THE CHESTRY OAK

In that unreal, fairy-tale mood of The White Stag, Kate Seredy has done a modern fairy tale of Hungary. Prince Chestry -- the young Micheal, son of a long line of hundreds of Chestrys -- lives in a castle adored by all. His father is revered, the Chestry oak is revered, and a strong, fine peasant woman, Nana, is his mother-substitute who gives him a feeling for the soil. When the war comes, Micheal's father, is a super-spy but appears to be a collaborationist and is cursed by his people. Modern warfare, practiced by the Russians, wipes Chestry off the map when the Nazi command nest there is revealed. Micheal escapes on Midnight, the great black stallion; he is adopted by an American farm family, trains horses and sees a happy ending to his story. For he learns that his father's name has been cleared, Nana is alive, he is to plant the seed of the old Chestry oak in his new country, his pupil and adopted brother wins a cup for horsemanship and he finds Midnight.