I immediately flashed back in time to the horse crazy girl I once was when I saw this cover. Quite frankly, based on the cover, I was expecting a cartoon type book. I was pleasantly surprised to find within a mix of adorable drawings and actual photos used to illustrate the points of the story. I will note, however, that the focus seemed to be on using English tack. Although I ultimately competed in English equestrian type events, I grew up either bareback or with Western gear. That said, the info within is basic and both explained and illustrated. While it wasn't quite what I'd expected, it does deliver the basics such as parts of a horse and tack, not to mention breeds, measurements and color, as well as answers questions about what horses eat, how to tell if your horse is happy, and such. Not quite sure what the target age is but will guess upper elementary since much of the information would require reading skills over a much younger child's ability. A good chance for a parent to be involved, of course, as they read and discuss the information.
I had to wonder, however, if the average horse-crazy kid had the access to trainers and instructors as the author seems to have grown up with and based much of the book on that assumption. That doesn't mean the book is wrong, that would be the ideal, but would have liked to have seen more for the average beginner, English or Western style. That said, thanks to #NetGalley and #BooksGoSocial for the fun time traveling back to my horse crazed youth. Fun.
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