Dawn Rider

by Jan Hudson

Kit Fox's sixteenth year with her people, the Bloods, is filled with preparations for an important buffalo run, talk of her older sister's coming marriage, and skirmishes with their traditional enemy the Snakes.

Genres: Young Adult, Historical Fiction, Horses, Fiction, Childrens, Young Readers

176 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published December 14, 1990

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.

Reviews

[Libbie Hawker (L.M. Ironside) · Rating 4 out of 5]

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.

[Katie · Rating 3 out of 5]

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.

[Sally · Rating 3 out of 5]

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.

[Amy Mathers · Rating 3 out of 5]

http://amysmarathonofbooks.ca/dawn-ri...

[SouthWestZippy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Quick easy read for young adult or older child. Well written fiction book.

[Sharon Buxton · Rating 2 out of 5]

C. fiction, upper elementary, YA, historical, Native American, horses

[Katy Lovejoy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kind of a kaya book for older readers