A Hundred Horses

Nell is lonely. She misses her father and, though Nell’s mother tries to fill her days, Nell is unhappy. She joins every club her mother suggests, but is still an outsider. She is looking forward to spring vacation with her grandmother, but everything changes. Nell is to be sent to stay with her Aunt Liv, someone she hardly knows, for two weeks. When getting her suitcase from the attic, she discovers a case with pieces of a toy carousel her father had made for her. She takes it with her. While trying to sneak it into her aunt’s house, Nell is almost run down by a horse, and a mysterious girl steals the case, but Nell can’t tell anyone because she isn’t supposed to have it. After her encounter, her young cousins tell Nell a story of a hundred horses. Nell begins a journey from being a lonely outsider to discovering the magic inside herself and all around her.

Sarah Lean has written a story that will enchant young readers with all things that girls like best—horses, mystery, magic, and charming characters in most interesting circumstances. This is a winner.