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Horses of Oak Valley Ranch #1
The Georges and the Jewels
A Pulitzer Prize winner makes her debut for young readers.
Jane Smiley makes her debut for young readers in this stirring novel set on a California horse ranch in the 1960s. Seventh-grader Abby Lovitt has always been more at ease with horses than with people. Her father insists they call all the mares “Jewel” and all the geldings “George” and warns Abby not to get the horses are there to be sold. But with all the stress at school (the Big Four have turned against Abby and her friends) and home (her brother Danny is gone—for good, it seems—and now Daddy won’t speak his name), Abby seeks refuge with the Georges and the Jewels. But there’s one gelding on her family’s farm that gives her no end of the horse who won’t meet her gaze, the horse who bucks her right off every chance he gets, the horse her father makes her ride and train, every day. She calls him the Ornery George.
Jane Smiley makes her debut for young readers in this stirring novel set on a California horse ranch in the 1960s. Seventh-grader Abby Lovitt has always been more at ease with horses than with people. Her father insists they call all the mares “Jewel” and all the geldings “George” and warns Abby not to get the horses are there to be sold. But with all the stress at school (the Big Four have turned against Abby and her friends) and home (her brother Danny is gone—for good, it seems—and now Daddy won’t speak his name), Abby seeks refuge with the Georges and the Jewels. But there’s one gelding on her family’s farm that gives her no end of the horse who won’t meet her gaze, the horse who bucks her right off every chance he gets, the horse her father makes her ride and train, every day. She calls him the Ornery George.
240 pages, Hardcover
First published August 26, 2009
70 people are currently reading
1483 people want to read
About the author
Jane Smiley
133 books2,707 followersJane 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.
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.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 155 reviews
dnf
September 28, 2011Didn't make it all the way through this book. I stopped about half way. Reasons: by the middle of the story I should have had an idea of the main thrust of the story. The "why I should keep reading" element. Didn't see it. Plus there was an awful lot of religion being shoved down my throat. I've read literally hundreds of horse stories in my life. Never have I felt the need for a dose of Christianity with my barn dirt. The actual horse bits were authentic and realistic and were enjoyable. Maybe someday I'll finish it.
May 26, 2017
I must have a British edition, because reading reviews I see that a horse in this book is called Ornery George, whereas in my book he is Grumpy George which is better. Maybe some editor didn't think British kids would know what ornery means, which is unlikely.
This is the tale of Abby, a schoolgirl in 1960s California, who learns to grow up, strengthen her attitudes and sense of self worth, observe adults, and start taking control of her life. This occurs through the twin media of horse training and schooldays.
Abby's older brother has already been driven away by their father's strict religious refusal to hear anything he doesn't like, from talking back to lessons about evolution. This leaves only Abby to ride the succession of passing-through horses which make the family an income. Training them for sale can be hard work - six at a time - and Abby's dad insists on calling the geldings all George and mares all Jewel, explaining the book's original title of The Georges And The Jewels. Abby first stands up to her father over Grumpy George which refuses co-operation and bucks her off badly. She states that she is not riding him any more. I got the impression that a boy would have been told "What kind of man are you!" but of course her dad can't say that to a girl.
A cowboy does some work with George, then a more thoughtful horse trainer. Abby also gets a lesson in show jumping and English style riding, which she really enjoys, on a calm pony. In all this a Jewel gives birth unexpectedly and Abby loves the colt foal, but is told that he will be time consuming and awkward to raise. She just becomes more determined. Both Grumpy George and the foal she names Jack could be the 'nobody's horse' of the title. Or maybe this is a reference to Abby herself: not one of the popular girls in class, not even really with a good friend as all the girls change allegiances; obliged to follow her father's religion but secretly obliged to learn about Catholic missions at school; enjoying competitive riding but unable to persevere as her father keeps selling on the mounts.
There are some difficult scenes to read for a horse lover. But I love the scene where Abby falls asleep in the field and the mares come around her to keep her affectionate company. A Young Adult will learn a lot - about horses and self-determination.
This is the tale of Abby, a schoolgirl in 1960s California, who learns to grow up, strengthen her attitudes and sense of self worth, observe adults, and start taking control of her life. This occurs through the twin media of horse training and schooldays.
Abby's older brother has already been driven away by their father's strict religious refusal to hear anything he doesn't like, from talking back to lessons about evolution. This leaves only Abby to ride the succession of passing-through horses which make the family an income. Training them for sale can be hard work - six at a time - and Abby's dad insists on calling the geldings all George and mares all Jewel, explaining the book's original title of The Georges And The Jewels. Abby first stands up to her father over Grumpy George which refuses co-operation and bucks her off badly. She states that she is not riding him any more. I got the impression that a boy would have been told "What kind of man are you!" but of course her dad can't say that to a girl.
A cowboy does some work with George, then a more thoughtful horse trainer. Abby also gets a lesson in show jumping and English style riding, which she really enjoys, on a calm pony. In all this a Jewel gives birth unexpectedly and Abby loves the colt foal, but is told that he will be time consuming and awkward to raise. She just becomes more determined. Both Grumpy George and the foal she names Jack could be the 'nobody's horse' of the title. Or maybe this is a reference to Abby herself: not one of the popular girls in class, not even really with a good friend as all the girls change allegiances; obliged to follow her father's religion but secretly obliged to learn about Catholic missions at school; enjoying competitive riding but unable to persevere as her father keeps selling on the mounts.
There are some difficult scenes to read for a horse lover. But I love the scene where Abby falls asleep in the field and the mares come around her to keep her affectionate company. A Young Adult will learn a lot - about horses and self-determination.
September 18, 2013
This is the kind of horse novel I've been looking for, one that is actually about horses and is not a soap opera set in a barn. The central story here is about a 12-year-old girl who is trying to cope with an uncooperative horse called Ornery George. She is expected to help her father train him so that he can be sold at a profit, but the horse keeps bucking her off. While she's perfectly comfortable with the other horses at her dad's barn, she's scared of Ornery George, and for good reason.
There are a number of other threads woven into this one. Her parents are born-again Christians, which creates some complications in her life. I like that her religious family is portrayed neither as positive nor negative. Her father is sometimes kind and sometimes unreasonable. She seems to like her church reasonably well, but her family's restrictions cause her problems with school and friends.
School is another sub-thread. She's in the 7th grade and struggling with a girl who seems to be out to "steal" her best friend, and also a clique of four other girls which she tries simply to avoid. Mean girls are a staple of this genre, but these girls are more complex. There is no over-the-top villain, just a group of girls jockeying for status, sometimes in unsavory ways.
Three different trainers help the heroine out with Ornery George, and only one of them is able to make any progress with him. The training methods are presented without judgement. It's not a case of evil trainer vs. good trainer, but more a case of trying out different methods and learning a method that works for this horse.
There are a number of other threads woven into this one. Her parents are born-again Christians, which creates some complications in her life. I like that her religious family is portrayed neither as positive nor negative. Her father is sometimes kind and sometimes unreasonable. She seems to like her church reasonably well, but her family's restrictions cause her problems with school and friends.
School is another sub-thread. She's in the 7th grade and struggling with a girl who seems to be out to "steal" her best friend, and also a clique of four other girls which she tries simply to avoid. Mean girls are a staple of this genre, but these girls are more complex. There is no over-the-top villain, just a group of girls jockeying for status, sometimes in unsavory ways.
Three different trainers help the heroine out with Ornery George, and only one of them is able to make any progress with him. The training methods are presented without judgement. It's not a case of evil trainer vs. good trainer, but more a case of trying out different methods and learning a method that works for this horse.
September 12, 2021
I never thought I would enjoy reading a book about horses like I did with this book.
Abby was a seventh grade girl whose father names all the mares 'Jewel' and all the geldings 'George'. Abby loves horses and spends all of her free time helping her dad train them on their farm. With troubles at school and the fights at home, the horses are her only escape.
I learned that a baby horse is called a foal, a colt is a male and a frilly is a female one.
Abby was a seventh grade girl whose father names all the mares 'Jewel' and all the geldings 'George'. Abby loves horses and spends all of her free time helping her dad train them on their farm. With troubles at school and the fights at home, the horses are her only escape.
I learned that a baby horse is called a foal, a colt is a male and a frilly is a female one.
February 22, 2011
The Georges and the Jewels is a slow paced uneventful story of a pre-teen, Abbey, growing up on a ranch with loving parents who are much more old fashioned than the upwardly mobile suburban parents of her classmates. The story lightly (and unsatisfyingly) deals with mean girl cliques, horse training cruelty and religious intolerance. Considering the author is Jane Smiley, I expected more deeply developed characters and conflict. That said, girls who are nuts about horses will enjoy this story and probably the sequels.
September 7, 2024
I really enjoyed this moving story about 7th grade Abby. As she helps train horses, she also quietly witnesses how her father's strong nature and "righteous anger" divides her family. In the end, she learns to find her own voice and the courage to tame the horse she fears most, "Ornery George." The family dynamics add a lot of depth, and Abby is an inspiring character.
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December 28, 2017I really enjoyed reading this book. I liked how Abby treated others. She was respectful, but was able to get her point across. I didn't like how obedient Abby had to be at times. It almost seemed as if she was afraid of her parents.
I loved how the author described the scenery. It really made it seem like you were there. I love how she really makes the horses come to life. I didn't like how she portrayed Ornery George. She sometimes made it seem like how it was his fault that he didn't like being ridden by people. Some other person had to make it miserable for him to hate it that much.
I loved how the author described the scenery. It really made it seem like you were there. I love how she really makes the horses come to life. I didn't like how she portrayed Ornery George. She sometimes made it seem like how it was his fault that he didn't like being ridden by people. Some other person had to make it miserable for him to hate it that much.
October 1, 2009
This book was so perfectly right for me, that I originally felt I couldn’t judge it objectively. So, first I gave it to my daughter who is just starting to ride. And, then I gave it to my mother who was never bitten by the horse bug. We all absolutely loved it. It is a wonderful book that while just right for a nine year old, has the ability to appeal to children and adults alike. I would recommend it to people of any age and with varying degrees of interest in horses. It is that good.
It is the story of a 7th grade girl named Abby growing up in 1960’s California horse country. She helps her father train horses so that he can claim, “Kid’s Horse for Sale.” There are several great story lines that come together in this fast read to make us truly feel for Abby. A central theme is Abby’s evolving relationship with a particularly difficult horse, that continues to throw her off. Through the course of the book we see various adults interact with the horse with mixed success, and eventually are able to witness a coming around thanks to a horse whisperer. The horse training details are simultaneously specific, graphic and enlightening. Most of all, it is particularly nice to witness it through the frank eyes of a young girl.
At the same time, Abby is growing up in a born-again Christian household where she is faced with the challenges of having her family’s beliefs conflict with the things she is learning at school as well as the estrangement of her brother. This element of the book is important to the development of Abby’s character, but is not overly described and is consistently presented without judgment. I wondered if Violet would ask questions about this religious component, but she didn’t. She took it at face value, and was much more interested in the social dynamic in Abby’s school. As Jane Smiley so adeptly puts it, “The best thing that can happen to you in seventh grade, really, is that you float from one classroom to another like a ghost or spirit, undetected by the humans.” Ms. Smiley is a master of the human dynamic, and perfectly brings her skills to bear in helping us experience a little bit of that dreaded 7th grade one more time. Fortunately, it is not too painful to re-live, while there is at least one character in there that each of us can relate to. There is nothing remotely inappropriate in this book for children. Most of all it has a fairly just ending, which I really do like in books – especially children’s books.
There are many accomplished children’s authors out there. And, then there are great adult authors such as Ursula Lequin (Catwings) and Alexander McCall Smith (Max & Maddy, Akimbo) who do us a kindness by writing books for children. We can now add Jane Smiley to the list of fantastic authors that we can be grateful to for writing exceptional literature for our kids. Thank you, Jane. I also want to add a special shout out to the illustrator, Elaine Clayton. She graces the beginning of each chapter with illustrations of various horse accessories, and they are delightful. While I was sad to finish this book, it is nice to be able to go back and look at the illustrations from time to time.
- Jessica Wheeler
April 20, 2010
If you love horses, you'll LOVE this book. It's brimming with ideas about training horses. But even if you don't love horses, there is lots to like here.
Abby and her parents run a horse farm: her dad buys horses and (re)trains them so that they can be "ridden by a young girl". That's where Abby comes in: if she can't ride a horse, that claim can't be made and money will be lost. Her dad won't let anyone name the horses--the boys are all "George" and the girls are all "Jewel". Abby's parents are fundamental Protestants; her dad is so strict that he's driven her older brother away, so now all the work of riding and training their various horses falls to Abby. It was interesting and unusual to see a young girl bearing so much responsibility in the financial success of her family. She works HARD.
When one horse, "Ornery George", bucks Abby off, she begins to see, for the first time, that maybe her dad is not infallible, and so begin her first steps to some independence. This is also where the fascinating stuff about horse training comes in.
In addition, Abby is struggling with a tricky school situation--her small school has few options for friendship, and her best friend has been usurped by a new girl who likes boys, drama, plotting and all those things that can make middle school it's own special kind of h**l.
Her frustration at school is, thankfully, balanced by the satisfaction she gains form her work with horses. The two lives feel very separate--sometimes that's how you survive. Smiley very aptly captures that feeling of lonliness you can get when you start to doubt your social standing.
Horsey girls will eat this up, but others will enjoy it to.
Abby and her parents run a horse farm: her dad buys horses and (re)trains them so that they can be "ridden by a young girl". That's where Abby comes in: if she can't ride a horse, that claim can't be made and money will be lost. Her dad won't let anyone name the horses--the boys are all "George" and the girls are all "Jewel". Abby's parents are fundamental Protestants; her dad is so strict that he's driven her older brother away, so now all the work of riding and training their various horses falls to Abby. It was interesting and unusual to see a young girl bearing so much responsibility in the financial success of her family. She works HARD.
When one horse, "Ornery George", bucks Abby off, she begins to see, for the first time, that maybe her dad is not infallible, and so begin her first steps to some independence. This is also where the fascinating stuff about horse training comes in.
In addition, Abby is struggling with a tricky school situation--her small school has few options for friendship, and her best friend has been usurped by a new girl who likes boys, drama, plotting and all those things that can make middle school it's own special kind of h**l.
Her frustration at school is, thankfully, balanced by the satisfaction she gains form her work with horses. The two lives feel very separate--sometimes that's how you survive. Smiley very aptly captures that feeling of lonliness you can get when you start to doubt your social standing.
Horsey girls will eat this up, but others will enjoy it to.
November 1, 2012
Abby lives on a farm with her born-again family. Her father buys horses cheap and trains them so that "a little girl can ride them" and resells them for a higher price. To keep Abby from growing attached, he calls all the male horses "George" and all the female horses "Jewel." As Abby tries to figure out the problems of one horse she calls "Ornery George" and dealing with a surprise new foal she names Jack, Abby also has to deal with friendship troubles in middle school and navigating her slightly dysfunctional family.
I've never read anything by Jane Smiley, but I know she does write adult fiction, and this book has a maturity level I don't usually find when I read middle grade horse books. The setting, California in the 1960's, is unusual enough (unless you're reading classic horse fiction), but Abby also lives in a religiously strict family, with parents who don't like the idea of their daughter learning about the Catholic missions that founded many California cities. Yet the family isn't portrayed as being iron fisted, and Abby stands up for herself in her case to name the horses while accepting other rules. The situation with her brother Danny's estrangement should be interesting in the future. There was plenty of riding as well, with several philosophies of breaking a horse contrasted.
Abby's struggles socially in middle school might on the surface appear to be outdated, but there are still cliques, and passive aggressive bullying, and little things blow up into huge drama, especially when boys are involved.
All in all, this was a step above most middle grade horse books, which made it an enjoyable read for an adult as well.
I've never read anything by Jane Smiley, but I know she does write adult fiction, and this book has a maturity level I don't usually find when I read middle grade horse books. The setting, California in the 1960's, is unusual enough (unless you're reading classic horse fiction), but Abby also lives in a religiously strict family, with parents who don't like the idea of their daughter learning about the Catholic missions that founded many California cities. Yet the family isn't portrayed as being iron fisted, and Abby stands up for herself in her case to name the horses while accepting other rules. The situation with her brother Danny's estrangement should be interesting in the future. There was plenty of riding as well, with several philosophies of breaking a horse contrasted.
Abby's struggles socially in middle school might on the surface appear to be outdated, but there are still cliques, and passive aggressive bullying, and little things blow up into huge drama, especially when boys are involved.
All in all, this was a step above most middle grade horse books, which made it an enjoyable read for an adult as well.
April 2, 2012
Abby is a gifted young rider in 1960s California who, at twelve, is beginning to walk a careful line between her home life with her highly religious parents and public life among a broader set of peers and authority figures. Her relationship with horses grounds her in both aspects of her life, but that relationship is the root Abby's need to change.
Jane Smiley is not an author I have particular awareness of: I stumbled upon this book during the 2010 National Book Festival. My mother, whose taste in books is much more bent towards the literary than mine is, had read Smiley's Pulitzer novel A Thousand Acres some years ago and we joined the attendance of Smiley's book talk because of our vague recognition of her name. Smiley turned out to be an engaging and passionate public speaker (a webcast of her talk is available on the LOC website) and her reading of the first chapter or so of The Georges and the Jewels made me want to rush out and read the rest of the story (which took me a mere eighteen months to act on).
Outstanding work for juvenile and early YA readers but probably best for horse-crazy girls. Still, I as an adult horse-crazy girl found it riveting. Five stars.
Jane Smiley is not an author I have particular awareness of: I stumbled upon this book during the 2010 National Book Festival. My mother, whose taste in books is much more bent towards the literary than mine is, had read Smiley's Pulitzer novel A Thousand Acres some years ago and we joined the attendance of Smiley's book talk because of our vague recognition of her name. Smiley turned out to be an engaging and passionate public speaker (a webcast of her talk is available on the LOC website) and her reading of the first chapter or so of The Georges and the Jewels made me want to rush out and read the rest of the story (which took me a mere eighteen months to act on).
Outstanding work for juvenile and early YA readers but probably best for horse-crazy girls. Still, I as an adult horse-crazy girl found it riveting. Five stars.
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August 6, 2011I enjoyed The Georges and the Jewels, but I'm not sure how many other people will enjoy it. It has very strong descriptions of horse training which I thoroughly enjoyed reading; however, I'm not sure how many young adult readers will enjoy that. I could be wrong though - maybe the young horse enthusiasts will really like it.
It also contains a very realistic description of they dynamics of adolescent females trying to get along with one another. That is a frightening, insecure world for many girls, and you can't help but develop respect for the narrator. She works hard to skirt these conflicts and stick to what truly matters to her. Meanwhile, she's dealing with an overly religious and demanding father. It's an interesting read, but might be more attractive to the adult reader.
It also contains a very realistic description of they dynamics of adolescent females trying to get along with one another. That is a frightening, insecure world for many girls, and you can't help but develop respect for the narrator. She works hard to skirt these conflicts and stick to what truly matters to her. Meanwhile, she's dealing with an overly religious and demanding father. It's an interesting read, but might be more attractive to the adult reader.
March 19, 2015
The Georges and the Jewels is the 1st book in the Horses of Oak Valley Ranch by Jane Smiley. This book I loaned to a student equestrian and just got it back.
The story for me was Ornery George and Abby’s trying to overcome fear of Ol’ Ornery. With the help of other trainers with different ways of training helped her learn a technique that works.
There were other sub-plots on religion and school which were ok, I guess, but less important for the reading experience for me.
What attracted me to this book was the cover. I swear it was a picture of one of mine.
The story for me was Ornery George and Abby’s trying to overcome fear of Ol’ Ornery. With the help of other trainers with different ways of training helped her learn a technique that works.
There were other sub-plots on religion and school which were ok, I guess, but less important for the reading experience for me.
What attracted me to this book was the cover. I swear it was a picture of one of mine.
May 13, 2011
This book is about a girl who has some problems at school and her father sells horses. She has to ride each of them every day and she really loves horses. Then a foal is born and her father buys a horse that always bucks her off and she gets scared to ride him. Then, at school her only friend has a new BFF and often ignores her. She gets suspended for something she didn't do it! Read to find out more about Abby!!!
July 29, 2009
One Sentence Review: I was determined not to let this horsey book win me over since I loathed and despised horsey books when I was a child, only the darn thing charmed me when I wasn't looking and I inadvertently became a fan.
January 23, 2015
Awesome book that tells the story of a girl that lives on a barn.
July 3, 2024
Abby knows no other life than her father’s ranch, where she helps him buy, train, and resell riding horses. Though she loves her little world, since her older brother Danny left home she has been overwhelmed by both the workload of the horses and her father’s strong personality. When Danny sends Jem, an insightful horse gentler, to help Abby with a particularly difficult gelding, she learns from him the strength to stand up to her father, assert herself at school, and grow into her own as a horsewoman.
This is such a beautiful, thoughtful horse story! The author has a great understanding of horses and the different styles of training, but incorporates them into the book (along with beautiful labeled illustrations of tack) in a way that doesn't make you feel like you're reading a textbook. She has just as strong an understanding of humans, growth, and relationships. Every character in this book is complex. The ones you sometimes want to hate-- Stella, Uncle Luke, even Daddy on occasion-- are not villains, just people, and the author helps you understand them and find the positive in them. Meanwhile the more "likable" characters have their own flaws and areas where you wish they would behave differently, but they are well-developed enough to behave like themselves, regardless of what you want. The description is beautiful, and the setting of 60s California horse country fits the story perfectly. All around a lovely read!
This is such a beautiful, thoughtful horse story! The author has a great understanding of horses and the different styles of training, but incorporates them into the book (along with beautiful labeled illustrations of tack) in a way that doesn't make you feel like you're reading a textbook. She has just as strong an understanding of humans, growth, and relationships. Every character in this book is complex. The ones you sometimes want to hate-- Stella, Uncle Luke, even Daddy on occasion-- are not villains, just people, and the author helps you understand them and find the positive in them. Meanwhile the more "likable" characters have their own flaws and areas where you wish they would behave differently, but they are well-developed enough to behave like themselves, regardless of what you want. The description is beautiful, and the setting of 60s California horse country fits the story perfectly. All around a lovely read!
June 23, 2018
A good book for girls and young women (and 62-year-olds) who love horses (and wrestled with family, religion, and middle school). Young Abby has to deal with a strict religious father, a brother who couldn't take it any more and left, a mother who tries to keep the peace, friends and acquaintances at school who are deep in the vicissitudes of junior high girls (which is a strange and unpredictable place)... but she has the horses. Her father buys, trains and resells horses, and Abby helps train them so that "a little girl can ride it." He doesn't want her to get attached to the horses so he won't let her name them. All the mares are Jewel and all the geldings are George.
Naturally, things happen. "The Georges and the Jewels" left me with a wistful smile and slightly back in touch with the horse-crazy girl I was at that age. I may read the other books in the series just for calming in these unsettled days.
Naturally, things happen. "The Georges and the Jewels" left me with a wistful smile and slightly back in touch with the horse-crazy girl I was at that age. I may read the other books in the series just for calming in these unsettled days.
August 11, 2021
Ah, I return to the horse ranch adventures! This book gave me many flashbacks of reading its type 24/7 when I was about ten years old. I was obsessed. Since then, I thought I’d grown out of it...nope. I loved this book. Smiley has such a friendly yet deep way of writing that just draws you in. Abby is a very understandable character, and Smiley in no way shied away from diving deep into the hardships of her life. Abby lives such a unique lifestyle, but on the outside—as to her schoolmates—it probably seemed rather average. Smiley told her perspective so well that my heart feels rather attached to Abby.
As to the story itself, somewhat average but told in a wonderfully flowing way. Nothing felt out of place. It was possible to look beyond Abby’s perspective and see what was really going on, but while it still remaining in the first person.
Note: there was some swearing, but shown in a highly negative and offensive light.
As to the story itself, somewhat average but told in a wonderfully flowing way. Nothing felt out of place. It was possible to look beyond Abby’s perspective and see what was really going on, but while it still remaining in the first person.
Note: there was some swearing, but shown in a highly negative and offensive light.
August 12, 2025
Picked this up at a free library at our local park. I didn't realize at the time it was a YA read, but what the heck. I love a story about horses and this was a good one. At their ranch, all the horses are named George or Jewel. They are to be rode, trained, and sold. Nothing else. No attachment, no naming, no nothing. One such horse, Ornery George has it in for Abby, the young daughter charged with the majority of their training. She hates to ride him, but at her father's insistence, she must. This is the story of how Abby comes to conquer her fear of the one horse who has it in for her. Again, it's a young reader story, but I did learn alot about ranching and horse training and enjoyed that aspect of the story.
January 20, 2021
I loved this book! Jane Smiley really knows her stuff about horses! I am only giving this book 4 stars because it was hard to catch onto, so i recommend reading it in a place with no distractions whatsoever, and really focusing on it. I loved how Daddy was really strict, but had a huge soft spot that he didn't want to show. Reminds me of my dad 😂 I love how they named the horses-Mares are Jewels, Geldings are Georges, and how they labeled them by colour or personality. Example of what i mean: Ornery George, Roan Jewel, Red Jewel (was bought and re-named Ruby), etc. Thanks to everyone for reading!
August 13, 2017
GREAT book! I have been searching far and wide for a good Christian book about horses. I loved Winnie The Horse Gentler, and am now looking forward to reading this series. It's about a girl named Abby who trains horses. She develops throughout the book from being a girl who does what her dad says to a girl who actually learns from the horses she works with. This book was amazing and Jane Smiley's writing style made it even better. I am going to recommend this book to anyone I meet, because it is one of the best books I have ever read.
January 31, 2018
Jane Smiley writes with wonderful description of the characters and the scenery and setting. However, she sometimes she writes with so much detail at the expense of the plot. If you persevere, you will find a book with multi-strand themes of a 7th grade girl in school, a family farm, the girl's relationships with horses, and much information on training horses. I would recommend this especially to 10-14 year old horse crazed girls and found it an interesting read. I look forward to the other books in the series.
April 1, 2021
Growings and Becomings
Jane Smiley is a master of observation and character development and has keen insight into both human and animal motivations.
Abby' s family is diverse and endearingly rich in characters, right down to the horses.
This first bo ok in a series not only sets the tone future books but sheds light onto some people's religious fervor and u npique worldviews. It seems that each character has a lesson to learnt and a wiser person to become.And of course, there are horses! I look forward to the rest of the series.
Jane Smiley is a master of observation and character development and has keen insight into both human and animal motivations.
Abby' s family is diverse and endearingly rich in characters, right down to the horses.
This first bo ok in a series not only sets the tone future books but sheds light onto some people's religious fervor and u npique worldviews. It seems that each character has a lesson to learnt and a wiser person to become.And of course, there are horses! I look forward to the rest of the series.
January 11, 2022
Even though I am not either horsy or a 7th grader, I enjoyed tremendously reading this story about a person who is. Very well-written, wonderful vivid descriptions of the complicated lives and thoughts of a family and the horses they are raising and training. Was trying to find a follow-up to Jane Smiley’s “Perestroika in Paris”, glad I happened on this, and glad there are two more books in the series.
December 11, 2018
That’s the thing about my Goodreads reviews. Sometimes you’ll get deep philosophical musings on erudite books. Sometimes you’ll find an under-loved gem. Sometimes I’ll pan a popular book. And sometimes books with not much plot but LOTS of well-done horses get all the stars.
I want 4,000 books basically just like this.
I want 4,000 books basically just like this.
April 6, 2019
Revisiting my youth. I would have LOVED this book when I was in middle school and wanted a horse more than anything in the world. She tells the story well. And readers can learn about horses, horse tack, and much more. This is a lovely read. So glad there are still young girls out there who love horses!
November 16, 2022
The training relationship of the rider with each horse was fascinating. I did not enjoy the storyline with the uncaring hypocritical churchgoing "Christian" father. To the author: Whoever was in your life that called themself a Christian and was so abusive, I am sorry. They were not following Jesus, who is respectful and loving.
November 17, 2025
I really loved this book. It made me feel like I did when I was a little girl. The love and understanding I had for horses, the confusion of navigating changing inter personal relationships and also how it felt to grow up in a religious and strict home. The is a great pallet cleanser or feel good read
June 29, 2017
I really liked it, however it is a bit confusing with all of the horses names and I did get lost halfway through the book the first time I read it, but rereading it a second time made it a lot easier to understand and therefore more enjoyable to read!
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