Post by Claire on Nov 30, 2011 14:10:31 GMT 1
JOEY THE TALE OF A PONY by J. IVESTER LLOYD
I am not a great fan of 1930s pony fiction and unfortunately this book has done nothing to improve my opinion. It is in fact one of the dullest pony stories I have ever read!
It is not without its merits, the chief being the lovely illustrations by the author's father T. Ivester Lloyd, a noted sporting artist of the day. The book is competently written, readable, and the author it must be admitted is skilful in re-creating the world and people of the countryside and hunting community of that era. But for me its faults outweigh the good points.
The main problem is that there is no plot what-so-ever. A farmer buys a Welsh pony called Joey who is found to be good at hunting, he then gets a different owner and is taken to a number of different hunts over the years. That is basically it. (You may have noticed that unlike most of my reviews I have not included a summary on this one and the reason why is that there was nothing to summarise!) Although the book is called Joey, The Tale of a Pony, the pony in question is really only there as a link between the various hunts. There is not really much about his character at all, compared for example to books like Moorland Mousie by Golden Gorse or Jerry by Eleanor Helme, books writtten at a similar time.
In fact none of the characters are painted in any great detail. There are rather too many introduced throughout the book and though some of the snap portraits of them are skilful and amusing, none of them are developed very deeply and we don't really have an emotional connection to any of them. In fact there is very little emotional connection to anything that happens in the story. There are no high or low points to stir the reader, slight amusement is the strongest emotion I felt upon reading the book (apart from boredom that is!)
The author was a great fan of hunting and that is at the heart of the problem with this book. It is really just a rather self-indulgent homage to Ivester Lloyd's favourite sport. I don't think I have ever come across so many hunts in a single book! Not only are foxes hunted, but unfortunate otters are pursued too, and, as well as foxhounds and otterhounds, we also have beagles added to the hunting mix.
OK, so I don't like hunting, but apart from my dislike of it, I find hunt descriptions deadly boring. I normally skip quickly over any chapters in pony books featuring hunting, so I am perhaps a little biased against this book. Perhaps someone who enjoys the sport may find this a riveting read, but I think not. I hope I am able to look beyond my aversion to the sport and judge the book on its merits, and I feel that any book which concentrates on one activity, what-ever it may be, to the exclusion of story and character development, is poor fiction. I am pretty sure the lack of plot and any emotional attachment to the characters would mar this book for anyone but the most enthusiastic hunt fanatic.
In summary, if you don't like hunting don't even go near the book. If you do, or perhaps if you like descriptions of thirties rural life and the characters who populated that era, you will possibly get some enjoyment from the story. It is also a worthwhile addition to your collection if you collect books for their illustrations.
I awarded it 2 HORSESHOES
(Was tempted to give it 1 but I'm trying to be unbiased and I also think the illustrations deserve a horseshoe of their own! )
I am not a great fan of 1930s pony fiction and unfortunately this book has done nothing to improve my opinion. It is in fact one of the dullest pony stories I have ever read!
It is not without its merits, the chief being the lovely illustrations by the author's father T. Ivester Lloyd, a noted sporting artist of the day. The book is competently written, readable, and the author it must be admitted is skilful in re-creating the world and people of the countryside and hunting community of that era. But for me its faults outweigh the good points.
The main problem is that there is no plot what-so-ever. A farmer buys a Welsh pony called Joey who is found to be good at hunting, he then gets a different owner and is taken to a number of different hunts over the years. That is basically it. (You may have noticed that unlike most of my reviews I have not included a summary on this one and the reason why is that there was nothing to summarise!) Although the book is called Joey, The Tale of a Pony, the pony in question is really only there as a link between the various hunts. There is not really much about his character at all, compared for example to books like Moorland Mousie by Golden Gorse or Jerry by Eleanor Helme, books writtten at a similar time.
In fact none of the characters are painted in any great detail. There are rather too many introduced throughout the book and though some of the snap portraits of them are skilful and amusing, none of them are developed very deeply and we don't really have an emotional connection to any of them. In fact there is very little emotional connection to anything that happens in the story. There are no high or low points to stir the reader, slight amusement is the strongest emotion I felt upon reading the book (apart from boredom that is!)
The author was a great fan of hunting and that is at the heart of the problem with this book. It is really just a rather self-indulgent homage to Ivester Lloyd's favourite sport. I don't think I have ever come across so many hunts in a single book! Not only are foxes hunted, but unfortunate otters are pursued too, and, as well as foxhounds and otterhounds, we also have beagles added to the hunting mix.
OK, so I don't like hunting, but apart from my dislike of it, I find hunt descriptions deadly boring. I normally skip quickly over any chapters in pony books featuring hunting, so I am perhaps a little biased against this book. Perhaps someone who enjoys the sport may find this a riveting read, but I think not. I hope I am able to look beyond my aversion to the sport and judge the book on its merits, and I feel that any book which concentrates on one activity, what-ever it may be, to the exclusion of story and character development, is poor fiction. I am pretty sure the lack of plot and any emotional attachment to the characters would mar this book for anyone but the most enthusiastic hunt fanatic.
In summary, if you don't like hunting don't even go near the book. If you do, or perhaps if you like descriptions of thirties rural life and the characters who populated that era, you will possibly get some enjoyment from the story. It is also a worthwhile addition to your collection if you collect books for their illustrations.
I awarded it 2 HORSESHOES
(Was tempted to give it 1 but I'm trying to be unbiased and I also think the illustrations deserve a horseshoe of their own! )