Riding Lessons

Ellen and Ned #1

by Jane Smiley

The first book in a new horse trilogy from Pulitzer Prize winner Jane Smiley starring a feisty young rider.

Eleven-year-old Ellen is a spunky--and occasionally misbehaving--young riding student. Her teacher Abby Lovitt (who readers might recognize from The Georges and the Jewels) is a high school student who introduces her to jumping, dressage techniques, and most importantly, Ned.

Ned is a colt who used to be a racehorse, until he hurt his leg and moved to Abby's ranch. Ellen and Ned seem to understand each other, and their companionship is immediate. But Ellen is only allowed to go to riding lessons when she behaves at school. And with all that's going on, from learning that she's adopted to finding out her parents are adopting a new baby, it's harder than ever for Ellen to pay attention and behave in class and at home.

Will Ellen be able to spend more time on the ranch with Ned? And will her parents ever let her have a horse of her own?

Genres: Animals, Middle Grade, Horses, Adoption

192 pages, Library Binding

Published March 6, 2018

About the author

Jane Smiley is a Pulitzer Prize-winning American novelist.

Born in Los Angeles, California, Smiley grew up in Webster Groves, Missouri, a suburb of St. Louis, and graduated from John Burroughs School. She obtained a A.B. at Vassar College, then earned a M.F.A. and Ph.D. from the University of Iowa. While working towards her doctorate, she also spent a year studying in Iceland as a Fulbright Scholar. From 1981 to 1996, she taught at Iowa State University. Smiley published her first novel, Barn Blind, in 1980, and won a 1985 O. Henry Award for her short story "Lily", which was published in The Atlantic Monthly. Her best-selling A Thousand Acres, a story based on William Shakespeare's King Lear, received the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1992. It was adapted into a film of the same title in 1997. In 1995 she wrote her sole television script produced, for an episode of Homicide: Life on the Street. Her novella The Age of Grief was made into the 2002 film The Secret Lives of Dentists.

Thirteen Ways of Looking at the Novel (2005), is a non-fiction meditation on the history and the nature of the novel, somewhat in the tradition of E. M. Forster's seminal Aspects of the Novel, that roams from eleventh century Japan's Murasaki Shikibu's The Tale of Genji to twenty-first century Americans chick lit.

In 2001, Smiley was elected a member of The American Academy of Arts and Letters.

Reviews

[Ronel Janse van Vuuren · Rating 1 out of 5]

What a brat!
DNF 5%

[Barbara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fourth grader Ellen Leinsdorf loves horsing and her riding lessons. Eventually she forms a bond with Ned, a former racehorse who is able to talk with her, and she starts to consider him a friend even while longing for a horse of her own. Ellen is quite precocious, academically gifted but easily distracted, and she often just blurts out her thoughts and forgets to speak when it's her turn. It's clear that her parents love her even while they are preparing to adopt a new child, Joan Ariel. While Ellen knows that they will continue to care for her, she also takes advantage of their distraction, taking a late night walk into town and beyond, all by herself. Horse lovers will appreciate the details about riding and training horses and Ellen's passion for these animals and the activity. But they may not take to Ellen so quickly since she is decidedly unique and spends some time observing and coping the behavior of others as she tries to figure out how she prefers to behave. Consequently, the story, told from Ellen's point of view and with her voice, is a bit off-putting. There are parts of the book that seem just right for youngsters and others that seem to be a bit adult. I liked the references to Black Beauty and Mister Ed, which provide historical and cultural context for the tale. This is the first title in a horse-themed series for young readers.

[Grace Cox · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ellen is an emotionally deep child. She adores horses, talks to them and listens to them. Ellen is struggling at the moment with school and changes to her family. She finds her solace when she is at the ranch. Ellen has found a friend with Ned a new horse to the stables who is also struggling to adjust to a different life. Together Ellen and Ned will help each other and be there for one another.

A nice read with a beautiful friendship at its heart

[Joann · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting new series, great for horse lovers, with lots of real riding situations. Also, some interesting magical thinking sprinkled in, with Ellen talking with Ned the racehorse, and other horses as well. Adoption, family dynamics, school situations. Looking forward to reading more in this series.

[Lucy · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was a very good book .
I think maybe I didn't have all the pages in the end because it finished so suddenly.
I always read the blurb of a book before and after. When I read after I finished I didn't think the blurb went fully to the story.
Although I have these complaints I really enjoyed the book,and would recommend to people who like horse riding.

[Jacqui · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5

[Margaret · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good animal fiction. Like the comparisons to Mr. Ed and Black Beauty. Good for students that like horses or who want to ride or do...1st in a trilogy.

[Gil-or (readingbooksinisrael)]

A fun book with a fun main character. My only complaint would be is that the book doesn't really go anywhere.

[Suzanne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Interesting story - told in a rather disjointed way to imitate the thoughts of a child - but full of good information, growth, and well-written characters.

[Valerie McEnroe]

Didn't care for the writing style.