Horses in History for Young Readers

Homeschool Review Crew

We love to read in our house and we love our horses.  We recently read a new series that chats about horses in history and is geared towards young readers ages 8-14.  Author Mattie Richardson/Appaloosy Books kindly sent us four books in a series as part of this latest Homeschool Review Crew review.  All four books are part of Mattie Richardson’s Horses in History Series which is definitely a great read for young readers!

The four books we received are:

• Appaloosy
• Dusty’s Trail
• Golden Sunrise
• Day and Night

My kids love to read and these disappeared quickly after I opened the package.  My goal was to read them aloud as a family-centered around a meal.  We love to read either while the kids are eating or right after they finish.  Instead of getting to read about horses in history together first the books were passed around my readers until they had read them all.  It was less than a week before seven kids had each read all four books.  Then it was time for the rest of the family to read them!

There is also an enrichment guide that goes with these books.  It is a downloadable PDF while the books are physical.  You could also purchase the books as ebooks if wished.  

About the Books

These are such fun books.  They are unique in that the stories are told from the perspective of the horses involved in major events.  These books were written by a teenage girl.  She is no longer a teenager but she is still an amazing young author of books that are sure to engage children and adults of all ages.

Book One

Book one of the series is Appaloosy.  Appaloosy is about an appaloosa horse that belongs to the Nez Perce tribe.  This book was written when Mattie Richardson was only 13 years old!  While you can tell it’s not as fully developed as some of the other books it is still an amazing read and I for one am very impressed that one so young could write such a wonderful book!

The storyline follow the horse, Storm, as he must decide what he should do.  First, he is a member of the Nez Perce and given to a brave named White Feather.  They have a bond and Storm is content to stay, but then life throws them a curve.  White men capture Storm and he finally ends up with Faith a young girl.  They have a wonderful bond and Storm feels they are inseparable.  But then again life gets in the way when Storm is captured by rustlers and taken back out west.

Will Storm ever get to run and roam free like he dreams?  Or will he give up his freedom for the love of a little girl?

Book Two

Golden Sunrise follows a pretty palomino Cheyenne.  Cheyenne’s story is that of a horse in Texas during the 1800s and their fight for independence.  Cheyenne and her boy Jared get to have many adventures in this one.

Within their own personal fight for independence, they go join up as volunteers to help in the fight along with Jared’s friend Reuben.  First, they go to San Antonio, but then they’re called to go help defend Fort Alamo.  At this point, you’re probably holding your breath because we all know how the fight for the Alamo goes, but please read this book. You will not regret it!

You’ll also get to meet famous people like James Bowie and Davy Crockett!  One of my boys is a huge Davy Crockett fan so he really enjoyed this bit of history incorporated into these books.  

Can Cheyenne and Jared make it out alive?  Will they ever see Texas as a land of the free?

Book Three

Dusty’s Trail takes you along on a journey of the Pony Express!  My kids really enjoyed this one as we are a short drive from St. Joseph, MO where he Pony Express began.  They have a wonderful museum to visit if you’re ever in the area.  

Dusty doesn’t want to be a Pony Express horse.  He rather likes his life on the farm.  But when his boy sneaks out in the middle of the night to go join the Pony Express he’s along for the ride, literally.  As they make their runs he grows closer to his boy Levi and begins to enjoy himself.  That is until Indian trouble arrises and he must fight or flee for not only his life but that of Levi as well.

Will Dusty ever see the ranch again?  As they both make friends and overcome challenges they learn a lot about themselves and do a great deal of growing up.

Book Four

Day and Night concludes the four books we received.  This is the longest and most involved of the four books as it follows not just one but two characters.  It is also my children’s and admittedly my own favorite. 

Tucker and Shiloh are both horses, both are also fighting in the Civil War.  But one stands with the side of the Union and one with the Confederacy.  Tucker is with the US Mounted Infantry while Shiloh is with the Confederate Volunteer Cavalry.  

The two horses are brothers that are sold to different sides of the war.  This story is touching and definitely covers a lot of history.  You’ll get to see lots of battles but also chat about the Border Wars and the roles of not only horses but women and families within the war.

We loved this book and do recommend it.  The enrichment guide really lends a lot of history and knowledge to the story as well.  Definitely, think of getting the set together to expand the experience. 

You will get caught up in the story and before you know it the book will be over!  That’s the highest praise you can ever give a book in my opinion. My kids sat enraptured as I read it aloud even though seven of them had already read the book for themselves. 

This book and the whole series will have a home on our shelves forever. 

About the Guide

The enrichment guide pdf we received goes with the Day and Night book. It is 98 pages long and very thorough.  I highly recommend using the enrichment guides with your older children to really get some meat out of these books.  This guide is the first one to be done and is available to purchase in PDF or print. 

Within the guide, there is reading comprehension, vocabulary, geography, and so much more.  This really could be used as a unit study with the book to cover almost every subject.  I love the amount of history that is covered not only within the book itself but within the guide as well. 

Our Thoughts

I am in awe that a teen girl wrote many of these books.  The books cover a lot of history and important events of our past.  I love how she incorporates those into the views of a horse and captures the attention of the reader.  She mentions in interviews that many young people are not interested in history at all and that she aims to change that!  You go, girl! 

We love history and try to get young people involved as well.  While we do this through reenacting both the Civil War and WWII, I feel that these books are going to reach a great deal more people than we ever could!

Obviously, you know that we love history and the Civil War so it probably comes as no surprise that our favorite book is the Day and Night book.  I love that she got so much history correct and definitely did her research into the story.  My kids were all very eager to get their hands on this book to read!

We will always make room on our shelf for these books and plan on looking into what other books this talented young author has written.  They would make amazing Christmas gifts and stocking stuffers or birthday presents.  Also, I could see these complimenting school work when you’re studying these time periods.

We love that all of our books have been signed by the author.  That was super sweet of her and something we’ll cherish.  But we also really love that she has seven younger siblings!  As a large family, it’s always fun to see other large families and also see them succeed!!

Learn More

You can learn more about horses in history and Mattie Richardson by reading all of the reviews from members of the Homeschool Review Crew on the main blog post.  We were all gifted the same books but with different ages and reading preferences, I’m sure there will be reviews for everyone.  Or you can check them out on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.