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Dawn Rider
The black sheep of her tribe, Kit has always felt like an outsider amond the Blackfoot, but her extraordinary personality is put to good use when the tribe encounters its first horse, and it is Kit who tames it. Reprint. H. VY.
173 pages, Paperback
First published December 14, 1990
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About the author
Jan Hudson
2 books4 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.
Jan Hudson, a Canadian author of historical fiction, wrote only two novels during her short life. She died at the age of thirty-six in 1990 of respiratory failure due to viral pneumonia. However, she left a lasting message for young girls about overcoming adversity to find their true place in the world. Hudson's two novels, Sweetgrass and Dawn Rider, exemplify her interest in "social anthropology--the little things that make up most people's lives," as she stated in a 1989 Publishers Weekly interview with Bella Stander. She conveyed these details by using the history of the Blackfoot Nation as her background. "Both [novels] are evocative historical works, rich in nuance and resonance, about young women coming of age in the Blackfoot Nation," commented Sandra Martin in Quill and Quire. "Underlying this theme is a subtle yet haunting message about the devastating consequences that have resulted from native contact with Europeans." Perhaps the greatest compliment to Hudson's work was written by Sarah Ellis in the Horn Book: "We also experience the more complex satisfaction of having genuinely entered another time and the lives of another people." Hudson's hope, more specifically, was to write about the lives of Canadian Indian women of the past who, in her opinion, had been ignored.
Jan Hudson, a Canadian author of historical fiction, wrote only two novels during her short life. She died at the age of thirty-six in 1990 of respiratory failure due to viral pneumonia. However, she left a lasting message for young girls about overcoming adversity to find their true place in the world. Hudson's two novels, Sweetgrass and Dawn Rider, exemplify her interest in "social anthropology--the little things that make up most people's lives," as she stated in a 1989 Publishers Weekly interview with Bella Stander. She conveyed these details by using the history of the Blackfoot Nation as her background. "Both [novels] are evocative historical works, rich in nuance and resonance, about young women coming of age in the Blackfoot Nation," commented Sandra Martin in Quill and Quire. "Underlying this theme is a subtle yet haunting message about the devastating consequences that have resulted from native contact with Europeans." Perhaps the greatest compliment to Hudson's work was written by Sarah Ellis in the Horn Book: "We also experience the more complex satisfaction of having genuinely entered another time and the lives of another people." Hudson's hope, more specifically, was to write about the lives of Canadian Indian women of the past who, in her opinion, had been ignored.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
November 26, 2011
Granted, it's been a REALLY long time since I last read this book, but I recall it with such fondness that I gave it four stars. When I was a kid this was one of my favorites.
Here's what I recall of the plot, without spoilers:
Kit Fox is a Native American girl growing up in a Plains nation -- I believe it's the Blackfoot nation, but I can't remember with 100% accuracy. She lives during the time when horses are not much more than rumors to her people; but during a raid on enemies, some men of her tribe capture a horse and bring it home.
Kit Fox discovers she has an affinity with the horse, and begins taming it with the intention to ride it, although as a female she is strongly discouraged from doing something so manly. Sideline dramas occur, involving her good friend Found Arrow falling into trouble, and her sister Many Deer ending up married to an abusive husband. It's the kind of family-and-friend drama that makes the modern YA genre so popular with readers of all ages now, although this book was written before YA became a marketing category.
In the climactic scene, Kit Fox must finally accept her destiny and ride the horse to save her people from invasion...but what consequences will she face for defying custom and taking on the role of a man?
I recall it as a well-paced, engaging book with memorable characters and scenes. I would love to read it again as an adult and see whether I still feel as much fondness for it as I did as a horse-crazy girl. I suspect I will; past experience has taught me that books that manage to stick specific scenes in my head years and years after I've read them were well-written, not crummy.
I can definitely recommend this book to horse-crazy girls of all ages, and to fans of YA looking to branch out from the usual modern offerings.
Here's what I recall of the plot, without spoilers:
Kit Fox is a Native American girl growing up in a Plains nation -- I believe it's the Blackfoot nation, but I can't remember with 100% accuracy. She lives during the time when horses are not much more than rumors to her people; but during a raid on enemies, some men of her tribe capture a horse and bring it home.
Kit Fox discovers she has an affinity with the horse, and begins taming it with the intention to ride it, although as a female she is strongly discouraged from doing something so manly. Sideline dramas occur, involving her good friend Found Arrow falling into trouble, and her sister Many Deer ending up married to an abusive husband. It's the kind of family-and-friend drama that makes the modern YA genre so popular with readers of all ages now, although this book was written before YA became a marketing category.
In the climactic scene, Kit Fox must finally accept her destiny and ride the horse to save her people from invasion...but what consequences will she face for defying custom and taking on the role of a man?
I recall it as a well-paced, engaging book with memorable characters and scenes. I would love to read it again as an adult and see whether I still feel as much fondness for it as I did as a horse-crazy girl. I suspect I will; past experience has taught me that books that manage to stick specific scenes in my head years and years after I've read them were well-written, not crummy.
I can definitely recommend this book to horse-crazy girls of all ages, and to fans of YA looking to branch out from the usual modern offerings.
March 1, 2013
I like a good historical fiction every now and then, and this one was a nice quick read about a girl from the blackfoot tribe, just as they began to use horses. The historical aspects in this book (as well as the plot, obviously) were pretty neat. I especially enjoyed the description of how they ran the buffalo herd over the edge of the cliff...well, I mean, the "how" of it was neat, not so much the horrible death part. In any case, the book was really well written, in the sense that a lot of pertinent information was relayed without ever straying from the story. Like you were learning without even knowing it.
March 22, 2013
A cute story about a girl who wants to be daring and different in a good way. Liked it. Good for little kids, but they have got some violent parts.
January 19, 2016
Quick easy read for young adult or older child. Well written fiction book.
April 14, 2017
C. fiction, upper elementary, YA, historical, Native American, horses
January 15, 2021
Kind of a kaya book for older readers
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews