The Monday Horses

by Jean Slaughter Doty

Her pony's accident provides Cassie with an introduction to show horses.

Genres: Horses, Childrens, Middle Grade, Young Adult

149 pages, Hardcover

Published February 1, 1978

About the author

Jean Slaughter Doty was born in New York. She was married to the cartoonist Roy Doty, and lived in Connecticut with her husband, children and numerous horses, dogs and Siamese cats. Her equine experience was wide: she hunted in England and Ireland, and was well known for breeding Welsh ponies at Rockrimmon farm, as well as Keeshond dogs. She was a show judge at numerous shows, including the National Horse Show at Madison Square Gardens. Almost all of her books are stories about horses for middle readers or young adults.

Reviews

[Amy Raby · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this in one sitting. It's one of my favorite horse books (I read it as a young girl too). This is the story of a girl who is riding her horse on a bridle path when it steps on a glass bottle and severely cuts its leg. She runs to the nearest stable for help, and it turns out to be a super fancy hunter/jumper stable. Her horse boards there for a while, out of necessity while its leg heals, and she gets her first look at the world of competitive show jumping.

She ends up working at the stable to cover the cost of her horse's board, first helping out with routine tasks and eventually riding and showing some of the junior horses. Here she discovers both the joys and the heartbreak of working in this rarefied corner of the horse world, where extremely valuable horses changed hands frequently and every new horse van that drives up is like Christmas morning.

She sees the ugly side of the business -- indifferent, snobby owners; a family who sold their daughter's beloved pony because it wasn't winning enough and bought a new pony so hot the girl can't ride it; a horse who dies suddenly of pneumonia brought on by the use of performance-enhancing drugs.

But she also sees the good side, as she finds herself riding top-notch show ponies for owners who are unable or unwilling to ride them themselves. It's called "The Monday Horses" because on Mondays the stable is closed, and the trainers and grooms have the horses all to themselves for vetting and other tasks, and there are no owners to deal with.

This book is about the beauty and the heartbreak of being in horses, the good side and the bad side, and the fact that for all its negatives, people who truly love horses just can't stay away. You never know what treasures the next horse van will bring.

[Caryn · Rating 5 out of 5]

This little book has stood the test of time, and is still very sought-after by horse people. It's always refreshing to find a story where horses and the horse world is accurately portrayed. Every part of this book is authentic, and the author brings forth the magic, joy and calming influence horses of being around horses, along with the struggles inherent in many competitive sports.

I had a hard time putting this book down, was a bit surprised as things I guessed would happen didn't and without a spoiler, I loved the ending.

Well worth seeking out this old horse book.

[Carter Fahey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sometimes being in the middle of term means you just need to reread books from when you were a kid. This one does not disappoint as an adult!

[Anna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ugh, Doty's books are like little pieces of horse heaven. I wish there were more of them! I'm a realist when it comes to horses, hardened I guess by the death of my own pony to colic when I was 14, 2 months after I bought him and the story of my mom's show hunter that broke its leg the night after it was sold to a new owner for a large price. I can't stand the horse books that ignore the darker side of the horse world. The Monday Horses is perfect. It chronicles the story of a girl whose pony is injured on a trail and she has to keep it at a show barn until he heals. There, she learns the ins and outs of the a-rated show world. She rides the fancy but hard to manage ponies for the rich owners who's kids want nothing to do with the horses. Eventually she learns the underside of horse showing, where horses die from drugs and horses are shown with heavy doses of Bute to mask pain.
I'm glad it had a happy ending, I'm not too cynical to appreciate those. There are incredibly rewarding sides to the horse world, otherwise, I wouldn't be in it, but it's nice to find a book that doesn't ignore the problems.

[Rena Sherwood · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was yet another weird horse book by Jean Slaughter Doty (JSD). I read it in the 1990s and still remember it. I'm not amazingly fond of her books, yet they stick in my memory.

For every positive aspect in this book, there was a negative. Positives include:

* Lots of horses
* That first person narration we've come to expect from JSD that has a likeable, relatable girl
* A story with somewhat of a conclusion.

Negatives include:

* JSD has a major ax to grind -- that Olympians are meant to be amateurs. This is an attitude that is really out of date. Even when I first read it, it had been announced that professional athletes were allowed to compete in the Olympics.
* As a horseless horse lover, it baffled me that Our Narrator had a PUREBRED ARABIAN STALLION and yet wanted to ride as many different horses and ponies as possible. Yeah, I get that kids are easily distracted, but STILL ...

In conclusion, this is not a book I am going to replace.

[Renata Shura · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not your usual pony story fluff. Beautifully written, but brutally honest picture of the horse show world, at least as the author knew it in the 60s and 70s. I dare say not much has changed though one would like to think that the abuse is much less common today. Jeans slaughter Doty set the standard in my mind of what the perfect barn would look like and I’ve carried that image with me all my life. Of course, having worked with horses, I know that it is quite the atypical depiction of real barns. I suppose there are some top-tier barns that might be of this caliber, but then they have enough staff to actually flick off each speck of dust. Definitely not a light read but an excellent one just as well. I can.”

[K.L. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Probably a 3.5, the characters weren't bad (though MC could have been better drawn) Interesting to read an older *pony* book that deals with a degree of reality regarding doping and drug use in the professional horsey world. More a lesson on the subject than a true story in my opinion. Still, enjoyable!

[Julie Havener · Rating 4 out of 5]

These books have been a blast to read, a blast from the past. Showing ponies, riding Junior, Amateur-Owner, yep my girlhood. Thanks for taking me back and also for answering some questions I was aware of but never got answers to at the time.

[Tania · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jean Slaughter Doty brings the world of junior horse show jumping to life in this beautifully written and compelling book. I've loved it since I was about 10, and I love it still. I've read it countless times as a child and as an adult. Doty writes Cassie as someone we can relate to, someone who makes sense in a world that doesn't. The adults that surround her are sufficiently mapped out as well. And the world of horses that Doty introduces to her audience is all too real and as seductive as she makes it out to be. As a horse book, this is incredible. As a coming-of-age book, it is equally as powerful.

[Randi · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is definitely a product of its time, but very cool in that it looks at the commodification of children's dreams in such a way so as to have those dreams triumph over the adults who would ruin them. I read this book obsessively as a kid and can still remember vividly the characters and storylines to this day.

[Christina · Rating 4 out of 5]

My love for horses began practically at birth. I can’t recall a time when I wasn’t reading about, dreaming of, or wanting to ride horses. This story may have been what inspired me to embark on my own youthful journey into jumping horses. The Monday Horses captures the special bond between humans and horses, as well as the joy and challenges of equestrian life.

[Sam · Rating 4 out of 5]

I checked this book out from the library because it was about horses, but little did I know how much I would learn between those pages. It was a world I had never been a part of, where horses are more than just a ride through the woods or around an arena.

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved this book as a teenager, rereading it was not as fun but still a worthwhile book to have on my shelves.

[Amanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jean Slaughter Doty was my favorite author when I was about ten or eleven.