by My Horse and Me, age 12

I wrote this letter to Bonnie Bryant the author of Horse Shy (Saddle Club #2). I entered this letter into a writing competition. Even though I didn’t win, I was chosen a semi-finalist out of 50,000 kids. I was pretty excited. I wanted to share this letter with you. Maybe, just maybe after you read this, you’ll want to read the book Horse Shy.

Dear Bonnie Bryant,

I recently read your book Horse Shy. It was a lovely story, and the story greatly moved me. Your book was sad, but in the end I guess there was something hidden deep inside the pages that made it happy. Maybe it was Delilah’s foal, or maybe it was Mrs. Reg’s story? Whatever it was, it was wonderful from start to finish.

In the beginning of the book, when Lisa fell and did not want to get back up, it reminded me of a time when I could not get something right no matter how many times I tried. I laughed when Pepper was ashamed of bucking Lisa off. Embarrassed horses are a hilarious sight. I once saw a horse act that way when I had to make an emergency dismount because my saddle slipped. The horse acted pretty funny.

When Lisa made her first jump, I too went soaring over the jump with her. I love jumping.

The MTO sounded magnificent. Someday I’ll saddle up and go on an outdoor horseback camping trip. When you wrote about the deer grazing with the horses, you wrote it so descriptive I felt like I was actually there watching the breathtaking scene.

Carole’s conversation in the car with her dad made me think about what it would be like to lose my mom like Carole did. It made me realize that horses are great, but my Mom is better than a million horses.

I thought my eyes were playing tricks on me when I read of Cobalt’s death. I couldn’t help it; my eyes became so cloudy I could barely see what I was reading. Most books don’t make me feel like crying; if they do, they are really wonderful. I’ve never had a close horse like Cobalt die, but somehow reading Carole’s feelings made me see Cobalt as a close friend. When Carole heard the sad news, it made me stop and think about all the horses in my life that mean a lot to me. I ride a horse named Pistol. I really love Pistol. Life without him would be, well, miserable. But, I have to admit Pistol isn’t the lamb that Cobalt is, and Pistol’s real owner loves Pistol, unlike Veronica. Like Carole, Pistol doesn’t belong to me, but I wish he did.

In the midst of this story, you had a cute little twist going on with Lisa and Stevie as they searched for Max the First. The real Max the First was discovered as a very unpleasant dude. I loved the way Stevie and Lisa twisted the truth, turning their stories into wild, hilarious, and ridiculous tales. I don’t know how any reader could not laugh.

Let me tell you, I was shocked when I read of Veronica’s slight change of heart. Mean, grouchy, rich, snobby, unthankful, and selfish Veronica was actually admitting she was wrong!!!!! But once again, it would not have been the same without her change of heart.

Finally, Mrs. Reg’s story helped Carole and me to understand that no matter how much we love a horse, it mostly depends on whether we own the horse or not. Like Carole said, “There are a lot of horses, good and bad. And I want to ride them all.”

Those are my feelings exactly.

A moved reader,

My Horse and Me
(I didn’t actually sign the letter that way)