The Snow Pony by Alison Lester

From School Library Journal
Grade 6-8-The high plains of Australia have been hit by a severe drought that has brought difficult times to the cattle farmers. Dusty Riley, 14, has always been her father's "right-hand man," but as the situation grows worse her dad begins to withdraw from his family, causing everyone more stress. Her only consolation is her love for her horse, the Snow Pony. The mare was a brumby, and now allows only Dusty to ride and take care of her. When the teen, her younger brother, and her father set out to bring the cattle down from the high country for the winter, they encounter illegal hunters who threaten their lives. Before the roundup is over, a serious snowstorm impedes their progress and Dusty and her pony prove their courage as they go for help. This fast-paced "horse and girl" adventure story has interesting, well-developed characters, and the tension among the family members is well drawn. The dangerous situations are well integrated into the plot, and the upbeat ending is plausible and satisfying.
Carol Schene, Taunton Public Schools, MA
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist
Gr. 6-12. Lester introduces readers to a willful Australian girl in this gripping adventure novel. Fourteen-year-old Dusty Riley (her cattle-farming father's "right-hand man") has "horses in her blood." But when she first spies the gray-and-white brumby she calls the Snow Pony, she knows she's a one-horse girl from that day on. The mare distracts her from the woes of her family, which was once tightly knit but is now fraying under the economic strain brought upon the farm by a three-year drought. Dusty has to grow up fast to deal with her once proud, increasingly troubled father, who relies upon her to win competitions for prize money. Despite her sense of alienation at school, and a spate of near disasters, Dusty shows her fortitude. Horse lovers will certainly revel in Lester's vivid descriptions of cattle farming, peppered with Aussie slang, but this outreaches the average horse story. Tethered to powerful themes of family, faith, and self-reliance, this also captures the beauty and unpredictability of wildness and a family's connection with the land. Karin Snelson
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Book Specs:
Reading level: Ages 9-12

Hardcover: 208 pages
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin/Walter Lorraine Books; 1 edition (April 28, 2003)
ISBN-10: 0618254048
ASIN: B001NXDTE2