THE FLYING HORSE, by Sarah Maslin Nir and Laylie Frazier, Cameron Kids, March 14, 2023, Hardcover, $16.99 (ages 8-12)
Follow a girl and a horse as they each fight to reach their goals in The Flying Horse, a new middle-grade novel by Sarah Maslin Nir.
Trendsetter is a horse destined to fly — in more ways than one. Sarah is a horse-loving seventh grader who has a secret and a fear of losing the one thing she loves most in the world. Separated by an ocean, a horse and a girl’s parallel struggles to be their best include lots of luck and grit, some stubbornness, and a few failures. It is only when they find each other that the two kindred spirits find themselves. Together they learn that what’s important in life isn’t greatness — it’s being great at being you. —Synopsis provided by Cameron Kids
The Flying Horse is the first novel in Cameron Kids’ Once Upon a Horse series of fictional middle-grade novels inspired by real horses and the people who love them.
Told from the alternating points of view of Trendy and Sarah, The Flying Horse examines hopes and dreams and the struggle to achieve them. Along the way, both horse and girl learn trust and how dreams evolve.
Author Sarah Maslin Nir’s juxtaposition of horse and girl is lovely. Exploring the above themes through the duo allows readers to see similar situations from different perspectives. Complexity becomes clarity and simplicity becomes nuanced.
Nir’s prose is straight-forward and comfortable. And Trendy and Sarah are compelling and full of life.
The Flying Horse is a quick read that will ring true to most middle-readers but will be especially endearing to horse lovers. It’s a great start to what looks to be a promising new series.
About the author:
Sarah Maslin Nir is a staff reporter for The New York Times and the author of the new Once Upon a Horse series of children’s books, featuring true stories from across the equestrian world. Nir is also the author of the adult nonfiction book Horse Crazy: The Story of a Woman and a World in Love with an Animal published in 2020 by Simon and Schuster. She rides hunters competitively and is the mom of four horses and one pony. She can be found on Twitter @SarahMaslinNir and on Instagram: @onceuponahorse
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