloved series still burns.

[gracepalm · Rating 3 out of 5]

what does roast beef have to do with anything?

[Ericca Thornhill · Rating 2 out of 5]

Steven Farley does a reasonable job of filling in his Dad's shoes with stories of the Black Stallion. Alec witnesses a terrible horse accident while he is struggling with his own issues, and as a result, ends up making the Black unable to race through shadows. With a handicap like that, the Black is out of racing, unless Alec can help him.

This book stands alone from the other Black Stallion books. There is no "continuation" of the story here, and very little racing. I didn't hate it, but it felt like a Trixie Beldon, episodic, a bit "gee whiz" and fairly predictable. It doesn't come close to "The Black Stallion's Filly."

[Kristen (belles_bookshelves) · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Time is a luxury we can’t afford."

My first solo Steven Farley novel and it's alright. It's interesting to finally see some Western riding in this stereotypical racing novels, but not really what I'm used to seeing in novels about the Black. The resolution of the Black's fear of shadows was also pretty cliché and I saw the answer coming literally from when I read the back cover.

[Arwen Ramsay · Rating 5 out of 5]

Steven did a good job replicating Walter Farley. Alec is a little bit ruder to Henry and has a more sarcastic sense of humor. I still think that it is a great book and I recommend it HIGHLY.

Summary:

After a racehorse passes away in a race, the Black adopts a fear of Shadows. Henry sends Alec and the Black to his movie pal Wes Taylor. Alec doubts Wes's abilities to halt the fear, but he soon relents that opinion. He learns it has more to do with himself than the Black. Alec? Afraid of Shadows? That's crazy! But it is the likely truth. Strange things have been happening at the ranch, and blame is thrown everywhere. But when a buzzer is put in the Black's saddle pad, blame is secured.

[Susanna Grant · Rating 5 out of 5]

loved every book in this series....my best friend Laura and I couldn't read them fast enough

[Lucy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was really surprised by who was doing the sabotage! You would not expect it.

[Kelsey · Rating 3 out of 5]

Just okay like a lot of the series by this point.

[J]

SKW to BHW

[gunne · Rating 3 out of 5]

I feel kinda bad for Steven Farley because he seems to be getting some dislike (and I use the term 'dislike' loosely... perhaps the correct word ought to be 'disappointment') because good writer or no, to continue a series so well-loved and penned by someone as skilful as Walter Farley is a tall order. Those are such big shoes to fill, and in racing terms, I think Steven's a little like Sham to Walter's Secretariat - he could have left the series well alone (no doubt what some fans are wishing), but I'd like to think Steven's really quite courageous and made a gallant effort to keep stories of the Black coming. I mean, yes, it's easy to accuse him of riding on his dad's coattails, but benefit of the doubt here. While I do think that Farley Jr. lacks the poetic finesse of Farley Sr., I don't think this book was that bad. It's a little dumbed down, convenient and predictable, but I'd still take this over the last few incoherent train wrecks in the original series when Walter Farley went a little crazy because of his grief over the loss of his daughter.

[Everardo Garcia · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is about a horse that play races.This horse nickname is the black.But the real name is the stallion's. Also the black is to fast.Alec was in charge to walk the horse before the races.The black stallion's is the number 7 runner so the owner of the horse says the number 7 is lucky number.The black won the Americas cup at Santa Ana.The horse was afraid about his own shadow when its running.Some day the black see their shadow and it got scared and felled down to the grown.With that fell the horse stay scared his inter life.

[Convoluted · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall, I enjoyed the book. It was nice to get out to California, and the setting was certainly a change of pace. While the 'problem' was a little obvious (to me, at least) and the resolution did not come as a surprise, I enjoyed the more intricate issues of dealing with the various potential antagonists and the individual characters. I would have liked a more definitive idea of when in relation to the older books this one happened, since it is clearly 'after.'

[Leaflet · Rating 1 out of 5]

It's never a good idea for a writer to ride on the coattails of another even if it's a son of.

This one reads like a watered-down, mediocre fan-fic. I figured out the Black's problem waaay before Alec did. Stick to Walter's books.

[Jessica · Rating 3 out of 5]

See the first book in the series for a full review.

[Jessica Timmons · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great read from Steven Farley.

[Hasanuddin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Buku pinjaman dari dosen ku yang baru pulang dari Amrik.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

a very good horse story with lots of excitment

[SaraBell · Rating 1 out of 5]

not very good wlater's son and wife are not as good of a writer