If You Want to Ride a Horse
by Amy Novesky; illus. by Gael Abary
Preschool, Primary    Porter/Holiday    40 pp.
3/24    9780823456956    $18.99
e-book ed.  9780823457564    $11.99

“If you want to ride a horse,” the narrator assures the reader, “all you have to do is close your eyes.” There follows a tour (in the imagination) of horses and horse ownership—what color will your horse be, with what markings? How will you care for your horse, grooming it and cleaning its stall? How will you tack up your horse, and what gaits will you experience after you mount it? Although the text covers many of the topics explored in introductory horse books, the dreamlike nature of this gentle, occasionally rhyming picture book allows expansion into related areas: “Is your heart a wild horse, too? A secret: the scent of a barn is a balm. It will calm that galloping muscle inside you, I promise.” The speckled mixed-media illustrations in muted tones of rose, peach, and champagne extend the imaginative atmosphere, seeming to float in space and transporting the reader, by book’s end, to a deserted beach where horse and rider can run in untrammeled freedom. Back matter goes into greater depth on the subjects of horse colorings and markings, styles of riding, behavior, and equipment, and concludes with personal notes from the horse-loving author and illustrator. “Heels down, eyes up, smile. Yes, beam. You are sitting atop a dream.”

Pubissue-From the March/April 2024 issue of The Horn Book Magazine.