"But it was from that day on that a legend began to grow up about the cream brumby, cunning as a fox. Stockmen talked of him round their summer campfires, or sung songs about him as they rode around a restless mob of cattle at night, and the cattle told the brumbies, so that they too knew, all over the mountains, the tales of the wild cream brumby."

Most books that I've come across about Australia are set in the Outback, but The Silver Brumby is set in the snowy mountains of southern Australia. When I was a teenager, The Silver Brumby was one of my favorite movies. I watched it over and over again. I had never read the book, but I was happy to discover that it was first published in 1958, so I could read it for this category in the reading challenge. Subjectively, I loved this book simply for the feelings of nostalgia it gave me. Objectively, I think it's a beautiful book. My few complaints are that it can be a bit wordy at times, and that the wild horse herd dynamics were not portrayed accurately. While it's true that wild horse herds usually only have one full grown stallion, he is not the leader. In reality, wild horses are matriarchal. I'm going to give Mitchell some slack on this point because I'm not sure if this was known at the time of her writing, and it was also more difficult to research in a time without internet. Thowra is a rare palomino, "creamy", brumby. He is so pale that he appears to be silver. His mother, Bel Bel, teaches him to be clever and swift because she knows he will be hunted for this. Thowra faces many challenges as he grows up in the wild Australian Alps, culminating in an epic battle of strength and wits between man and brumby. The horses speak, but their words and the human qualities given to them are kept to a minimum. The descriptions and actions of the horses are more compelling than the dialogue. The vivid descriptions of the landscape bring the setting of the Australian Alps to life. This book was written for children/teens, but adults can enjoy it as well. I'd love to read the other books in this series, but I'm having a hard time finding them.

CAWPILE Rating:
C- 9
A- 10
W- 8
P- 9
I- 10
L- 6
E- 10
Avg= 8.8= ⭐⭐⭐⭐

#backtotheclassics (Classic from Africa, Asia, or Oceania- includes Australia)
#mmdchallenge (a book about a topic that fascinates you) ( )

This was one of my best-beloved books as a horse-mad 7-year-old, but it stands the test of time quite well.

The book relates the coming of age of a wild 'cream' colt as he overcomes the threats of weather, rival stallions and man to become a legend of the outback. Largely a case of tell over show, there is little dialogue and less inner monologue; instead you get evocative descriptions of the Australian landscape and its animal inhabitants.

There's a few things to raise an eyebrow at, most notably how unimportant most of his herd appear to be to the stallion (in so far as only 2 of them even get names). On the flip side, these are horses that feel like horses - there's very little anthropomorphisation, and Mitchell even slips in 'probably' to sentences where she is attributing motivation, as if she is merely interpreting visible behaviour rather than being an omniscient narrator.

I can see why I loved it, although it feels a bit thin these days - there's more personality in wise mare Bel Bel than her showy son, and while it's accurate for a stallion to think in terms of 'owning' mares, it sits rather less comfortably with me now. Nonetheless, this is adult nitpicking - it remains a brilliant children's book, guaranteed to be a hit with any child who loves horses.

Extra points for the beautiful line drawings of Australian wildlife that headline each chapter in my edition. ( )

Sadly, I was never one of those girls who fall in love with horses in elementary school. Apparently, my fourth grade teacher was;that year, she read aloud every Marguerite Henry horse book ever written, to my dismay.

I wish Mrs. McKinnis had read aloud The Silver Brumby. I don't know if it would have had the same effect on me at ten as it did when I read it last month at fifty-six, but suddenly I'm in love with horses. At least Australian horses. Thowra eludes capture time and time again and has to fight bad horses and seeks out the wild parts of the land and leads a herd of other beautiful wild horses.

Yes, a great story. ( )

http://equus-blog.com/the-silver-brumby/ ( )

This is still my original copy, which I loved as a child.