Fritz and the beautiful horses (edition 1981)

In a walled city where only the most beautiful horses were kept, Fritz a sure-footed pony was made to keep out, though fritz dreamed of carrying a child he was not beautiful enough. Though in the climax of the story Fritz proves beauty is only a shallow characteristic and he becomes valued by the towns people for being kind, gentle, courageous, and sure-footed. This is one of my favorite stories growing up, and will occasionally still read it, because it helped me understand beauty is only skin-deep and there are other characteristics to obtain that are more important to ones character. I recommend this book to everyone, but specifically children ages of 4-10 years old.

from notecard for class in 2004:

Rating: 3 (out of a 3 star system?)

Summary: Fritz is a pony, who despite being kind and dependable, is excluded from the city because he is not a beautiful horse. Finally Fritz saves the day and wins the love of the people.

RL: 3.4; IL: LG

Fritz, the dependable sure footed pony, saves the day and is allowed to be apart of the city that only accepts beautiful horses. I think the moral is a little backwards, but Jan Brett's heart is in the right place. I love the artwork. ( )

This is Jan Brett’s first published work. The huge brick wall of the city and the surrounding river are not the only things that separate the outcast pony, Fritz, from a life of acceptance on the inside. His bravery, diligence, and love for children are the keys to the kingdom.

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