Barbara Van Tuyl

Seventeen-year-old Julie Jefferson is determined that her horse Sunbonnet is going to make a name for herself in racing. But it seems everything is hindering her, preventing the gallant filly from winning, preventing Julie from living her dream.

Including a dangerous bout of colic, a foolish whipping by a bat-happy jockey, the shady character of Rodinbaugh (who seems intent on doing Bonnie some harm), and the desperate gamble of entering her in a claiming race. Will Julie be able to overcome these, and other, obstacles?

It's been a long time since I last read racehorse fiction, but the writing was clear and concise. (No unintelligable racing jargon here!) Even if I'd known nothing about the sport beforehand, I doubt I'd have been lost.

This is the sequel to a book called the Sweet Running Filly, but I have never read that book and don't feel that I need to. Thanks to a handy letter explaining the events of that story in the beginning of A Horse Called Bonnie, I quickly got the gist of it, and never felt that the plot didn't make sense. You don't have to track any other books down before reading this one. Bonnie is perfectly self-contained.

It is a short book, and one I enjoyed very much. The length was a bit of a detriment for the characters though. The cast was huge and a bit hard to keep track of. But everyone was likable, and a real sense of cameraderie prevailed throughout Julie's interactions with her friends - all of whom were involved in the racing business in some way. Julie, at seventeen, was the youngest character present.

Another thing... This being a children's story, most problems were resolved simply and happily. I was okay with that for the most part. At times it cut down on the realism and jolted me out of the story. But my expectations of children's books are only that they entertain, have a good plot and don't tamper with reality or preach too much. Want children facing real problems that don't just disappear? Read Shiloh instead.

Finally, this book is about horse racing. And that's all. I got more enjoyment out of this one slim volume than the first seven Thoroughbred books combined. They added in family troubles, love interests, school troubles, rivalries and a heaping spoonful of disbelief. I got the feeling that A Horse Called Bonnie had its feet on the ground more often.

So, with a great array of likable individuals, a well worded plot, a neat twist toward the end and even a bit of humor (Rand's ill-fated car trip), I'd say A Horse Called Bonnie is a good example of why I continue to read the sub-genre of children's animal stories.… (meer)