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Post by trixiepony on Aug 1, 2022 12:18:17 GMT 1
Sorry for being AWOL a while. Due to visa problems I have had to go back to the UK for a few months. Just spent 3 days travelling back by motorhome then another 2 recovering!! Thanks for the updates and thanks Haffy for the info on Cressida B children’s books. I have read the Izzy Brown books so I will defo give her kids books a go. Yes those Izzy Brown books send interesting . The covid bug has got us at last, my brother got a positive test first early last Wednesday and I got a positive that evening, mum got a positive Saturday. Not nice feeling very yuck.
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Post by Claire on Aug 2, 2022 23:53:52 GMT 1
Hope you feel better soon Trixie.
Well finally got back on track and finished Wild One. Scraped a smiley. Ok read, if nothing outstanding. The main negative is that the Wild One of the title doesnt feature in much of the book and isnt really fleshed out as a horse character at all. Hopefully in Fiesta for Wild One, which I am also reading for the challenge, he will be portrayed with a bit more depth.
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Post by haffyfan on Aug 7, 2022 17:16:36 GMT 1
I strongly suspect the author of those ones knew nothing about horses and was writing to a spec, they are very much adventure with horses thrown in, with those glaring mistakes you (well I certainly) can't overlook, but they are okay. I did manage to read the full set years ago, which was more than I managed as a child. I had a 2 in 1 with the first two and never got very far back then! I also didn't mind Linda Craig as an adult, again overlooking the glaring equine issues, but again struggled as a child.
I'm not doing very well so far, keep reading other stuff instead of my challenge books so can I add one?
Non horsey, but currently reading Mad Ferret by Matt Burgin. It's 2015 and 22 year old Tim from Sheffield time travels back to the hey days of the Indie music scene he loves, but was born a little too late for. He goes back to 1989 to visit a monumental Stone roses gig, and so far has chosen not to return to the future, as per the initial plan. His wormhole has now closed and if he stays beyond his point of conception he will cease to exist in the present time so can't return... And that's currently where I am at with it, just under half way. Not my usual thing but very readable, will appeal to anyone who enjoyed the 90's Indie music scene, and also people who know the places mentioned. I don't usually like real references in fiction, as it dates the book too much, but as this is clear in the dates it's set, the references work seamlessly, I mean who doesn't love back to the future! Unfortunately he didn't go back in a delorian, rather in a *insert rude word here* mobile.
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Post by Claire on Aug 8, 2022 22:16:24 GMT 1
well I’ve finally just about settled back into the UK and started on Fiesta for Wild One. I’ve obviously missed out a few in the series that come in between but it’s easy enough to pick up. Yeah agree with your thoughts haffy that the author doesn’t seem overly knowledgeable about horses. Once again not a massive amount of horse content either but I’m enjoying it more than the first one - maybe as it’s set in Spain where I’ve been living for a year and love. More on it when I’ve finished.
Interesting time travel read Haffy. Tho if I was going back in time to a musical era it wouldn’t be the 90s lol. To be fair I’m so old I feel I’ve lived through the the best etas anyhow haha. Do like a time slip plot tho.
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Post by susanb on Aug 8, 2022 23:52:18 GMT 1
I've fallen behind myself....just on a mystery binge. I read Murder is a Collector's Item by Elizabeth Dean last weekend and immediately ordered the two other books in the series, started the second this past weekend. About a young woman working in an antiques store in Boston...if Dorothy Parker had written mysteries, this would be the result. Hopefully I can get myself back on track before the deadline....three books to go! Re the Peter Grey Wild One series....I read a bunch of them when I started collecting....given my love of both mysteries and horse books, I thought "wow, how great is this, like Dick Francis for the younger set!". It was a bummer to find out that there wasn't enough mystery to be a mystery, nor enough horse to be horse. Sold the lot and never looked back
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Post by Claire on Aug 9, 2022 19:38:26 GMT 1
I didn't even realise the Kit Hunter series were supposed to be mysteries - have only read two and they weren't at all mystery plots. I have in fact just finished Fiesta for Wild One and I am quite impressed with it. Far better than the first one in the series. More horse content too. The plot centres around Kit and her friend Mary looking for buyers for Kit's guardian's horses over in Spain, but there is also a sub-plot about rescuing an old horse and a small horse show section. One of the reasons I enjoyed the book was because it was mainly set in Spain. Whatever the author knows or doesn't know about horses, he does seem to know Spain and South America. Having lived in a non-tourist area of Spain for a year, I totally recognise his portrayal of provincial Spain and the Spanish people. What is surprising is that the book was written in the 1960s and yet much of the way of life/customs etc hasn't changed. Although the peasant culture and the Spanish honour ethos has mostly gone, there are still village fiestas, siesta time, etc and the character of the Spanish, especially the older ones, is pretty much the same as in the book. Very laid back, very friendly and helpful but also sometimes completely puzzled at the Brits behaviour! The description of the two girls getting on a bus to try and locate a potential buyer and ending up stranded in the middle of nowhere was very reminsicent of some of my own travels in rural Spain and brought a smile to my face. In fact I did think there was quite a bit of humour in the book, which was another plus point. For a book of its era, it wasn't too jingoistic or condescending about the Spanish people and their customs; on the contrary it even gave quite a thoughtful comparison about the different ways of life and mores of the Spanish and British people.
Another big plus for me was the sub-plot of the rescue of an old Spanish horse who faces an awful death - I always have a soft spot for a rescue story. It also brought the character of Kit some depth, as, unlike in the first book, she really does seem to care about horses (and people) and puts rescuing the horse above her performance in an upcoming horse show. It gave some pathos/emotional impact to the book which I found lacking in The WIld One.
All in all this is head and shoulders above the opening book in the series. Yes, the writing is quite basic and owes a lot to the journalistic background of the author, and it's never going to be a classic, but it does have most of the ingredients for a good horse story, along with a very interesting look at Spanish life and also show jumping under South American rules. I would certainly now read some of the others in the series now (most of which have been lurking on my shelves for a long time!)
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Post by susanb on Aug 10, 2022 15:26:01 GMT 1
The first pair I picked up were The Wild One and The Moor Grange Mystery, then Mystery of the Mine....lol, looks like I picked the wrong ones. If Fiesta ever turns up here, will give it a go!
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Post by Claire on Aug 12, 2022 12:10:44 GMT 1
The first pair I picked up were The Wild One and The Moor Grange Mystery, then Mystery of the Mine....lol, looks like I picked the wrong ones. If Fiesta ever turns up here, will give it a go! Could be that it is one of those series where one book is far better than all the others. Certainly Wild One was quite average. Unfortunately I think all the other Kit Hunter books I have are back in Spain so I can't compare any others.
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Post by darkhorse on Aug 16, 2022 11:07:08 GMT 1
I've been away on holiday and took 2 books to read from the challenge list. A big smiley for Horse in My Heart. This was very powerful, emotional and well written, although not really a holiday read as it was a very sad subject matter. Unfortunately a frownie for Prince the Pony, as I found it very dull and was unable to finish it. I probably could have it I had ploughed on but I had other more tempting books to read.
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Post by haffyfan on Aug 17, 2022 22:03:02 GMT 1
Back on track, neutral please for Surprise Riding Club, it wasn't awful but it wasn't great either, suspect i'm not going to like this author, and currently backs up why they have been on the tbr pile for so long.
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Post by tintin on Aug 18, 2022 22:23:37 GMT 1
Can I have a smiley for:-
Dark Horse of Woodfield
please?
Splendidly eccentric
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Post by Claire on Aug 20, 2022 16:24:01 GMT 1
Back on track, neutral please for Surprise Riding Club, it wasn't awful but it wasn't great either, suspect i'm not going to like this author, and currently backs up why they have been on the tbr pile for so long. Hi Haffy I can't see The Surprise Riding Club on your list - but another 2 by Elinore Havers. Is it a substitute for one of them or shall i add it? Coincidentally I've just finished Only One Pony (a re-read) by the same author. Although most of her books are fairly average, I find this one - along with Dream Pony - very good. I had previously awarded it 4 to 5 horseshoes so it just about qualifies as my 5 star read. A big smiley for this as i enjoyed it as much as ever. Although there is nothing particularly out of the ordinary about it, and certainly no great depth or insight, I rate it highly as it is to me the archetypal traditional pony book and a real comfort read. To me, the book sums up all that pony books have meant to me since an ear!y age - simply ordinary kids having fun and loving ordinary ponies. The characters are likeable and easy to identify with, the ponies are real and down to earth - there are no people with special abilities or affinities with horses, no aspirations to win Badminton or the like. It's a credit to the author that such ordinary day to day horsiness can keep one reading. The plot is in fact a little out of the ordinary and does make you wonder how it will be resolved. The ending is perhaps the low point as it is rather cliched. But overall I would class this as an under-rated classic in the pony book world.
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Post by haffyfan on Aug 20, 2022 20:24:04 GMT 1
Back on track, neutral please for Surprise Riding Club, it wasn't awful but it wasn't great either, suspect i'm not going to like this author, and currently backs up why they have been on the tbr pile for so long. Hi Haffy I can't see The Surprise Riding Club on your list - but another 2 by Elinore Havers. Is it a substitute for one of them or shall i add it? Coincidentally I've just finished Only One Pony (a re-read) by the same author. And that's the one i was supposed to read! I'll have to try that next. I've just reread the updated version of The Perfect Distance, still a really good read, she's just modernised it slightly for today's market to relate to.
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Post by Claire on Aug 23, 2022 14:35:33 GMT 1
Ok Haffy I'll update your list. A while since I read The Perfect Distance but I can remember it was an excellent read.
Started on my next one, Heartsease by Peter Dickinson. Picked it cos it's been on my TBR pile for a while and I also wanted to check how much horse content was in it and whether to add it to my website or not. It's a bit of an oddity, don't know whether it would fit into the fantasy or sci-fi category, in truth it's a dystopian world, also an alternative world/reality story. Written in the late 60s, it surmises a world where people suddenly turned against machines/technology and stopped using them, going back to an almost medieval lifestyle - and anyone caught using machinery is stoned as a witch! Rather an unlikely scenario really but it's quite interesting. A little bit of horse content so far. May write a full review of it when I've finished.
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Post by tintin on Aug 23, 2022 22:16:03 GMT 1
Hello Claire - it's part of a trilogy and there was a really weird BBC seventies kids series called "The Changes" based on it, scared the hell out of me on the tv.
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Post by Claire on Aug 23, 2022 22:42:37 GMT 1
Hello Claire - it's part of a trilogy and there was a really weird BBC seventies kids series called "The Changes" based on it, scared the hell out of me on the tv. Thanks for the info Tintin, I did realise when I started reading the book it was part 2 of a trilogy. ALthough fairly easy to pick up the story, I would have liked to know what caused the changes. Didn't know there was a TV show about it, definitely missed that as a kid. (Some youtube investigation needed methinks) I can see it being scary, this story starts with a young girl having to face the death by stoning of a fellow human being!
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Post by susanb on Aug 24, 2022 20:35:05 GMT 1
eeek!!!! (making a mental note to give that a miss )
I'm back on track, reading A Spanish Adventure by Pat Smythe. A bit meh, but oh, that cover!
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Post by tintin on Aug 25, 2022 9:31:37 GMT 1
Please could I have a smiley face for:-
"Breed of Giants" (J Stranger)
Susan, in the world of that TV series everyone in the world has gone crackers, they have auditory delusions that cause them to smash machinery. Stoning is a normal night out in their world. (Yes, I'd avoid it too :-) )
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Post by haffyfan on Aug 25, 2022 17:20:30 GMT 1
Neutral for Pony Pageant too please, much ado about nothing springs to mind! Another That's just not my cup of tea I guess, there is definitely a reason some of them have lingered on the tbr pile for so many years!
Having a break before I tackle the other Elinore Havers and reading the 3rd instalment of the Grassroots series by Catherine Rix, Stable relations, which is recently published. I really enjoyed the first two so hopefully this will be good too! She also has two lovely reads for younger audiences too, on KU so would recommend if you have this.
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Post by Claire on Aug 29, 2022 21:49:54 GMT 1
Which edition of Spanish Adventure do you have Susan? I should really read it and keep up the Spanish theme but I read Swiss Adventure a while back and found it a bit of a snore-fest so I've avoided the others in the series. I'm struggling a bit with my current book, have read 3 psychological thriller type pot-boilers in a row while putting off getting on with it
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Post by susanb on Aug 31, 2022 1:02:33 GMT 1
I have the first edition in dj, so lovely.
Unfortunately, also a bit of a snore fest 🙄. Progress very slow.
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Post by Charlotte on Aug 31, 2022 13:42:58 GMT 1
Apologies for the radio silence. I had my beloved cat of 10 years put to sleep recently. I havent quite got all the books sorted but here's what I got so far We Hunted Hounds by CPT (pony library) A Spanish Adventure by Pat Smythe (celebration) Meet Me At The Cupcake Cafe by Jenny Colgan (non pony) Courses For Horses by Caroline Akrill (humorous/new) Plus at least 1 more to be decided.
I'm also sorry to hear about your cat, garej. 10 years seems a relatively short life.
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Post by tintin on Sept 2, 2022 13:26:03 GMT 1
Please could I have a smiley face for:-
"Goodbye Hamilton"
very real feeling to the book
I am so sorry about your cat Garej, may the memory be a blessing to you
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Post by Claire on Sept 3, 2022 0:05:06 GMT 1
Please could I have a smiley face for:- "Goodbye Hamilton" very real feeling to the book I love the Hamilton series - and probably one of the most unusual horsy characters in a book ever! I'm going to leave Heartsease for the time being and maybe come back to it, more just to see if the horse theme develops or not than anything. We only have a couple of weeks left to the official end date but I'll probably extend it til the end of September if folk need more time.
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Post by darkhorse on Sept 4, 2022 19:15:05 GMT 1
Big smiley please for Rebel Pony by Patricia Leitch. Great read. Now I only have one to finish, Fiesta for Wild One. to complete the challenge (thanks for sending me the book Claire)
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Post by susanb on Sept 8, 2022 20:03:48 GMT 1
An extension would be great....I started out well, but have stumbled in the stretch. I'm in the middle of three books, including Spanish Adventure. Clearly its just me. Good tips on the Hamilton series, it turns out that they're available as ebooks, off to buy the first now.
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Post by Claire on Sept 8, 2022 23:32:07 GMT 1
An extension would be great....I started out well, but have stumbled... Good tips on the Hamilton series, it turns out that they're available as ebooks, off to buy the first now. Let me know what you think of them when you have read them, Susan. Ive slowed up too. But hoping to get Pony Trek and at least the firstbook in the WhitbyWitches trilogy done.
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Post by susanb on Sept 11, 2022 21:41:36 GMT 1
Smiley, please for The Merrow Ponies, a pleasant, traditional read. Taking place five years after Four Ponies, the younger girls have outgrown their original ponies and are learning to adapt to new mounts; the eldest girl is beginning to realize that her world is going to expand beyond ponies and gymkhanas. Nicely done, with no mention of selling off their ponies, in fact, they’re breeding one of them!
Have started Horses for Courses, about halfway through and loving it so far.
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Post by Claire on Sept 12, 2022 16:57:40 GMT 1
Thanks for the update Susan. Are you still stuck on Spanish Adventure...?
I've started on Pony Trek (Hilda Boden) I think I started to read it a few years ago but got bored or maybe distracted by something, hoping to get further this time!
By the way folks, have extended the challenge until 30th September. Hopefully we will all get finished by then.
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Post by haffyfan on Sept 12, 2022 20:55:59 GMT 1
Thanks for the extension. haven't been brave enough to tackle the other Elinore havers yet.
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