What do you think?
Rate this book
David and Pat #1
The First Rosette
David's family don't like horses. They think he should concentrate on school, because there's no future with horses for someone like him. But David is determined, and horses are somehow in his blood. He meets Pat, the Master's daughter, and they get on well, despite coming from completely different backgrounds.
David gets a reward he never expected after he does a good deed, and he learns more and more about horses. Perhaps one day he'll win that first rosette.
This book was written in the 1950s, when hunting was legal.
David gets a reward he never expected after he does a good deed, and he learns more and more about horses. Perhaps one day he'll win that first rosette.
This book was written in the 1950s, when hunting was legal.
174 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1956
4 people are currently reading
22 people want to read
About the author
Christine Pullein-Thompson
166 books24 followersThe Pullein-Thompson sisters — Josephine Pullein-Thompson MBE (3 April 1924-[1]), Diana Pullein-Thompson (born 1 October 1925) [2] and Christine Pullein-Thompson (1 October 1925–2 December 2005[2] — are British writers of several horse and pony books (mostly fictional) aimed at children and mostly popular with girls. They started at a very young age (initially writing collectively) and they were at their peak in the 1950s and 1960s, but their popularity has endured. They have written a collective autobiography Fair Girls and Grey Horses.
All 3 sisters have written at least 1 book under a different name; Josephine wrote 1 under the pseudonym of Josephine Mann, Diana 3 books under her married name of Diana Farr and Christine wrote 2 books under the name of Christine Keir.
Their mother, Joanna Cannan (1898–1961), sister of the poet May Cannan, wrote similar equestrian stories, but is better known for detective mysteries.
All 3 sisters have written at least 1 book under a different name; Josephine wrote 1 under the pseudonym of Josephine Mann, Diana 3 books under her married name of Diana Farr and Christine wrote 2 books under the name of Christine Keir.
Their mother, Joanna Cannan (1898–1961), sister of the poet May Cannan, wrote similar equestrian stories, but is better known for detective mysteries.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
February 2, 2017
Now my bookshelves are complete I have all the boxes of children's books unpacked and on the shelves. My old favourites are just the thing to read in the middle of the night when the pain keeps me awake for hours. During my pony stage I read all the Pullein-Thompson sisters' horsey books.
'First Rosette' is a must for horsey kids between 10 and 12 years. David has all the grit and determination he needs to find a pony to ride. Luck is on his side when he catches a runaway pony belonging to Pat the M.F.H.'s wealthy daughter. Soon he is riding the hunt's odd job pony and he and Pat start trying to improve themselves and plan a future as riding school owners.
It's a cheerful, hopeful book and parents will enjoy the positive attitudes and ideals it passes on to the reader. Well worth digging out of the library stack or 2nd hand shop.
'First Rosette' is a must for horsey kids between 10 and 12 years. David has all the grit and determination he needs to find a pony to ride. Luck is on his side when he catches a runaway pony belonging to Pat the M.F.H.'s wealthy daughter. Soon he is riding the hunt's odd job pony and he and Pat start trying to improve themselves and plan a future as riding school owners.
It's a cheerful, hopeful book and parents will enjoy the positive attitudes and ideals it passes on to the reader. Well worth digging out of the library stack or 2nd hand shop.
June 12, 2014
One of my favourite horse books as a child. I read as many British horse books as I could get my hands on, especially the ones by the Pullein-Thompson sisters!
Read
November 4, 2022David longs to be part of the world of horses but coming from an ordinary family, with a dad who delivers fish in a van, there's not much chance of that. Then he does a good deed, helping the local Master of the Hunt's daughter, Pat, and the two become friends. First Pat helps him get permission to ride the Hunt's most unreliable nag, and then the two rescue a hound, and after that David's fortunes keep rising, being gifted a much better pony, joining the local pony club and getting to jump in local shows.
My nostalgia reads are continuing well. It's the kind of book where mostly good things happen to the protagonist, but I didn't find that tiring because David never does. He keeps thinking his luck will run out, not realising it's his own good work and effort that is as much to do with it as luck.
It's also another book where class differences are very much at the forefront. Pat's family is well off and can afford to do whatever they want. Pat at one point says she's probably going to be a deb, which she describes as, "A person who spends her life going to awful parties in London and being looked at by terrible young men; one of whom she eventually marries if she's lucky." Note Pat is about 11 years old at this point, but wise as the hills! But yes the book makes it very clear that horseriding is the realm of the rich and landed, and every step David takes into that world is with great effort.
My nostalgia reads are continuing well. It's the kind of book where mostly good things happen to the protagonist, but I didn't find that tiring because David never does. He keeps thinking his luck will run out, not realising it's his own good work and effort that is as much to do with it as luck.
It's also another book where class differences are very much at the forefront. Pat's family is well off and can afford to do whatever they want. Pat at one point says she's probably going to be a deb, which she describes as, "A person who spends her life going to awful parties in London and being looked at by terrible young men; one of whom she eventually marries if she's lucky." Note Pat is about 11 years old at this point, but wise as the hills! But yes the book makes it very clear that horseriding is the realm of the rich and landed, and every step David takes into that world is with great effort.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews