Given a tiny, magic white horse by her beloved aunt Aldora, who seems a bit magical herself, the young narrator is warned that one day, the horse will grow and change and leave. Until that day however, she is to love him so that he will want to stay with her for a while. With these few instructions, the aunt leaves “as quietly as she’d come”. Aunt Aldora (whose name is Greek meaning winged gift) found the horse “on a hidden Greek island”. The young narrator seems gentle in spirit. She sings the “toora loora loora” lullaby to him (which foreshadows his eventual departure and subsequent visits). As the horse grows, nubs on its shoulders become wings. One night, the horse is large enough to give the narrator her first ride. Eventually, it was time for the horse to leave. The narrator thanks him and he soars off into the night sky. But he comes back to visit and she realizes that it is her love that brings him.

Although Bunting text is calming, Nolan’s illustrations, (described as “colored pencil over watercolor washes on water-color paper” on the end page) are full-color, double-paged spread works that are magically peaceful capturing the enchantment of aunt Aldora and as well as the horse. ( )

Too long for a storytime book - but BEAUTIFUL! ( )