BLUE CANYON HORSE

A Newbery prize winner with another atmospheric story of a wild country- Utah, this time, where Ann Clark lived and worked among the Indians. There's a stark simplicity of theme and free verse form that lends to the story of a mare and her colt and the Indian boy who loved them the beauty and feel of the canyon pasture and the mesa heights. The little mare deserts her owner and the quiet of the valley when she hears the call of freedom. She joins a band of wild horse for a summer and a winter. And then- with her colt-she comes back to human friendship and the boy who loves her. When the boy kills a cougar that has landed on her back, she knows that through him she has found safety. The pictures by an Indian artist, Allan Houser, capture the quality of the setting and text. Not a book for an action-loving child, but for one to whom the rhythmic oneness of thought and text add meaning. Possibly more children at the read aloud level will like this than the second and third grader towards whom the publisher directs it.