A Horse Named Sky

by Rosanne Parry, Kirbi Fagan (Illustrator)

Overview

Notes From Your Bookseller

Kids love horses, and Sky is an extra lovable horse. In A Horse Named Sky, environmental themes mesh with strong social-emotional learning opportunities to form a great blend for readers of all kinds.

An instant New York Times bestseller!

A stand-alone companion to the national bestsellers A Wolf Called Wander and A Whale of the Wild.

Exiled from his band, a young, wild horse must find his way across treacherous terrain to reunite with his family after being captured for the Pony Express. Horn Book calls A Horse Named Sky “engrossing and fast-paced.” This Voice on the Wilderness novel is an enthralling survival story about wild horses, family bonds, and a changing environment. 

Young colt Sky was born with the urge to run. Alongside his band, he moves across the range searching for fresh water and abundant grazing. But humans have begun to encroach on Sky’s homelands. With fewer resources to share, Sky knows that he must leave if his family is to survive. He hopes that one day he’ll be strong and brave enough to return and challenge the stallion to lead the herd.

Being a lone wild horse in a vast landscape is not easy, and things get even more dangerous when Sky is captured and forced to run for the Pony Express. Now, against all odds, Sky must find a way to escape and reunite with his family.

A Horse Named Sky is a stand-alone companion novel to Rosanne Parry’s New York Times bestsellers A Wolf Called Wander and A Whale of the Wild. Chronicling the perils of westward expansion and the grueling Pony Express from the perspective of a wild horse, A Horse Named Sky is a gripping animal survival story about family, courage, trust, leadership, and loyalty. Impeccably researched and illustrated in black-and-white throughout, A Horse Named Sky is an excellent read-aloud for parents and teachers and a wonderful choice for fans of DreamWorks’ Spirit and Anna Sewell’s Black Beauty.

Includes black-and-white illustrations throughout, a map, and extensive back matter about wild horses and their habitats. 

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780062995957
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	08/29/2023
Series:	A Voice of the Wilderness Novel
Pages:	272
Sales rank:	33,944
Product dimensions:	5.60(w) x 8.30(h) x 1.20(d)
Age Range:	8 - 12 Years

About the Author

Rosanne Parry is the author of the acclaimed novels A Wolf Called Wander, A Whale of the Wild, A Horse Named Sky, Heart of a Shepherd, Second Fiddle, and Written in Stone. She has taught writing at schools, conferences, educational nonprofits, and online at the Loft Literary Center and works as an independent bookseller. She and her family live in an old farmhouse in Portland, Oregon. She writes in a tree house in her backyard.

Kirbi Fagan is a writer and illustrator for readers of all ages, but she specializes in children's literature. She is recognized for her cover art in adult, teen, and middle grade fiction as well as her numerous covers for comic books. Kirbi Fagan’s work is inspired by her experiences as an artist with disabilities. She was traditionally trained as an oil painter but now works in mixed media techniques, including digital tools. Kirbi Fagan lives in Waterford, Michigan. 

Editorial Reviews

10/13/2023

Gr 3–7—Sky isn't a big horse, but he is fast. Readers meet him as a newborn, experiencing the world from his eyes, and are treated to his wonderment, as well as the challenges of living in the wild. There are big expectations of even the youngest horses. Because Sky is a foal, he knows he will one day have to either fight his father or leave his family, since there can only be one male horse in a family band. A drought makes that day come sooner than he'd like, and he sets out on his own so he is not draining limited water, leaving behind his band and best friend Storm. He's overjoyed to find that Storm has left the band to join him, but the two are soon captured and groomed to become horses on the Pony Express. Perry has created an entirely convincing setting in which humans are secondary to animals. Imaginative descriptions keep readers guessing the horse interpretation of human vocabulary. Sky's puzzlement over human behavior is sometimes poignant, and sometimes humorous. He's stunned to learn they can speak, and is advised not to try to confuse them, as their capacity to understand is limited. Perry's portrayal of the dynamics between domesticated horses and wild horses is compelling. Those born in captivity believe themselves to be superior to those born in the wild. Despite plentiful water and food, Sky never loses his determination to escape. This standalone companion to A Wolf Called Wander and A Whale in the Wild offers readers a unique perspective of the development of the American West. Frequent soft black-and-white illustrations enhance Perry's poetic prose. VERDICT This compelling novel has wide appeal and readers need not be horse or animal lovers to appreciate its heartfelt message of family and freedom.—Juliet Morefield

School Library Journal

2023-07-13
In mid-19th-century Nevada, a colt named Sky grows up to lead his band of wild horses.

Parry’s moving story follows the pattern of her recent animal tales, A Wolf Called Wander (2019) and A Whale of the Wild (2020), chronicling a wild animal’s life in the first person, imagining its point of view, and detailing and appreciating the natural world it inhabits. As Sky grows from wobbly newborn to leader of his family, he faces more than the usual challenges for colts who must fight their stallions or leave their herds when they are grown up. Fagan’s appealing black-and-white illustrations help readers envision this survival story. Sky’s adventures include forced service with the Pony Express; being befriended by an enslaved Paiute boy; escaping to find his now-captured band; and helping them escape the silver miners who’d destroyed their world. Animal lovers will applaud his ingenuity and stubbornness. Although Sky’s band has suffered serious injuries (his mother is blind), he and Storm, a mare who was his childhood companion, lead them toward safety in a new wilderness. The writer’s admiration for these wild horses and her concerns about human destruction of their environment come through even more clearly in a series of concluding expository essays discussing the wild horses, the Indigenous Americans, the natural history of the Great Basin, silver mining, and the Pony Express.

A feel-good tale of a clever and determined stallion set against a well-developed landscape. (author’s note, resources) (Fiction. 7-10)

Kirkus Reviews

Parry’s moving story follows the pattern of her recent animal tales, A Wolf Called Wander and A Whale of the Wild, chronicling a wild animal’s life in the first person, imagining its point of view, and detailing and appreciating the natural world it inhabits. . . . As Sky grows from wobbly newborn to leader of his family, he faces more than the usual challenges for colts who must fight their stallions or leave their herds when they are grown up. . . . A feel-good tale of a clever and determined stallion set against a well-developed landscape.” — Kirkus Reviews

“Sky’s first-person narration of his adventures is engrossing and fast-paced. . . . Parry weaves historical and environmental information smoothly into the narrative. . . . Parry writes a convincing fictionalized life of one wild animal while addressing issues of community, survival, and care for our environment. Fagan’s realistic black-and-white illustrations convey the windswept mountain terrain and the movement of the horses.” — Horn Book Magazine

From the Publisher