Running with the Horses
young readers’ edition
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- $12.99
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- $12.99
Publisher Description
*Australian Book Design Awards: Best Designed Children's Book Winner 2020*
Nina lives with her father above the palace stables at the Royal Academy of Dancing Horses. She loves watching the famous white stallions as they parade for the crowds, but her favourite horse is a mare called Zelda – an old cab horse Nina often pats on her way home from school.
When Nina’s world changes dramatically, she and her father have to flee from the city. Their journey over the mountains with Zelda and the stallions seems impossible, with danger at every turn. It will require all of Nina’s bravery, daring and faith in an extraordinary old horse.
"A thrilling adventure story by one of Australia’s greatest children’s authors." Angela Crocombe, Readings
"A picture book drama that has the sweep of a novel." Kirkus Reviews
"This is a story of adventure, courage, friendship and horses ... a perfect gift book for children." Kids' Book Review
Another classic from Alison Lester, the creator of many much-loved and award-winning picture books, including:
Are We There Yet?
I'm Green and I'm Grumpy!
Who's that Knocking?
Running with the Horses
One Small Island
Kissed by the Moon
Our Island
My Dog Bigsy
Sophie Scott Goes South
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Lester (the Horse Crazy series) uses Vienna's famous Royal Academy of Dancing Horses as a background for a picture book drama that has the sweep of a novel. It's wartime, and troops are approaching. Stable master Viktor takes his daughter, Nina, into the mountains with four valuable stallions, as well as the groom, Karl, and the story's hero Zelda, a broken-down cab horse Nina rescues at the last minute. Despite her lowly pedigree and rackety condition, Zelda saves the company twice from disaster, first leading them through the war-torn city, then keeping them from crossing an unsafe bridge. "She struck out with her forelegs, driving the stallions back off the bridge.... The middle of the bridge had been completely blown away, and a yawning hole gaped above the ravine." Lester draws humans and horses as doll-like figures in b&w, then places them against luxuriously colored, theatrically scaled backdrops, giving the illustrations the curious feel of a puppet performance. Lester's characters are strongly developed, and there's backstory and detail to spare (despite the journalistic tone, a note at the end explains that the episode is fiction). Ages 5 up.
