Misty of Chincoteague

Each year, on Pony Penning Day, the island's men round up the wild ponies and swim them across the channel to Chincoteague to be sold. Paul is finally old enough to join the roundup, and to everyone's surprise he brings in the Phantom, along with her tiny newborn foal, Misty. With their grandparents' help, the children work hard to raise the money to buy the mare and the foal, and to tame and train the Phantom for a race.

Marguerite Henry describes island life, the ponies and the excitement of the roundup with affection and detail, and the bond between brother and sister is warm and believable. The children's love for the Phantom brings them to a difficult choice about whether a wild horse can ever truly be theirs. Wesley Dennis's illustrations add to the book's charm. The real Misty became famous after the book was published, and the pony roundup still takes place every summer.

Warm, exciting and gently moving, a classic horse story that has delighted generations of young readers. It was followed by Sea Star and Stormy, Misty's Foal, and many children go on to read all of Marguerite Henry's horse books. About 176 pages in the Aladdin paperback.