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Emma's New Pony
A photographic essay reveals the excitement, enjoyment, and hard work experienced by a five-year-old girl as she cares for a foal
32 pages, Paperback
First published June 1, 1988
About the author
Amy Ehrlich
62 books27 followersAmy Ehrlich is the author of more than thirty books for young readers and is also a winner of The Dorothy Canfield Fisher Award for her novel Joyride, which was also chosen Booklist Choice Best Book of the Decade. She lives on a farm in Northern Vermont with her husband and a great many domestic and agricultural animals.
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
February 19, 2026
This was called a "Pictureback", since it was a paperback kid's book done with photos instead of illustrations. Photos are often cheaper to do than illustrations. Usually, there are credits given to the models of such a book, but I couldn't find any here.
This was a typical "girl's first foal" book, told in first person by Our Protagonist, Emma. Her family's Welsh pony (no section given, but most likely Section A) is about to give birth. The foal is to be Emma's. The filly is born black, but will most likely turn light grey like her mother. Emma names her Flower -- because when you think black and grey, you automatically think of flowers.
The model for Emma looks to be about four years old. Either that, or she's really short for her age. The Welsh mare looks like a Shire in comparison to Emma.
The model for Emma's Dad has one of those frightening nineteenth century mustaches that seems to reach out through the photograph to assault your eyes. Even in 1988, when this book was first published, no one sported mustaches like this. Could he have been a model for old cowboy Picturebacks?
Anyway, if I was a kid, I would've enjoyed the life of Emma and her foal. As an adult, I just look on with envy. The farm has thirteen other horses and ponies, geese and raises it's own hay. There are chores to do, such as cleaning tack. And then, there are shows to bring the ponies to.
Emma is shown riding without a hard hat, which is a HUGE safety issue. Yes, she was supervised, and riding on an older pony, but even the most bomb-proof pony can be frightened, or have an accident. Head injuries are no fun. Just trust Auntie Rena on that one, kids.
So, a nice book for horse crazy young kids, but with caveats.
This was a typical "girl's first foal" book, told in first person by Our Protagonist, Emma. Her family's Welsh pony (no section given, but most likely Section A) is about to give birth. The foal is to be Emma's. The filly is born black, but will most likely turn light grey like her mother. Emma names her Flower -- because when you think black and grey, you automatically think of flowers.
The model for Emma looks to be about four years old. Either that, or she's really short for her age. The Welsh mare looks like a Shire in comparison to Emma.
The model for Emma's Dad has one of those frightening nineteenth century mustaches that seems to reach out through the photograph to assault your eyes. Even in 1988, when this book was first published, no one sported mustaches like this. Could he have been a model for old cowboy Picturebacks?
Anyway, if I was a kid, I would've enjoyed the life of Emma and her foal. As an adult, I just look on with envy. The farm has thirteen other horses and ponies, geese and raises it's own hay. There are chores to do, such as cleaning tack. And then, there are shows to bring the ponies to.
Emma is shown riding without a hard hat, which is a HUGE safety issue. Yes, she was supervised, and riding on an older pony, but even the most bomb-proof pony can be frightened, or have an accident. Head injuries are no fun. Just trust Auntie Rena on that one, kids.
So, a nice book for horse crazy young kids, but with caveats.
Displaying 1 of 1 review