Helpful Score: 14
this book is depressing & sad. It starts off that way & it never gets better. The lead girl sometimes garners sympathy but mainly not, when she ought to feel empathy she never does. She most always chooses cruelty over kindness. Its hard to feel sympathy for anyone in this book but the horses & thats what makes it hard to read....rarely do the horses get treated like anything but crap. I read this thinking itd be similar to "chosen by a horse" and I got more & more horrified chapter by chapter. By the last few pages I knew nothing good was to come but I kept reading bc HEY, you never know!! I dont WANT to give anything away but if you LOVE & ADORE animals like me, this book will break your heart. You will HATE all the characters but one kind hearted soul & the torture inflicted upon the animals in this book will be hard to read about. Also....I used to think that I LIKED sad books, regardless of if they were about humans or animals, I changed my mind. I wish Id never read this book. The torture of horses told about in this book make me wish Id never picked it up.
Helpful Score: 9
Debut book by a new author - kept me riveted until the very last page. Told from the viewpoint of a 12 year old girl and the trials and tribulations of her family's struggling horse farm in rural Colorado. At times shocking, at times touching, this book covers many emotions. Not what you might expect. It's better.
Helpful Score: 7
Twelve is an odd age. It is the start of the time between child and adulthood. For each of us there is a of memorable events that impact us forever. For Alice Winston that life effecting year is her twelfth year. Sometimes very mature, sometimes childish, sometimes insightful, she relates the impact these events had on her life.
I read mixed reviews on this book but read it anyway. I am glad I did. There are funny moments, sad moments, poignant moments. There are times I wondered about her active imagination and where it would lead her. One conclusion to which she came was that, "Blame is, in fact, irrelevant, if only because it changes nothing." I wish I had learned that in my early teens!
This is a coming of age book that all ages can enjoy.
I read mixed reviews on this book but read it anyway. I am glad I did. There are funny moments, sad moments, poignant moments. There are times I wondered about her active imagination and where it would lead her. One conclusion to which she came was that, "Blame is, in fact, irrelevant, if only because it changes nothing." I wish I had learned that in my early teens!
This is a coming of age book that all ages can enjoy.
Helpful Score: 6
You will be sucked into Alice's life, a sad one on the family's horse farm. She's adrift with the loss of her one friend, the departure of her sister and the virtual death of her depressed mother. She's a seeker, looking to fill the emotional emptiness in her life through a number of misguided channels. Captivating!
Helpful Score: 6
I really enjoyed this book. It's the story of a young girl who when her sister leaves home to get married has to take on the job of helping keep the horse ranch running, with her father. It is a moving story of a young girl and the trouble with growing up, learning of life and how the world works.
