An adventure of a young girl’s childhood takes a turn
towards survival as she is forced to save her horses from a burning barn in Winnie & Thunderose: An Illustrated
Story About Friendship by Herman Franck, Esq.
Elizabeth is an abnormally quiet young girl, and was brought
to a doctor regarding her condition. Her
parents, Henry and Alice, noticed however that Elizabeth is extraordinarily
intrigued by horses, as some innate bond is established when she is around a
horse. So “under doctor’s orders” her
parents are instructed to get her a horse.
This begins a journey from California to Kentucky, and leads
to the discovery of Winnie, a young spirited pony and Thunderose, a champion
thoroughbred with 6 major wins to her record. As money is no object to Elizabeth’s parents, also having the acreage
and stable to properly care for the horses, both horses are bought and brought
home for Elizabeth to care for.
Interlaced throughout the storyline are beautiful charcoal
illustrations by an extremely talented artist, Maria Byerley. Each drawing uniquely captures the grandeur
of the equestrian spirit, the sensitive love of the little girl and her family,
and the settings of the Southwest and Kentucky regions. The illustrations create a storyboard of imagination
that symbiotically enhance the enjoyment of the plot; as the story in turn embellishes
the appreciation of the drawings. Particularly one drawing of Winnie & Thunderose looking outward from
their stable window at night, with the “reverse use” of charcoal being erased
to highlight stars against a dark sky, holds an artistic element indelible in
my memory. Another one is a portrait of
a Native American woman representing the facial characteristics of the Arizona
tribes, and is so beautifully illustrated I couldn’t turn the page for minutes
when viewing it for the first time.
Friendship and love becomes a matrix of relationships.
Winnie & Thunderose have an animal bond akin to love. Elizabeth
loves each horse separately and of course the love of Henry and Alice with
their daughter is told in a healthy, functional way. All emotions are heightened during a fiery
crisis of survival when lightning strikes a tree and catches the adjacent barn
on fire, jeopardizing the life of the horses and ultimately Elizabeth and also a
firefighter. The combination of learning
about the horses’ personalities, seeing the special bonds with Elizabeth, and
feeling the love of her family created a story of unique enjoyment for reading
to young children, or having them read this book on their own once able. I was impressed with the way Herman Franck so
eloquently showed how working with beautiful animals inspired Elizabeth to come
out of her shell.
This book is highly recommended to be a part of school
libraries, as well as the personal collections of families raising
children. It would make a great birthday
gift for any single digit year party. It
is a book to be read over and over, with illustrations to be gazed upon in an
unhurried fashion, relishing in the delight of the images of a very well told
story.
Buy this book at Barnes & Noble
