Susan Count

Wonderful, sweet, faith-forward middle-grade pony tale.

While Hannah’s Pony Twist may be the sixth book in Susan Count’s wonderful Dream Pony Riders middle-grade series, it can easily be read and enjoyed as a standalone novel. The recurring characters are introduced with enough detail of what has transpired in their pasts to establish their relationships with one another and hint at their experiences in the previous stories without spoiling those prior books for those who haven’t read show more them yet. Each book features one of the pre-teen girls taking riding lessons at the stables managed by Miss Elena. This story unfolds from Hannah’s and her pony Freckles’ points of view.

Freckles is an older animal, and Hannah is concerned he’s slowing down and will be retired. He refuses to trot unless strongly urged and walks slowly and only for short distances. However, the truth behind his behavior is a surprising and loving testament to the bond between the pony and his young rider. The plot portrays a young girl growing into her teen years and learning to look beneath the surface of someone’s behavior before leaping to judge, standing up for herself and those in need, and that pursuing one’s dream can require hard work, practice, and perseverance.

I recommend HANNAH’S PONY TWIST to readers of middle-grade fiction, especially those who enjoy horse-themed stories.

I voluntarily reviewed this after receiving an Advanced Review Copy from the author through Great Escapes Virtual Book Tours. show less

Mary’s Song, Book One of the Dream Horse Adventures, by Susan Count is a charming story sure to delight young readers and animal (especially horse) lovers. Young Mary is disabled and life offers very little outlet for her creativity and intelligence. She is a very talented artist and loves horses. Her doting and overprotective widower father spends a lot of time and money on various therapies to try to get Mary back on her feet, walking, running, and leading a normal life. Mary has show more resigned herself somewhat to life in a wheelchair until the day she meets her neighbour Laura (also twelve), and finds out about the lame foal she had seen hobbling around on the next-door property. Laura couldn’t be more different, but the girls strike up a firm friendship. Then Mary learns that Illusion, the lame little foal, is set to be euthanized because of her club foot, and because it’s not considered worth the time and money to save the little horse. Laura and Mary persuade Laura’s parents to give a six-week stay of execution to enable them to raise the money for Illusion’s very expensive operation. Can they raise enough money in time to save Illusion, and will Mary ever walk again?

There is so much more to this book than just the heartrending story of saving Illusion. The healing of both horse and young girl finds a wonderful theme in their parallel stories. The backdrop is the 1950s, which casts a completely different light on what kids would be doing, how they would behave, think, and entertain themselves. I found it a refreshing trip back in time, back to when things were perhaps simpler in many ways, but harder in that medicine and science still had some developments to achieve.

There are excellent themes for young readers, and the main one being a love of horses gives readers an idea of various aspects of riding, training, breeding and competing with horses, but without shoving facts down the reader’s throat. The wonderful and strong theme of love and friendship continues throughout, with love of family, not forgetting those once loved who have passed on, discovering new love when Mary’s dad meets someone special, and forging bonds of friendship with like-minded people.

Although there is a Christian theme, I found the author wove it into the story very well, again without overdoing it. That and the concept of faith, not only spiritual faith, but faith in oneself and others comes to the fore. Finally, the idea that a disabled person is not a broken person is very well handled. Interspersed is the idea that less able-bodied people can also achieve as much in their own way as an able-bodied person. Last but not least, I liked how much emphasis the author put on the theme of books, the joy found within the pages of old favourites and treasured books, the pleasure in reading, and indeed the importance of books.

This is an enchanting and moving story in so many ways, and young (and older) readers who are sure to enjoy it will also be delighted to know that the story continues. As the author says, “Saddle up and ride along!” show less

Pony love abounds in this down-to-earth tale of a girl's hard work and important life lessons.

Abby loves horses, but her family doesn't have the money to let her join a riding school or anything else, which gets near the animals. When she sees a flyer and a job opportunity at a stable, she's sure her dreams can now come true. The work is hard, but when Abby falls in love with a certain pony, Glory, life seems perfect...but there's a catch. Abby's family can't afford to buy Glory for her. show more When someone else purchases the pony, Abby's upset and is sure they aren't handling Glory correctly. And she's not sure what she can do to change that.

This is an easy-to-read, quick and engaging tale for horse lovers. It dives right into Abby's problems and has the reader caught up before she even arrives at the stable. Her determination and work-ethic is inspirational, and she's a kind person, who does make some mistakes, but is also able to grow from them. There's a wonderful sense of family and new forming friendships to round this off into a wholesome read.

The situations and characters are realistic and relatable. It gives the entire tale a familiar atmosphere and allows readers to sink right in. The horse aspects are well done, never over-simplify or talk down, but do give a good glimpse into stables, pony care and such, without drudging through details. Those, who dream of having their own horse (or do own one), will find themselves drawn in.

I do recommend this for horse fans ages 7 to 12 and believe that even reluctant readers won't feel overwhelmed. I received a complimentary copy and found this to be a fun, wholesome read. show less

When I was younger (and on into my teen years), I loved all things horses and would have devoured this series from Susan Count. But even middle grade girls who don’t care for horses will enjoy this book. I jumped in at book four in the series and, though I don’t recommend it because reading a series in its entirety makes for a richer, more rounded experiences, Selah’s Stolen Dream never left me scratching me head wondering what was going on. It did, however, interest me in reading the show more previous three books.

Count weaves themes of grief, responsibility, and sacrifice within the pages of this book. There are also a couple of cautionary situations that are relevant to tweens today.

Both Selah and Emma are extremely likable characters (although Selah took a little longer to warm up to. I doubt this would have been the case if I had read the previous books, though) and the entire time I was reading this story, I wondered how both girls would get their happy endings. The ending was completely satisfying yet I could have hung out with these two girls and their families longer.

Disclosure statement: I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book and was not required to write a positive review. All opinions are my own. show less