The Mystery Horse

The Boxcar Children #34

by Gertrude Chandler Warner

When their grandfather arranges for them to spend two weeks at Sunny Oaks, the four Alden children enjoy settling into the routines of farm life but become suspicious about a mysterious horse locked in the stables

Genres: Mystery, Childrens, Fiction, Chapter Books, Middle Grade, Juvenile, Adventure

121 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1993

About the author

Gertrude Chandler Warner was born in Putnam, Connecticut, on April 16, 1890, to Edgar and Jane Warner. Her family included a sister, Frances, and a brother, John. From the age of five, she dreamed of becoming an author. She wrote stories for her Grandfather Carpenter, and each Christmas she gave him one of these stories as a gift. Today, Ms. Warner is best remembered as the author of THE BOXCAR CHILDREN MYSTERIES.

As a child, Gertrude enjoyed many of the things that girls enjoy today. She loved furnishing a dollhouse with handmade furniture and she liked to read. Her favorite book was ALICE IN WONDERLAND. Often on Sundays after church, Gertrude enjoyed trips to visit her grandparents' farm. Along the way, she and Frances would stop to pick the wildflowers they both loved. Gertrude's favorite flower was the violet.

Her family was a very musical one. They were able to have a family orchestra, and Gertrude enjoyed playing the cello. Her father had brought her one from New York ---a cello, a bow, a case and an instruction book. All together, he paid $14. Later, as an adult, she began playing the pipe organ and sometimes substituted for the church organist.

Due to ill health, Ms. Warner never finished high school. She left in the middle of her second year and studied with a tutor. Then, in 1918, when teachers were called to serve in World War I, the school board asked her to teach first grade. She had forty children in the morning and forty more in the afternoon. Ms. Warner wrote, "I was asked or begged to take this job because I taught Sunday School. But believe me, day school is nothing like Sunday School, and I sure learned by doing --- I taught in that same room for 32 years, retiring at 60 to have more time to write." Eventually, Ms. Warner attended Yale, where she took several teacher training courses.

Once when she was sick and had to stay home from teaching, she thought up the story about the Boxcar Children. It was inspired by her childhood dreams. As a child, she had spent hours watching the trains go by near her family's home. Sometimes she could look through the window of a caboose and see a small stove, a little table, cracked cups with no saucers, and a tin coffee pot boiling away on the stove. The sight had fascinated her and made her dream about how much fun it would be to live and keep house in a boxcar or caboose. She read the story to her classes and rewrote it many times so the words were easy to understand. Some of her pupils spoke other languages at home and were just learning English. THE BOXCAR CHILDREN gave them a fun story that was easy to read.

Ms. Warner once wrote for her fans, "Perhaps you know that the original BOXCAR CHILDREN. . . raised a storm of protest from librarians who thought the children were having too good a time without any parental control! That is exactly why children like it! Most of my own childhood exploits, such as living in a freight car, received very little cooperation from my parents."

Though the story of THE BOXCAR CHILDREN went through some changes after it was first written, the version that we are familiar with today was originally published in 1942 by Scott Foresman. Today, Albert Whitman & Company publishes this first classic story as well as the next eighteen Alden children adventures that were written by Ms. Warner.

Gertrude Chandler Warner died in 1979 at the age of 89 after a full life as a teacher, author, and volunteer for the American Red Cross and other charitable organizations. After her death, Albert Whitman & Company continued to receive mail from children across the country asking for more adventures about Henry, Jessie, Violet and Benny Alden. In 1991, Albert Whitman added to THE BOXCAR CHILDREN MYSTERIES so that today's children can enjoy many more adventures about this independent and caring group of children.

Books about Gertrude: https://www.goodreads.com/characters/...

Reviews

[Courtney · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a quick Mystery book about a horse named Winn- Dancer. He was a championship racing horse, and everyone wanted him for themselves. His owners decided to keep him at the farm at Sunny Oaks to keep him safe while they were on vacation. Unfortunately, there were still attempts to steal him. Thankfully, for Winn Dancers owners, the Allen's were there to save the day.

[Joan Jaya]

I know The Mystery Horse by Gertrude Chandler Warner is a children’s book, but my daughter-in-love gifted me a few of her books, and that’s how this one came into my hands. I really liked it—it was soothing and relaxing to read. The story is simple yet charming, and it brought back a sense of calm and nostalgia. Even though it’s meant for children, I found it enjoyable and comforting, making it a pleasant read for any age.

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is way down the line #34, and probably written by someone other than Warner.
The children go to a farm for a working "vacation", where they do chores along with the other "guests", meet some new people, and discover a beautiful horse padlocked into a stall and hidden away. When they stop some men who have come to try to steal the horse, they learn more about it from the farmer.

[Lauren · Rating 3 out of 5]

Time for the kids to go work on the farm. Horses and chickens and gardens oh my! Not only do they learn a bunch of new skills and make even more new friends, they help catch some bad guys trying to steal a famous horse.

Short and sweet.

[Joseph D. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book 34 of the Boxcar Children. This was more of a so is gonna done it. Lots of intrigue and lots of suspects. What is really going on with this mystery horse? The Boxcar Children will get to the bottom of it and prevent it. ​

Joseph McKnight
http://www.josephmcknight.com

[Cherish Brown · Rating 4 out of 5]

(4☆ Would recommend)
I loved these books as a kid & I'm really enjoying reading through the series again. I liked the mystery & the suspense. Once again a mystery is solved & justice is served. Would recommend.

[Caitlin · Rating 2 out of 5]

Better to leave this series back in the childhood memories...

[Grace DuBois · Rating 2 out of 5]

An interesting book, pretty good but, I wouldn't read it again.

[Kara · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked it a lot it is a cliff hanger until the very end.

[Isla · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love horses so! i love this book.

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

My son doesn't seem to tire of hearing these stories 😆. Some are better than others, this one wasn't bad!

[Charles Reed · Rating 4 out of 5]

78%

Horse thieves aye?

[Kim Hampton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great mystery solved by the Boxcar Children!

[Noelani · Rating 5 out of 5]

10 year old loved this one.

[Simon · Rating 3 out of 5]

A classic and well acclaimed series, recommended as a great series for young readers. The Boxcar Children invoke the enjoyment for mystery-solving and having a close relationship with family.

The mysteries are certainly twinged with a bit more danger now, and you can tell that other authors are penning the stories. They still make for excellent adventures and problem solving. These books keep to the classic focus of the original 19 stories and have heart and family values and helping others as a forefront in every story.

The children are all oh-so-friendly to each other and those they meet. They seem to agree about mostly everything; their world seems to be made of butterflies and rainbows. The times of this book being written to present day are vastly different.

[HDST · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Boxcar Children were one of my favorite series as a kid. This one is a cute little mystery for younger readers. I read this because I was behind on my reading challenge, and I wanted something short to read.

[Rob · Rating 3 out of 5]

A simple story and a delightful read for my fourth grader. We enjoyed reading it together.

[Tina Harden · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sending your children off to a working farm for two weeks in this day and time! Ha, that would be met with so many groups protesting and claiming it to be torture. I worked on a dairy farm and it is a lot of work. Even back then there were no cousins coming to stay during the summer. No school friends volunteered to spend vacation helping around the farm.

This Mystery title did show that children can do hard work and not suffer any ill-effects. It helps them develop into more rounded and educated people. Everyone does their share to accomplish a common goal, keep animals healthy and alive and stockpile food for Winter survival.

Who does not want Benny for a little brother? I believe he is the character that encouraged me to read more than just 'The Boxcar Children'. This title walks a young girl through her fears and by the end she is a different and more confident person. It is a good title to read to a shy young one you might know.

[Dharia Scarab · Rating 3 out of 5]

My love of reading started when i was young, and it gives me immense pleasure to provide books to Spread the Word Nevada, an organization that passes them on to children in the community. They are a terrific organization supporting an important cause. If your local I encourage you to check them out. For those living further a field, look in your own community, their may already be a similar program in place. And if not, you can always help start one.

http://spreadthewordnevada.org/

Myself, I go out on the weekends and
shop thrift store and bulk book lots to rescue books and donate them. Sometimes I'll find a book I remember reading when I was young and will read it again before passing it on.

I don't rate these books using my normal scale, instead I give most of them three stars. This isn't a Criticism of the book, simply my way of rating them as good for children.

[Thomas Norstein · Rating 3 out of 5]

I chose my first read of 2017 to be a throwback to when I was in second grade. Yep.

I was organizing my bookshelf, and came across my ol' Boxcar Children collection (which is really only about 5 books I've picked up at various book sale). I realize I hadn't read this one before, and decided to take it on after an eventful day.

Though I'm much older now and the writing style seems much more childish to me now, I still enjoy the series. I love how the author plants small hints throughout the story that all tie into the end, even if I can read what most hints mean beforehand.

I'd recommend this series to any young reader. It's really fun.

[Brianna · Rating 5 out of 5]

I gave this book a five star rating because I like detective mysteries. Also I like books that have horses or something to do with them. I recommend this book to anyone who likes horses, mysteries, challenges, or foreshadowing. I don't think people who don't like any of the things I listed should read this book. Also if you don't like a book that keeps you in suspense you should not read it. If you like this book check out the rest of the Boxcar Children series.

[Partridge Public]

Warner,Gertrude C. PB

[Hazel · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good series for the young reader.

[Colby Ho]

awesome but i don't see about the author in the book i need it for my report

[Cori · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read May 12, 2019

[Hillvan]

650L

[Rebecca]

One of my favorite childhood series. I read over a hundred of them. The first 50 or so were in order; after that I read whatever book I could get my hands on :)