This is a beautiful, gentle book that won the Caldecott Medal for good reason—Goble's illustrations are genuinely stunning. But let's be real: it's from 1978, and it feels like it.
The pacing is slow, the storytelling is spare, and the magical transformation at the end (girl literally becomes a horse and gallops off) is presented without much explanation or emotional processing. For a modern kid raised on high-energy picture books with jokes and meta-references, this will feel... quiet. Maybe too quiet.
That said, if you have a horse-loving kid who likes contemplative stories, or if you're specifically looking for books that represent Native American perspectives (with the caveat that Goble was British, though deeply respectful), this is a solid choice. It's not going to change your kid's life, but it's a nice window into a different way of telling stories—one that values patience, connection with nature, and the idea that sometimes you belong somewhere unexpected.
Just don't expect them to ask for it again and again. It's more of a "that was nice" than a "READ IT AGAIN!" book.






