Review by Booklist Review
In a picture book based upon her childhood, Hobbie tells of moving from her city neighborhood to a farm. Though initially spooked by the darkness of her room at night (no electricity) and the creepy outhouse (no indoor plumbing), she comes to love the rural setting and, best of all, the farm animals. She longs for a horse, though, and on her birthday she runs out to the barn with hope in her heart and finds a surprise. The first-person story has a ring of truth, with details such as Holly collecting horse droppings from the road and scattering them in the barn to make it seem like a horse lived there. Both the vivid text and the appealing ink-and-watercolor illustrations are well calibrated to hold children's interest. This engaging picture book, one of the few offering a realistic story with a rural setting, will speak to horse-crazy kids everywhere.--Phelan, Carolyn Copyright 2010 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
In a radical departure from her Toot & Puddle series and recent Fanny books, Hobbie offers an affecting yet never sentimental memoir of her childhood move to a "ramshackle" farm out in the country. Quickly overcoming her initial fear of the countryside, Holly falls in contented love with her new life, especially raising animals-until she sees an older, wealthier, girl galloping by on her well-kept horse and becomes obsessed with having a horse of her own. "We had everything anybody needed to have a horse, and a horse was the one and only thing I wanted more than anything in the world." Hobbie perfectly balances realistic watercolor renderings of the rural landscape, as well as the vintage-flavored decor, clothing, and hairstyles of the early 1950s, with comical spot illustrations of herself and her mischievous brothers. One prophetic scene shows young Holly, "already the best artist in the family and in my class at school," drawing pictures of horses. The joyful surprise ending may puzzle younger readers, but adults will recognize the authenticity of a youthful change of heart. Ages 3-6. (Oct.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review
PreS-Gr 3-An autobiographical story about Hobbie's childhood move to the country. The transition is frightening at first but the author discovers that she loves the fields and flowers, and the animals most of all. There are dogs, cats, ducks, geese, a cow, and chickens, from which Holly must gently coax eggs. But her favorite are her neighbor's horses, conspicuously absent from her farm. There is a pasture, stalls, hay, all the makings of a great place for them, but the family has far too many reasons for not having one. But when Holly's birthday comes around, her mother tells her there's something special waiting for her in the barn. Could it be? The author's fans won't be disappointed with this affectionately told tale about a young girl's greatest wish. The simple artwork, done in pen-and-ink and watercolor, beautifully depicts a time when life for a young farm girl was filled with rustic barns, fields, and delightful animals, while her heartwarming text conveys a sense of innocence and dreams. Cozy as a grandmother's quilt, this book will have adults reminiscing and children dreaming.-C. J. Connor, Campbell County Public Library, Cold Spring, KY (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Horn Book Review
The author's childhood reminiscences of moving to a farm, and her dreams of owning a horse to fill the empty barn, are undercut by a bait-and-switch ending that will puzzle readers (the hoped-for birthday present turns out to be a bicycle). However, dynamic watercolor and pen-and-ink illustrations in a muted country palette ably capture the narrator's impetuousness and the beauty of rural life. (c) Copyright 2011. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
(Picture book.4-8)]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
