SOLVED. YA/juvenile horse novel, read in 70's/early 80's. Girl and neighbor girl take care of run-down horse in secret on rundown estate. [s]

[Carol]

Hi all~

Thanks for any help in recalling the name of this book.

It was about a (maybe 12-ish??) girl whose summer had just begun, and she's not looking forward to it. Her friends are all away at camp, and she's bored. She has a older brother. They live somewhere outside of D.C.

I can't recall how, but she discovers a horse (how could I not recall this part?). Her yard abuts this large, overgrown estate that's fallen into disrepair, and by going through the overgrown fence between her house and this estate, she can access the property. And its stables. She takes the horse there.

She also meets a new neighbor, a girl who's moved in next door, and together, they secretly take care of this tumble-down old horse and tumble-down old barn, and build a friendship.

I remember the horse is really tall, at least compared to the girls, but super gentle. I cannot recall what they named him.

Then, one day, someone returns to the old estate and starts fixing it up. They're really worried, b/c eventually, someone's going to find 'their' horse in the barn.

One scene I particularly recall is the 2 girls lying low beneath hedge, watching someone cut the huge meadow of the estate. It's really hot--east coast summer hot--and they're sweating. Then they realize there is one good thing, b/c all that cut grass can be used for hay for their horse. (They were running out of money to buy oats for him, I think...)

In the end, they do get discovered by the rich and old owner of the estate, and the horse reminds him of his daughter(?) who I think had died(?). Or maybe it was just nostalgia for bygone times. And maybe there was some other connection between the old man and the girl or her family...? I just can't recall.

The friend moves away at the end of the summer, but not far away, so they can still visit on weekend or something. And the old man lets her keep the horse on his property (I think.)

I'd have thought it was titled something like "Secret Garden, Secret Horse" or something, but I've had no luck.

Thanks for any ideas!

[Cathy]

I know exactly what this is, because i had a copy! I read it as a book from Scholastic, called The Secret Horse. Now, Scholastic back then often retitled books, so the original title might be osmehting else.

The horse was named, I think Tall Boy, and he had been abused and neglected and was living in a dirty shed, so she basically stole him.

[Cathy]

And here's the book: The Secret Horse. My copy had the alternate cover shown on the page, with the girls leading the horse at night past a stone wall.

[Carol]

Cathy--
You're fantastic! Yes, Tall Boy! And my cover didn't look like that at all, either.
So, were you also an incessant reader of horse-y books when you were a girl?
Thanks so very much!!

[Cathy]

Yes! Yes, I was.

I'm glad I could help!

[Carol]

Cathy~
Aww, look--I found picture of the cover I recall, and even one of the illustrations...

Cover:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jl-incro...

Illustration: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jl-incro...


You know...there's a couple other other horse-y books I'm trying to find, but don't want to inundate the list. :-) If you're up for brainstorming, let me know!

[Jessica]

I have this book as well! They name him after an item of furniture, basically. She steals him from the animal shelter, after she sees him when her mother takes her to adopt a kitten.

I have or have read a ton of horse books, too, so if you want to keep posting them, I bet we could find them!

[stormhawk]

Same here ... loved horse stories as a child, too, and might be able to help identify some of them.

[Snail in Danger (Sid)]

Apologies for the slight derail, but have any of you read the Timber Trail Riders series, particularly The Texas Tenderfoot? There's a group member who's looking for info about these. (Details here.)

[Lisa]

Nikki wrote: "Apologies for the slight derail, but have any of you read the Timber Trail Riders series, particularly The Texas Tenderfoot? There's a group member who's looking for info about these. (Details here. "

Thanks, Nikki!!!

[Carol]

You ladies are great! For years, I've on-and-off try to find some of these hose books from my youth, and finally yesterday, I spent far too many hours tracking them down. :-)

In case anyone else has been on the hunt as well, here's a few I finally found... and two I'm still looking for.

I'd been trying to find a book about a wild mustang stallion--Storm, I think--and the teen boy who went west w/ his mom to live on his grandfather's ranch in Montana and rescues him when he's injured in a horse round-up. I'd thought it was Walter Farley, but yesterday, in my search was reminded of Sam Savitt--WILD HORSE RUNNING and, bonus book I'd forgotten about entirely--VICKI AND THE BLACK HORSE. Yay!

Also had been wanting a book set in England, about a girl who gets polio, and has to learn to walk again to ride this magestic horse. Yesterday I finally, finally found it: TALL AND PROUD. Yay! ;-)

Another I'd been looking for was about a girl who has to board her injured horse as a show stables, and gets educated about the whole, crazy, moneyed inner world of show horse circuit. THE MONDAY HORSES. Yay! :-)

Another one I found yesterday was a story about brother & sister who go to their uncle's/grandfather's in the south, maybe Virginia, or maybe further south/west. They meet a Native American boy, and they go hunting for this ghostly/fabled swamp horse in the, well, in the swamp. :-) They canoe into it, and sleep in hammocks, and generally do the adventures I always dreamed of.

It's called SWAMPFIRE. Yay!

Here's one I have not yet found . . . and unfortunately, I recall very, very little.

I think the title had something to do with a Gulch, or Gulph. A girl comes west (I don't think she was originally from there). I think she lives on a dude ranch and maybe her mother (&/or father?) work there. She's out riding, discovers... ack. Something to do with the gultch/gulph.

I remember the climax was her and her friend trying to get in--or out of--the gultch. Maybe one of them was injured? I think I recall pebbles sliding away underfoot as they tried to escape before the 'bad guys' found them/got to do their dastardly deeds/etc Her friend was boy--think there was the overlay a romance there, as they were hitting their teens) It was definitely a mystery sort of story.

Great chatting about these books. :-)

[Carol]

Nikki~
It's not a derailment, but unfortunately, I don't know about those stories. So sorry.

[Lisa]

Carol, Thanks for sharing those. I'll shelve them when I have the time.

But, and this is for everybody, please start a new thread for each new book.

You'll be more likely to get help finding your lost book

and

It will make it easier to move open unsolved threads to their solved folders.

Ideally, each search should be limited to one book/story/item per thread. (ETA: This goes even if you're posting at the same time looking for 2 books. 2 threads please!)

Thanks, all!!!