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Pony Books:
QUESTION MARK
aka PRIDE OF THE MOOR (USA title)
(PETER DAVIES 1961)
Published in the USA by Doubleday in 1962 and re-titled.
UK edition rare.
EDITIONS PICTURED: USA re-titled edition.
SUMMARY: A young boy attempts to train a horse for the Grand National.
MARTIN RIDES THE MOOR
(CONSTABLE 1964)
ILLUSTRATED BY PETER FORSTER
Reprinted in hardback by Kestrel in 1980.
Reprinted in paperback a couple of times by Carousel.
USA edition published by Doubleday in 1965 with different illustrator, Ray Houlihan.
There was also a German edition
EDITIONS PICTURED: 1st edition, Carousel paperbacks, USA edition.
SUMMARY: Set on Dartmoor. Martin loses his hearing in an accident and retreats from life. However he comes to terms with his illness whilst looking after a Dartmoor pony.
PONYMAD RATING: 4-5 HORSESHOES
GREEN HEART
(DOUBLEDAY (USA)1964)
SUMMARY: Sara takes on the broken-down race mare Crossed Fingers with the help of some of the townspeople. But others are appalled that she would spend money on a horse when she can barely support her two brothers. Eventually however, the local community is drawn together to help Sara and the horse.
EDITIONS PICTURED: 1st edition.
PONYMAD RATING: 4 HORSESHOES
THE HORSES OF PETROCK
aka A SECOND CHANCE (USA title)
(CONSTABLE 1965)
Published in the USA by Doubleday in 1966 and re-titled.
EDITIONS PICTURED: 1st edition, USA re-titled edition.
SUMMARY: Johnny belongs to a motorbike gang but when the gang plan to use a horrific wire bridle on some local horses, he turns against them. He becomes a stable hand and soon discovers that it is horses which give his life meaning.
KING SAM
aka TALL AND PROUD (USA title)
(CONSTABLE 1966)
ILLUSTRATED BY PETER FORSTER
Published in the USA by Doubleday in 1966 and re-titled.
Also reprinted in paperback in America.
EDITIONS PICTURED: USA re-titled edition.
SUMMARY: Story of a young girl who overcomes polio to be with her horse again.
COME DOWN THE MOUNTAIN
(CONSTABLE 1967)
Reprinted in hardback by Kestrel in 1980.
Reprinted in paperback by Corgi and Carousel
USA edition published by Doubleday in 1967
EDITIONS PICTURED: Carousel paperback, USA edition.
SUMMARY: Excellent story aimed at teenagers. Frumpy and overweight Brenda is the butt of many a joke at her school. Her determination to rescue a neglected thoroughbred horse against all advice seems as if it will make her even more of an outcast. But in time the horse brings Brenda and the people around her closer together and helps them make new discoveries about each other.
PONYMAD RATING: 5 HORSESHOES
THE LORD MAYOR'S SHOW
(LONGMAN 1968)
Reprinted in hardback by Kestrel in 1980.
USA edition published by Doubleday in 1969
Also a German edition
EDITIONS PICTURED: 1st edition, Kestrel edition, USA edition.
SUMMARY: Trainer Danny Duncan is down on his luck. The final straw came when he accepted the good looking horse The Lord Mayor in exchange for a debt. Danny hoped to make his fortune with the horse but his jockey son Graham rode him too harshly in his first race and now the horse refuses to race and Graham has left to work in London after a big row with his father. Only Danny's younger son Andrew seems to have faith that the horse will race again. When Danny is badly injured, Graham comes back to run the stables and the family rally round to try and make something of their reluctant racehorse.
PONYMAD RATING: 4 HORSESHOES
MOON IN THE RIVER
(LONGMAN 1969)
ILLUSTRATED BY ANTHONY COLBERT
Reprinted in hardback by Longmans in 1971.
EDITION PICTURED: 1st edition
SUMMARY: Some pony content in this historical story. Set in pre-historic Dartmoor, where a pair of children become interested in a horse and a wolf and wonder if they can become companions rather than food.
MINSTREL BOY
(PETER DAVIES 1970)
USA edition published by Doubleday in 1970
EDITION PICTURED: 1st edition.
SUMMARY: When her son is killed in the war, a grieving mother decides to honour his memory by training his horse for the National. All the community soon becomes involved. Fictionalised account based on a true story.
PONYMAD RATING: 3 HORSESHOES
PARADE OF HORSES (Non-fiction)
aka HORSES IN THE GREEN VALLEY (USA title)
(LONGMANS 1970)
Reprinted in paperback.
Re-published in the USA in 1971 by Doubleday
EDITION PICTURED: Paperback edition, USA edition.
SUMMARY: Autobiographical writings of horses the author has known. Although non-fiction it has been included here as the book reads almost like a series of stories about horses and is well-suited to children.
Collectors information:
Vian Smith is one of those authors who seems more popular and widely published in a country other than their own. Although British, his books were very popular in America and many were reprinted a number of times there. Today many of the editions are actually easier to find in the USA than in the UK. In fact one of the books, Green Heart, was only ever published in the USA. It must also be noted that a lot of the books were re-titled for the American market, so it is important to check these before buying, to avoid duplicates!
The easiest two to find by far in the UK are Martin Rides the Moor and Come Down the Mountain, which were both reprinted as paperbacks. The non-fiction, Parade of Horses, is also quite easy to get hold of. All the others may be easier to find in the USA than the UK.
The rarest one is Question Mark, which although fairly easy to find in the USA in its American incarnation of Pride of the Moor, is very hard to find in its first true British edition. Similarly King Sam is also very hard to find, whereas its USA counterpart Tall and Proud is fairly easy to find in America.
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