A Horse Called Bonnie

Bonnie #2

by Barbara Van Tuyl, Pat Johnson

When young Julie Jefferson started to race her horse Bonnie under the colors of Fieldstone Farm, the future looked bright. There was the excitement of turning an untried filly into a racing horse, the trainers and jockeys who helped teach Julie the tricks of the trade, and the growing certainty that Bonnie was the stuff of which great champions were made.

But suddenly everything changed. Someone was out to steal Bonnie, or else make sure the gallant filly would never win another race -- and dangerous illness darkened the horse's chances still further. It seemed that heartbreak waited at the finish line for Julie Jefferson and her dream -- until the courageous girl made a daring gamble in a story whose thrilling climax will leave readers gasping with surprise and delight.
[from back cover]

Genres: Young Adult, Horses, Animals

141 pages, Paperback

First published December 1, 1971

About the author

Holding a trainer’s license since 1972, Barbara Van Tuyl had never thought to be a writer when she grew up. Inspired by books like the Black Stallion, her big break came when a friend passed on a fiction piece and gave it to her. Asked to create an outline, she decided to create a second one to show that a series could be viable. From those two outlines came the first two books in what became the Bonnie series: The Sweet Running Filly and A Horse Called Bonnie.

Books one through five were published in the early 70s. Almost 30 years later, Barbara has penned "A Special Kind of Courage", the sixth in the Bonnie series being released in October 2013.

Reviews

[Rena Sherwood · Rating 4 out of 5]

People do stupid things when they are in the midst of a crisis. When I first read this back in the 1980s, I found it unbelievable that a girl who knew so much about racing would stick her beloved Northern Dancer filly in a claiming race. Now that I'm older and have had more panic attacks than I've had hot baths, I know that this is exactly the kind of stupid behavior someone would do.

Bonnie is stuck into the claiming race because her owner's father needs really expensive hospitalization. This was written about 1971, when nobody had health insurance. Also, it was very difficult to van or fly a horse to another track. Track meetings were also more spread out and often shorter than they are today.

Inevitably, Bonnie gets claimed. Now, the last time I read this book was in the 1990s. I dont remember how the book ends, but I remember being satisfied with the ending.

This was the last book in the Bonnie series that had two authors. I don't know why Pat Johnson left. The next book, my favorite in the series, should really be where you stop. The fourth book is pretty bad, and I haven't heard anything good about the remaining two books.

[Damona · Rating 4 out of 5]

Until finding this book here on GoodReads, I had no idea that it was part of a series. I must have read it a dozen times or more when I was a girl, and it just surfaced in a box of old books that I was unpacking, so I thought, why not? Let's see if it holds up. And you know what? It does! It's a damn good novel.

I only wish that, in that scene towards the end, Julie had stood up for herself a little more and not just let them ride over her (pardon the bad joke, there...). Other than that, it's a great story, and I heartily recommend it to any horse-mad girls out there!

[Attica Musings · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my all time favorites for 45 years.

[Danada · Rating 5 out of 5]

❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

[Enikő · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked this book! It was very well written. If I had to describe it, I would say it was a girl version of the Black Stallion books. (In fact, part of the story line is similar to one of the Black Stallion books, when Bonnie is afraid of being whipped.)

This is the second book in the series and I didn't read the first one since I don't have it, but the Prologue does a fine job of explaining everything the reader missed.

The story itself unfolds very nicely, with two or three great obstacles that are overcome with nerve, luck and skill. My only beef is the ending. It is rather abrupt. The last sentence confirms what the reader already knew: the photos confirm that Bonnie won the Forget-me-Not. But that is where it ends. I would have liked a bit of feel-good celebration there to finish off with.

All-in-all, a very nice read. Julie is a realistic heroine. She isn't too perfect, nor too childish. She's just plain nice and she has a great relationship with her horse, but she is also responsible and knows when to go do her own job and let others deal with Bonnie.

[Kerith · Rating 4 out of 5]

The second in this series of books about Sunbonnet, the Bold Ruler filly beloved of Julie Jefferson. Here, Bonnie has returned to her rightful place as racehorse at Deepwater Farm, where Julie now has a job assisting the new trainer, Monty Everett. As always, intrigue and adventure follow when Julie's father is in need of expensive surgery and Julie must begin Bonnie's racing career to help finance it. The first book, The Sweet Running Filly, was pretty black & white with the good guys and the bad guys; here, things are not quite to obvious, which is a refreshing change of pace. I have always thought that this too-short series (just five books) was one of the best to be found in YA horsey fiction. I'm not even a huge racing fan (I prefer to read about eventing) but I love these. The writing is engaging and the stories exciting, Bonnie is wondrously too-good-to-be-true and Julie & Monty are the horsey friends you wish you had.

[Tania · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Horse Called Bonnie is the second in the Julie Jefferson and Sunbonnet series. The Bonnie series tells of the love between horse and girl, and as it does also introduces us to a unique cast of characters that we'd all love to know. Horses play a prominent role in every scene, and yet we grow to know each of the humans as well as we know our own family and friends. These books strike a wonderful balance that leads us down paths of intrigue and danger while enfolding us in the warmth of lives well lived, friendships well cared for, and love besting it all.

[Bonnie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Birthday Book #26 from my friend Heidi. I may well finish up the series after this re-read of the first two books. This one was just as quick moving and exciting, even if there were a few more eyerolls from me and a little more liberal handling of racing facts. (i.e. If Julie owns Bonnie, she cannot ride her in a race.). The characters really carry this series, even when the plots stretch believability somewhat.

[Natalie · Rating 4 out of 5]

All the ingredients for a perfect horse read!