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quippeThe Blurb On The Back:
Summer has always loved horses, and she’s longed for the day when she’d be able to ride a pony of her own. So when Summer meets Jessie and gets a chance to visit the Starlight Stables, she leaps at the chance.
Helping out at the stables is a dream come true, until her favourite dapple-grey pony, Luna, gets stolen. With a thief on the loose, and suspects round every corner, it’s up to Summer and the rest of the Starlight Stables Gang to rescue Luna before it’s too late!
11-year-old Summer is absolutely bonkers for horses, even though she’s only ever ridden them a handful of times. When she’s not watching videos about horses and ponies, she lives with her dad (a mental health care assistant) in a one bedroom flat (her dad sleeps on the sofa) ever since her mum walked out on them.
Summer’s route to school takes her past a field with two horses and she has a special affinity for the grey one. She doesn’t have any friends at school - mainly because when she and her dad moved to their flat, she had to change schools away from her old friends - but one day she overhears Jessie talking about horses and the two girls make a connection. It’s Jessie who tells Summer about Starlight Stables, which is only a couple of fields away from the field with the grey horse, who turns out to be called Luna and when Summer decides to visit the stables, it’s Jessie who introduces her to the owners, Jodie and Sooz. Summer is made up when Sooz and Jodie agree that she in return for volunteering at the stables from time to time she can ride Jessie’s horse Angus.
Summer loves hanging out at the stables and even enjoys mucking out the horses. As she gets closer to Jessie she also makes friends with Ellie (who’s been using a wheelchair ever since she fell off a wall and broke her back), but not Daniel - the unpleasant boy who also helps out at the stables but doesn’t make any effort to get to know the other children there.
But then something terrible happens: Luna is stolen! Even though he’s not Summer’s horse, she’s desperate to get him back and she’s going to need the help of Jessie, Ellie and maybe even Daniel if she’s going to succeed …
Esme Higgs and Jo Cotterill’s horsey novel for readers aged 9+ (the first in a series and sweetly illustrated by Hannah George) really conveys why people love horses and suggests ways of doing it if you don’t have a lot of money without denying that it’s a privileged activity. There’s a lot of set up in terms of character and so the mystery gets pushed to one side but there’s a lot of potential here and I’d definitely read the sequel.
There’s been a lot of discussion in the press about celebrity novels. I am not a horse-fan so I was unaware who Esme Higgs was or even that horse influencing was a thing before picking this book up. To be fair to her, I think that the way this book has been produced and marketed is absolutely how celebrity co-written/ghost-written books should be done. Jo Cotterill is named on the cover and Higgs acknowledges that she’s pulled the ideas and words into a coherent story in a note at the back of the book. If you are a young fan of Higgs, then I think you will enjoy the book because you do get a real understanding for why some people are potty about horses. Summer’s enthusiasm really shines through and Higgs/Cotterill explain that in a way that readers are both able to understand and empathise with.
I liked the fact that this isn’t a book that tries to pretend that you don’t need money to engage in horse riding. The fact that Summer and her dad are clearly trying to do the best they can with his low income comes across well and is neatly contrasted with Jessie who comes from a much more privileged background and an almost careless attitude towards money. At the same time, Higgs/Cotterill show that there are ways of getting into horse riding even if you don’t have money by volunteering and Summer’s cheerful enthusiasm for any horse-related task is actually quite admirable. At the same time, I should say that this isn’t a poverty-tourism book. Summer repeatedly says that she doesn’t want the reader to feel sorry for her because her dad clearly loves her and although there are moments when she does wish things were different, she equally has a great deal of maturity about her situation.
Summer’s situation is also neatly contrasted with Daniel, who I think is actually a really interesting character - not only because he’s the only boy in the story but also because he’s got an interesting backstory that holds a lot of promise for future books. I wished there’d been a bit more from Ellie because she also has an interesting background and her relationship with her very protective parents which I look forward to seeing more of.
There is a lot of set-up in the novel - which you would absolutely expect in the first book of a series - but I think with the scenario and the characters now established, there’s a lot of potential for what the gang can get up to in future books. The flip side of the set up is that the main plot here - Luna going missing - is pretty much relegated to the second half of the book and if I’m being honest, doesn’t quite know if it wants to be a mystery or an adventure or a way of getting to know the characters. Certainly it’s a bit obvious and resolved in a fairly pat manner so although there is a sense of jeopardy for Luna, it’s not so dangerous that you aren’t certain things will come good. I did think that Hannah George’s illustrations work well with the text - they’re quite sweet and fun and do bring out elements of the various characters and their relationships.
All in all, I think that if you have a young reader who is horse mad or already a fan of Higgs then they will absolutely love this book and certainly I think there’s enough here to make me want to check out the sequel.
The Verdict:
Esme Higgs and Jo Cotterill’s horsey novel for readers aged 9+ (the first in a series and sweetly illustrated by Hannah George) really conveys why people love horses and suggests ways of doing it if you don’t have a lot of money without denying that it’s a privileged activity. There’s a lot of set up in terms of character and so the mystery gets pushed to one side but there’s a lot of potential here and I’d definitely read the sequel.
THE STARLIGHT STABLES GANG was released in the United Kingdom on 30th March 2023. Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.
Summer has always loved horses, and she’s longed for the day when she’d be able to ride a pony of her own. So when Summer meets Jessie and gets a chance to visit the Starlight Stables, she leaps at the chance.
Helping out at the stables is a dream come true, until her favourite dapple-grey pony, Luna, gets stolen. With a thief on the loose, and suspects round every corner, it’s up to Summer and the rest of the Starlight Stables Gang to rescue Luna before it’s too late!
11-year-old Summer is absolutely bonkers for horses, even though she’s only ever ridden them a handful of times. When she’s not watching videos about horses and ponies, she lives with her dad (a mental health care assistant) in a one bedroom flat (her dad sleeps on the sofa) ever since her mum walked out on them.
Summer’s route to school takes her past a field with two horses and she has a special affinity for the grey one. She doesn’t have any friends at school - mainly because when she and her dad moved to their flat, she had to change schools away from her old friends - but one day she overhears Jessie talking about horses and the two girls make a connection. It’s Jessie who tells Summer about Starlight Stables, which is only a couple of fields away from the field with the grey horse, who turns out to be called Luna and when Summer decides to visit the stables, it’s Jessie who introduces her to the owners, Jodie and Sooz. Summer is made up when Sooz and Jodie agree that she in return for volunteering at the stables from time to time she can ride Jessie’s horse Angus.
Summer loves hanging out at the stables and even enjoys mucking out the horses. As she gets closer to Jessie she also makes friends with Ellie (who’s been using a wheelchair ever since she fell off a wall and broke her back), but not Daniel - the unpleasant boy who also helps out at the stables but doesn’t make any effort to get to know the other children there.
But then something terrible happens: Luna is stolen! Even though he’s not Summer’s horse, she’s desperate to get him back and she’s going to need the help of Jessie, Ellie and maybe even Daniel if she’s going to succeed …
Esme Higgs and Jo Cotterill’s horsey novel for readers aged 9+ (the first in a series and sweetly illustrated by Hannah George) really conveys why people love horses and suggests ways of doing it if you don’t have a lot of money without denying that it’s a privileged activity. There’s a lot of set up in terms of character and so the mystery gets pushed to one side but there’s a lot of potential here and I’d definitely read the sequel.
There’s been a lot of discussion in the press about celebrity novels. I am not a horse-fan so I was unaware who Esme Higgs was or even that horse influencing was a thing before picking this book up. To be fair to her, I think that the way this book has been produced and marketed is absolutely how celebrity co-written/ghost-written books should be done. Jo Cotterill is named on the cover and Higgs acknowledges that she’s pulled the ideas and words into a coherent story in a note at the back of the book. If you are a young fan of Higgs, then I think you will enjoy the book because you do get a real understanding for why some people are potty about horses. Summer’s enthusiasm really shines through and Higgs/Cotterill explain that in a way that readers are both able to understand and empathise with.
I liked the fact that this isn’t a book that tries to pretend that you don’t need money to engage in horse riding. The fact that Summer and her dad are clearly trying to do the best they can with his low income comes across well and is neatly contrasted with Jessie who comes from a much more privileged background and an almost careless attitude towards money. At the same time, Higgs/Cotterill show that there are ways of getting into horse riding even if you don’t have money by volunteering and Summer’s cheerful enthusiasm for any horse-related task is actually quite admirable. At the same time, I should say that this isn’t a poverty-tourism book. Summer repeatedly says that she doesn’t want the reader to feel sorry for her because her dad clearly loves her and although there are moments when she does wish things were different, she equally has a great deal of maturity about her situation.
Summer’s situation is also neatly contrasted with Daniel, who I think is actually a really interesting character - not only because he’s the only boy in the story but also because he’s got an interesting backstory that holds a lot of promise for future books. I wished there’d been a bit more from Ellie because she also has an interesting background and her relationship with her very protective parents which I look forward to seeing more of.
There is a lot of set-up in the novel - which you would absolutely expect in the first book of a series - but I think with the scenario and the characters now established, there’s a lot of potential for what the gang can get up to in future books. The flip side of the set up is that the main plot here - Luna going missing - is pretty much relegated to the second half of the book and if I’m being honest, doesn’t quite know if it wants to be a mystery or an adventure or a way of getting to know the characters. Certainly it’s a bit obvious and resolved in a fairly pat manner so although there is a sense of jeopardy for Luna, it’s not so dangerous that you aren’t certain things will come good. I did think that Hannah George’s illustrations work well with the text - they’re quite sweet and fun and do bring out elements of the various characters and their relationships.
All in all, I think that if you have a young reader who is horse mad or already a fan of Higgs then they will absolutely love this book and certainly I think there’s enough here to make me want to check out the sequel.
The Verdict:
Esme Higgs and Jo Cotterill’s horsey novel for readers aged 9+ (the first in a series and sweetly illustrated by Hannah George) really conveys why people love horses and suggests ways of doing it if you don’t have a lot of money without denying that it’s a privileged activity. There’s a lot of set up in terms of character and so the mystery gets pushed to one side but there’s a lot of potential here and I’d definitely read the sequel.
THE STARLIGHT STABLES GANG was released in the United Kingdom on 30th March 2023. Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.
