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4.02 AVERAGE
4.02 AVERAGE
A somewhat dated retelling of a Native American tale. The teepees with stripes feel culturally insensitive.
My favorite children's book so far this year. Gorgeous illustrations and beautiful storytelling.
The Girl Who Loved Wildhorses focuses on a young Native American girl who is able to communicate to wild horses. After the horses help her out during a storm, the girl lives with a wild stallion and his horses. Her parents miss her, and bring her home, but when the girl becomes homesick for life among the horses, the village agrees to send her back to them. The girl still maintains a relationship with her family and gives them a gift of a colt every year. On the last page of the book the girl stops returning, but it is implied that she has turned into a horse herself, emphasizing the relationship the people have with the horses. The Girl Who Loved Wild Horses is a text heavy picture book filled with large illustrations that use bold colors, including black. The illustrations, which can be violent at times, often take up most of each two page spread, and involve many figures on each page. The horses themselves are drawn in great detail, and are even more expressive than many of the human characters, signifying their importance. Sometimes the abundance of text can be a bit of a drawback, as it doesn't always match up with the illustrations very well. The book ends with two poems from Native American tribes about horses, and should be nice touch for children who are interested in Native American culture.
Recommended Grade Level- Kindergarten
Notes- The Girl Who Loved Wild Horses is an example of a multicultural book, and is an appropriate choice for a book display centered around Native American culture. It's also a great choice for all children (especially girls) who love horses.
(This review was written for a school assignment)
Recommended Grade Level- Kindergarten
Notes- The Girl Who Loved Wild Horses is an example of a multicultural book, and is an appropriate choice for a book display centered around Native American culture. It's also a great choice for all children (especially girls) who love horses.
(This review was written for a school assignment)
This is book was probably my favorite as a kid. The illustrations are beautiful and for a girl loved horses it was a perfect book.
adventurous
medium-paced
The Girl Who Loved Horses written and illustrated by Paul Goble, published 1978 by Aladdin Paperbacks
Age appropriate: 4+ (independent readers 6+)
Summary/Review: This beautifully illustrated book tells the tale of the Horse People from the very beginning. A little girl who loves horses falls asleep as the horses graze around her. She is awakened by a frightening storm and rides a horse as all the horses run far away in fear. She learns to live with the horses, and though she eventually is reunited with her family, she truly belongs with the horses. She returns to her true family, and once a year, visits her human family and brings a colt as a gift to their tribe.
In a classroom: use when discussing Native Americans, origin tales, as a trade book when learning about the characteristics of origin tales,
Age appropriate: 4+ (independent readers 6+)
Summary/Review: This beautifully illustrated book tells the tale of the Horse People from the very beginning. A little girl who loves horses falls asleep as the horses graze around her. She is awakened by a frightening storm and rides a horse as all the horses run far away in fear. She learns to live with the horses, and though she eventually is reunited with her family, she truly belongs with the horses. She returns to her true family, and once a year, visits her human family and brings a colt as a gift to their tribe.
In a classroom: use when discussing Native Americans, origin tales, as a trade book when learning about the characteristics of origin tales,
The Girl Who Loved Wild Horses is a retelling of what I'm assuming is a traditional story to a tribe on the American Plains. The main character is a girl who loves the wild horses that live near her people. During a storm she is separated from her tribe and comes to live with the wild horses, especially a stallion she loves. Naturally her people eventually "rescue" her from the herd and bring her back to live with them, but separated from her new family she becomes depressed. I'll let you read the book to figure out how she becomes reunited with her beloved horses.
I would have loved to see some more information on the origins of the story and the people, and how the artist drew inspiration for it and went about retelling it authentically. Aside from that it was a great story with an ending I didn't suspect. I loved how the reader was left to infer what became of the Girl who loved wild horses- I, of course, think of her as finally being one with the community she had come to love.
I would have loved to see some more information on the origins of the story and the people, and how the artist drew inspiration for it and went about retelling it authentically. Aside from that it was a great story with an ending I didn't suspect. I loved how the reader was left to infer what became of the Girl who loved wild horses- I, of course, think of her as finally being one with the community she had come to love.
The pictures are gorgeous, but the story is written very broadly. I wish she had a name and a people.
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I don't think it's supposed to be sexual -- more that she had a spiritual connection to the horses. The horses were her people more so than her actual people. In the end she is reborn as a mare and is free to run with the horses. But I keep wondering if there is a message about accepting people's romantic and sexual preferences. Her transformation is seen as a positive, natural progression, and while her people catch her, they also let her go and be with the horses.
_________________________________
I don't think it's supposed to be sexual -- more that she had a spiritual connection to the horses. The horses were her people more so than her actual people. In the end she is reborn as a mare and is free to run with the horses. But I keep wondering if there is a message about accepting people's romantic and sexual preferences. Her transformation is seen as a positive, natural progression, and while her people catch her, they also let her go and be with the horses.
adventurous
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
A book that has long been a favorite of my mother and I for years, ever since it came into our lives when I was a little girl. It is a book that adults can enjoy as well as children and the illustrations are some of the most beautiful depictions of horses and native peoples in children's literature that I have seen.
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
After doing some research and reading the book, I am not sure I can give this a star rating and probably won't be recommending it in the future.