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Running Horse Ridge #1
Sapphire: New Horizons
Home is where your horse is Emily Summers does not want to go to Oregon. Why would she want to leave her friends and Rhapsody, her perfect dressage horse, to move to a horse rescue ranch all the way across the country? Then Emily discovers that at Running Horse Ridge, she'll be living her dream of riding and caring for horses 24/7, and after she meets the roguish black stallion named Sapphire, she feels she's found a true friend. There's just one Sapphire is at Running Horse Ridge to be retrained and sold. Has Emily met the horse of her dreams only to lose him?
- GenresHorses
208 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2009
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34 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
February 10, 2019
One of my absolute favorite childhood books! Sapphire: New Horizons is about a preppy, dressage rider named Emily Summers who is shuffled to her father's family farm in Oregon due to the passing of her grandfather. At first, she has a difficult time fitting in with her relatives and their friends, seeing a new side to her normally poised father, and being away from home. However, she meets and befriends an unruly, gorgeous stallion named Sapphire. Throughout the story, Emily must continually try to prove herself to her aunt and find her own place at Running Horse Ridge.
Of course, portraying the death of a distant relative and the emotions that come with it to middle schoolers is something that can be done in an overly cheesy way, but this book does a great job dealing with the thoughts that a tween might have in that situation. I also thought that some of the key decision-making moments () were written excellently.
Overall, this is a great read for any middle school girl who loves horses!
Of course, portraying the death of a distant relative and the emotions that come with it to middle schoolers is something that can be done in an overly cheesy way, but this book does a great job dealing with the thoughts that a tween might have in that situation. I also thought that some of the key decision-making moments () were written excellently.
Overall, this is a great read for any middle school girl who loves horses!
June 30, 2025
Read my complete review for this book on my website: This Joyful Nook
[I discerned this book a "No"]
In the book Sapphire: New Horizons, Emily Summers is taken across the country for her grandfather's funeral. But it's not just a funeral she's attending. Emily's aunt owns a rescue horse ranch, where they take in abused horses, train them, and find them loving homes. Emily falls especially in love with a horse at the ranch, but he's on his way to being sold.
I thought that sounded pretty interesting, so that's why I gave it a try. As expected, it didn't turn out how it seemed, past the shiny surface of the blurb.
The first thing I noticed was that Emily was not honoring her father (Exodus 20:12), when he asked her to be careful around a new horse. She instead ignored him and went on with her business. That's strike number one. Along the same line, Emily also seemed entitled throughout the story. Both of those things equate to low character quality, and books discerned a "yes" should have good character quality (see my Rating System to learn more about how I rate books).
I noticed that they were too much into horse sports. The reason I am so against horse sports is because I think it is, plainly speaking, horse abuse and done solely for human pleasure. Horses are NOT designed to jump 5-7 feet tall jumps. The only time they would jump in the wild is if there was something in their way, and I can almost guarantee you that most, if not all, those obstacles aren't 5-7 feet tall.
Dressage, another horse sport mentioned in this book, also has its problems. Personally, I think it is self-serving for humans to use their horses in sports that have no benefit for the horse, only the human. Once you get into any horse sport, it is especially easy for it to become an obsession. Take it to the Lord and He will show you what to do moving forward.
The biggest downfall of this book is that Emily was OBSESSED with Sapphire. She says that for herself in this book. It even states that she can't stop thinking about him, chants his name, and is even willing to purposefully break rules just to be with him. See Isaiah 31:1
In the Bible, we know that anything put above God is completely going against everything God loves. Whether we know it or not, we are all idolizing/worshipping something and, in this case, Emily is idolizing horses.
People who idolize horses aren't looking for or seeking the Lord. If you never search for Jesus, you will spend the rest of eternity in complete separation from everything perfect and holy, in Hell. I myself would much rather spend forever in Heaven, which you can do if you have faith that Jesus, who is God, paid for your sins in full on the cross.
In the end, Sapphire: New Horizons is another book added to my discerned "no" shelf. This is not something to be discouraged about, but a discernment exercise. In the Bible, we are commanded to test all things to see if they align with Scripture (1 Thessalonians 5:21), and, in this case, there is horse idolatry, dishonoring of parents, and low character quality.
[I discerned this book a "No"]
In the book Sapphire: New Horizons, Emily Summers is taken across the country for her grandfather's funeral. But it's not just a funeral she's attending. Emily's aunt owns a rescue horse ranch, where they take in abused horses, train them, and find them loving homes. Emily falls especially in love with a horse at the ranch, but he's on his way to being sold.
I thought that sounded pretty interesting, so that's why I gave it a try. As expected, it didn't turn out how it seemed, past the shiny surface of the blurb.
The first thing I noticed was that Emily was not honoring her father (Exodus 20:12), when he asked her to be careful around a new horse. She instead ignored him and went on with her business. That's strike number one. Along the same line, Emily also seemed entitled throughout the story. Both of those things equate to low character quality, and books discerned a "yes" should have good character quality (see my Rating System to learn more about how I rate books).
I noticed that they were too much into horse sports. The reason I am so against horse sports is because I think it is, plainly speaking, horse abuse and done solely for human pleasure. Horses are NOT designed to jump 5-7 feet tall jumps. The only time they would jump in the wild is if there was something in their way, and I can almost guarantee you that most, if not all, those obstacles aren't 5-7 feet tall.
Dressage, another horse sport mentioned in this book, also has its problems. Personally, I think it is self-serving for humans to use their horses in sports that have no benefit for the horse, only the human. Once you get into any horse sport, it is especially easy for it to become an obsession. Take it to the Lord and He will show you what to do moving forward.
The biggest downfall of this book is that Emily was OBSESSED with Sapphire. She says that for herself in this book. It even states that she can't stop thinking about him, chants his name, and is even willing to purposefully break rules just to be with him. See Isaiah 31:1
In the Bible, we know that anything put above God is completely going against everything God loves. Whether we know it or not, we are all idolizing/worshipping something and, in this case, Emily is idolizing horses.
People who idolize horses aren't looking for or seeking the Lord. If you never search for Jesus, you will spend the rest of eternity in complete separation from everything perfect and holy, in Hell. I myself would much rather spend forever in Heaven, which you can do if you have faith that Jesus, who is God, paid for your sins in full on the cross.
In the end, Sapphire: New Horizons is another book added to my discerned "no" shelf. This is not something to be discouraged about, but a discernment exercise. In the Bible, we are commanded to test all things to see if they align with Scripture (1 Thessalonians 5:21), and, in this case, there is horse idolatry, dishonoring of parents, and low character quality.
July 22, 2011
This is a good book for 7 and up girls.
Want to read
October 26, 2012
March 25, 2016
Good book, but only if you love horses. Otherwise I would not read it.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews