Scamper and the Horse Show

Haas, Jessie

ISBN 10: 0060013397 ISBN 13: 9780060013394

Publisher: Greenwillow, 2004

Synopsis

With the big horse show only a day away, Molly and Anna still have a lot of preparing to do and so must get to work in order to wash the horse, finish the costumes, and have everything ready just in time! Jr Lib Guild.

About this title

About the Author:

Jessie Haas lives in Vermont. She has two horses: Josey, a half-Morgan whom she has had for more than thirty years, and Atherton, a young Morgan. Scamper's costume is based on one the real Scamper wore in 1976, at a Bicentennial horse show. Pinky and Meg were real horses, too, and Patty and Karen rode them.

Among Jessie Haas's very popular books for young readers are the "Beware" series; Appaloosa Zebra: A Horse Lover's Alphabet; Runaway Radish; and Sugaring. She is also the author of many books for older readers, including Fire! My Parents' Story; Unbroken; Will You, Won't You?; Shaper; and Hoofprints: Horse Poems. In Her Own Words...

"I grew up on a small Vermont farm. My childhood was full of haying, gardening, horseback riding, and animals. I trained my own horse. I was given a goat for my sixteenth birthday. My mother was the town poundkeeper, so we had an endless stream of stray cats and dogs coming through. Lots of them stayed.

"Along with animals, there was reading. Everywhere. Even in the bathtub. I read all the horse stories ever written, as first choice, and then anything else printed on a page. At Wellesley, influenced by Jane Austen and all those horse stories, I wrote my first novel, Keeping Barney. My teacher, Helen Corsa, suggested I send the book to Susan Hirschman, a former student of hers. Greenwillow rejected Keeping Barney with many useful suggestions. I took them, and the book was accepted a month before I graduated.

"That same month I married Michael Daley, and three years later we built a tiny cabin just uphill from my parents' cow pasture. We had one room at first, with no insulation, no phone, no plumbing, and no electricity-but a very small mortgage. The little house gave us-still gives us-the freedom to pursue our interests without having to get "real jobs." I've worked at a vegetable stand, a village store, and a yarn mill, all part-time, while concentrating mainly on my writing.

"I still live the same kind of life I did growing up. I ride a horse I trained myself. A cat sleeps on my desk as I work. I walk to my parents' farm every day, and I can pick out the exact spot in the pasture where my horse Josey gave me Beware the Mare.

"Writing is a lot like the other things I do. Sometimes it's like planting seeds, and rewriting is a lot like weeding! Then when a story is ripe, it's put in a book to preserve it. Other times, writing feels more like riding, a process of balance, rebalance, and profound concentration. A story can go sour, just like a horse. You have to push it, but not too hard, and keep it moving freely forward.

"I love the challenge of trying to put the truth down on paper. I want to make the words transparent, so that the page becomes an open window. I hope to pass along, through my stories, the joy and strength that others have given to me."

From School Library Journal:

Kindergarten-Grade 3–Anna and Molly scrub their light gray horse for a competition, watch helplessly as he rolls in the grass, and then scrub him again. At the show, they greet their friends and get ready to participate in the various classes. Scamper gets a red ribbon in the Trail Class because he is unafraid of the obstacles. However, before the judging for the Costume Class is completed, a sudden rainstorm ruins the horse's paper American flag ensemble. The girls are disappointed, but their mother encourages them to "Look for a rainbow." Her advice pays off when the judge tells the sisters that the streaks of color on Scamper's back look like a set of show ribbons and he is awarded first place. This charming story presents an accurate and appealing look at the ambience of a local horse show. A section at the end provides more information about these events and the different classes in which riders can compete. The eye-pleasing, colored-pencil drawings show appealing young equestrians and their mounts in various shapes and sizes. They accurately portray the emotions and activities of the animals and their owners. An excellent choice for young horse lovers.–Carol Schene, Taunton Public Schools, MA
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About this edition

• Publisher: Greenwillow
• Publication date: 2004
• ISBN 10: 0060013397
• ISBN 13: 9780060013394
• Binding: Library Binding
• Number of pages: 32
• Illustrator: Apple Margo