Horses

Susan Saunders Kate's Secret Plan was somewhat uninspired. Set in 1926, a young girl wants to enter a horse racing/cattle cutting contest, but can't because girls aren't allowed to race. She wears her brothers clothes, wins the contest, and nothing more is really said. I don't think the issues would have resolved themselves this quickly. Poor line drawings do not help this book, which has been here seven years and only been checked out once.

Sam Savitt's Vicki and the Brown Mare, though published in 1976, was still pretty good. I loved the illustrations, which were done by the author. Vicki is trying to raise money by exercising neighbor's horses and breaking ones with bad habits. A lot of discussion about specific issues with horses, but a glossary is at the end. There are several other books in the series, but I unfortunately don't have them. I will keep this one for my students who love horses; they will enjoy it.

I was sad to see that Mr. Savitt passed away in 2000. More information about him can be found at:
http://www.samsavitt.com/about.html