Horses!

by Brenda Scott Royce

Young readers craving information about beloved equines will find everything they want to know in Horses!, the new Animal Planet Chapter Book. Filled with more than 100 stunning photos, Horses! will explain how these beautiful animals work, play, compete, and care for their young, and how they move using their four natural gaits: walking, trotting, cantering, and galloping. Sections also explore horse breeds, herd behavior, communication, and the interdependent relationship between people and horses. Did you know these gentle giants can read emotions on a person’s face? Horses! will have readers whinnying with happiness about this popular animal subject.

Genres: Nonfiction, Animals, Science

112 pages, Hardcover

Published May 1, 2018

About the author

Brenda Scott Royce’s books, like her life, mix monkeys and mayhem. Her novels MONKEY LOVE (2006) and MONKEY STAR (2007) chronicle the misadventures of Holly Heckerling, a stand-up comedienne who befriends a monkey while juggling career and romantic entanglements. A former chimpanzee caregiver, Brenda is editor of the Los Angeles Zoo's award-winning magazine, ZOO VIEW. She has contributed to the Huffington Post and penned several episodes of the Disney Junior series, CHUGGINGTON. Brenda's children's books include two titles in the ASPCA's Pet Rescue Club series (CHAMPION'S NEW SHOES and BAILEY THE WONDER DOG) and nonfiction animal books for the Smithsonian Institution, Discovery, Animal Planet, and NatGeo Kids.

Reviews

[TarHeelReader · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love horses. L.O.V.E. Love them! When I was a child, I would try to draw horses over and over again (they were very hard for me to draw!), and my parents finally enrolled me in horseback riding lessons. Then a few years later, they actually bought us a horse! Smokey Twilight was his name, and he was a Tennessee Walker. So needless to say, I scoop up any and all horse books any chance I get. 🐴 🐎

Horses! is an all encompassing read full of fun facts and information about horses. Also included are beautiful pictures on every page. I learned so many new things by reading this, and I think when I pick it up again, there will be even more to learn. Horses! is entertaining and engaging, and children and parents alike will enjoy reading this book together. I highly recommend this top notch, special book.

Thanks to Animal Planet, Time Inc. Books, and Netgalley, for the opportunity to read and review this special book.

[Bea · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

"Horses!" will appeal any child with an interest in horses. Full of color photographs, you coukd easily flip through the book, just looking at the pictures.

The language is simple but full of factual equine terms, though I just realized 'equine' is a rarely used term in the book, and 'gelding' is bizarrely, glaringly, absent entirely. Apparently, the author and editor believe that third grade students, the suggested reading age, are unfamiliar with the concept of neutering pets. In fact, my main complaint about the book is that it sometimes unnecessarily dumbs down the information and talks down to its readers.

The book is packed with facts and information, touching on psychology, biology, physiology, history, uses, etc. It covers a broad array of topics concerning horses, and at the back are a glossary, and a resource page. I was pleased to learn some facts I hadn't known previously.

"Horses!" was an entertaining introduction to horses, that could have benefitted from a little more respect for its readers.

[Carla · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great non-fiction book geared to young readers. The images and illustrations are amazing and give even more information in the captions. There is so much information in this book that youngsters will need to read this in several sittings. From birth, family life, food, appearances, breeds, uses etc. it is all here. There are sections called Fact Files that give more facts and often compare horses to other animals. There are 12 chapters and 4 sections called Horse Sense each covering a different topic. I learned things about horses that I did not know and with the pronunciation guides, found there were words I had been pronouncing incorrectly all these years. There are also resources listed at the back of the book for further study.

This is a good book for young readers to learn about horses. This seems to be a topic that is always of interest to children due to the beauty of these animals. I recommend this book to school, classroom and public libraries. This would be a great book for those reluctant readers as it does not seem like you are reading when going through this book. The publisher generously provided me with a copy of this book via Netgalley.

[Denise · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kids love horses and they will love this book. This is a great format that draws attention to the main facts.