pony books - from my childhood...

[binker]

I really wanrt to find a book I read as a young girl -it was a pony/horse book,maybe by one of the usual pony book authors but not sure - group of children go on holiday to remote house in Wales- very bleak and no food etc...any ideas -or failing that,any suggestions of authors I could trawl through- thanks !

The secret of pony pass

"It was a desolate spot. There was a precipice on the left side, and the bare rock was still wet from the rain. Slowly but surely Honey Boy was climbing. Then Georgie heard a low muttering on the horizon. There was a crack of thunder which almost split the mountain in two. Honey Boy staggered. Georgie's hands lost their grip..."

The showjumper author is surely Pat Smythe, who wrote the Three Jays series of pony books. They, and Ruby Ferguson's Jill books, were my favourites, because although I was an avid reader, I wasn't actually that keen on ponies. The Three Jays always had some kind of mystery/adventure to occupy them, and I think I was intrigued by the Jill books because they were written in the first person and I hadn't come across many first person stories then.

I used to curl up on my bed, huddled against the radiator, pile of toast, cup of tea and read these for hours

I was pony mad, I had my own pony as well.
when I ran out of kids pony books I went on to Dick Francis - wholly inappropriate for a 9 yr old naive girl but they had horses in them so had to be READ!

I had a pony - still have her, but loaned out. Too much of a heifer to ride her I tried Dick Francis aswell... just because it had horses! I wasn't allowed it out of the school library though, I was too young! Very embarassing walking back in with the book, and putting it back on the shelf in reading hour. I then moved to Jilly Copper

*Cooper

I also entered WHSmiths competition to win a pony.
I also was convinced I was going to win.
I was pony mad, and read all kind of books on horse maintenance, even though I didn't have one.
Recently saw a horse with laminitis and thought to myself, ooh that is caused by too much spring grass.

I had a whole library of maintenance books. I used to read them over and over No idea where I've put them though, think they might be in my mums garage! Am really going to go hunt all these out

Do you think people actually won ponies? I mean can you imagine your mother faced with a horsebox outside and a pony on the doorstep? Mine would have fainted!

I used to do multiple entries, year after year, for the WH Smith comp.
Loved the Jill books and Punchbowl Farm best, until the brother turned into a horrible factory farmer and dehorned the cows! I still think the Jill books are brilliant even as an adult - April May and June Cholly-Sawcutt etc! . In fact I first read Pride and Prejudice because some barmy character in Jill was raving over it.

Oh, yes, the WH Smith comp - I had forgotten that. I did multiple entries, too!

In the Jill books, didn't she change the name of her first pony after the first book? It started off being called danny and then got a more glamourous name - or was it the other way round?
Then she got a second pony, too!

I thoight Jills first pony was called Black boy, and the second was called Rapide. and her friend had one called George?

I soooo wanted to be Jill.

She had Black Boy, but, for PC reason in new editions it's "Best Boy"

He was called Black Boy - according to Wikipedia they say his name is now Best Boy as it's more politically correct!

He was a black horse though wasn't he?

he was piebald

Ypu type more quickly than me Quootie!

at least in the illatrations (sp?) he is.

Was just about to say the same thing.......what would have happended if he had been brown and called Brown Boy?

he's black here I'm confused now - I'd always assumed he was a black horse!

Definatly piebald...

From what I could remember you got stabling and maintenace costs for a year, but Lord knows what you did once the year was up

Sorry slow typing , last post related to win a pony

"Black Boy, Jill?s first pony, mysteriously became a piebald in these editions. Whether this was because Bonar Dunlop drew him like that and the books were changed to suit, or whether it was the other way round, I do not know. Ruby Ferguson had died by the time these editions appeared so was not around to object."

so, he's been black and piebald

I thought I was obsessed Quootiepie! Have you considered Mastermind with a specialist subject of the works of Ruby Ferguson? you could go on in johdpurs and a riding hat LOL