Gr 4-6-Lasky begins this new series with an origin story about wild mustangs. The young filly Estrella, named for the star-shaped mark on her forehead, is born on a conquistador's ship heading for the New World. When the conquistadors decide to jettison the weaker and older horses, Estrella and her dam, Perlina, are dumped into the ocean with several other horses. Perlina dies in a shark attack, but Estrella and the other horses make it to land. Guided by Estrella's visions of faraway grasslands, the horses head north from Mexico toward the Western plains of what is now the United States. It is a long and hazardous journey through jungles where they encounter jaguars, crocodiles, and other predators. Their most dangerous encounters, however, are with human beings, as the horses become caught up in the clash between Spanish soldiers of fortune and the Native people. The author includes some gruesome but historically accurate details about what happened to these animals during the Spanish conquest. This story is fast paced and full of action, but there is also a mythic resonance in Estrella's visions of the horses' long ago prehistoric ancestor and their return to North America. Although the horses are anthropomorphized to a degree, Lasky creates a believable culture for them, based on actual equine behavior. Young equestrians and horse lovers are an obvious audience for this series, but fans of Lasky's previous books will also find much to enjoy.-Kathleen E. Gruver, Burlington County Library, Westampton, NJ (c) Copyright 2014. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

In the opening volume of her new series Horses of the Dawn, Lasky (author of the Guardians of Ga'Hoole books) reimagines the history of the reintroduction of horses to North America by Spanish conquistadors through the eyes of the horses they brought with them. Estrella, a plucky foal unexpectedly born on board a Spanish ship bound for the New World, is strong, brave, and wise beyond her years. She, along with three others, survives being tossed overboard into shark-infested waters by swimming to the Yucatan Peninsula. Thus begins her quest to find the land of the sweet grass only she can smell. The new herd faces dangers from animals and men alike. Lasky's delicate writing strikes a balance between exciting adventure story and family saga, and it's sprinkled with real historical events such as the retreat of Cortes from the Aztec capital Teotihuacan. Readers will root for Estrella and eagerly await the next installment in what is sure to be a popular series.--Szwarek, Magan Copyright 2014 Booklist

Filly Estrella is born on a ship en route to the New World. When provisions run low, the crew pushes some horses into the sea--Estrella and her mother Perlina among them. Perlina dies in a shark attack; Estrella leads the other horses to safety (albeit fleeting) on an island. Lasky weaves prehistory, legend, and historical fiction into her engaging animal fantasy. (c) Copyright 2014. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Inspired by Hernando Cortes's 1519 reintroduction of horses to the New World for the first time in several thousand years, this inventive novel launches the Horses of the Dawn series. Lasky (the Guardians of Ga'Hoole series) tells the story through the perspective of Estrella, a filly determined to find her bloodline's ancient home in the New World. Born on a ship sailed by Spaniards on a gold-seeking mission to Mexico, Estrella, her dam (mother), and several other horses are thrown overboard to lighten the vessel. As her mother sinks after a shark attack, a flash in her eyes reveals to Estrella her destiny to follow the scent of sweet grass and the image of a tiny, sprinting horse to lead her herd to freedom. A resonant mystical undercurrent marks the quest, which involves occasionally bloody clashes with animal predators and unscrupulous humans. Lasky successfully fuses fantasy and fact as she gives her equine characters credible emotional depth and underscores the tensions and disparity between Old and New World sensibilities. It's a haunting story of loss, self-discovery, survival, and homecoming. Ages 8-12. (Jan.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

THE CHERISHED BOND between humans and horses is celebrated in many beloved children's books, from "National Velvet" to "War Horse." But when the real connection is already palpable, why do writers take their horse stories deeply into the realm of the imaginary? Two new books for middle-grade readers use different approaches to the equestrian genre to explore these fantasies. "A Hundred Horses," by Sarah Lean, tells the story of Nell, a melancholy English girl living alone with her mother, who works long hours to support them. "My life is a list of mostly boring or pointless activities that I didn't choose," she sighs, "with a car drive and waiting in between." Nell's mother has purged the house of all visible traces of Nell's father, who moved to Las Vegas seven years ago. When Nell is told she is to spend two weeks at her Aunt Liv's home in the country, she bristles. She doesn't want to stay in a strange house with two babyish cousins. While packing, she discovers one remaining relic of her father, a broken toy carousel in an old suitcase. Nell smuggles the carousel to her aunt's, but a mysterious rider galloping down a village lane nearly tramples her and the suitcase is stolen. In her efforts to recover the carousel, Nell meets Angel, a strange girl with a secret rapport with the village animals. As Nell gets to know Angel, she also unravels two competing myths she hears about a herd of 100 horses, said to be either magical or a bad omen. Will the 99 horses that belong to the village's Keldacombe Farm really be sold at auction? The more Nell tries to separate myth from reality, the more those distinctions blur - a princess enters the story, as does an angel with wings. Lean's imagination runs wild, but her descriptions of a girl who rediscovers hope and wholeness remain firmly rooted in truth. Kathryn Lasky's "Horses of the Dawn" shares a similar level of fantasy in a very different setting. Lasky, a prolific children's author whose awards include the Newbery Honor, tells of the arrival of European horses in the New World in the 16th century. Following in the tradition of Anna Sewell's "Black Beauty," the story is told from the horses' perspective, principally that of a filly, Estrella, who is born on a ship bound for Mexico and leads a herd to what would become the American West. Sometimes the fantasy goes too far. The horses talk to one another - and deer and macaws - in ways that can seem preposterous. ("By my withers!" is a common equine exclamation of disgust.) Estrella eats a peyote-like plant and has a hallucinatory conversation with a coyote she believes is her deceased mother. The herd encounters human sacrifice and scenes of terrible violence that may upset middle-grade readers. Yet there are moments of beauty in both books that feel true. When Nell helps to return the herd to Keldacombe Farm, the scene of the horses galloping back to their fields strikes the reader as wondrous. In such moments, make-believe becomes inspiring rather than far-fetched. On the ship, Estrella questions her dam about the meaning of her name. In the dark hold, she is unable to understand what a star is until she finally catches a glimpse of one reflected in her water bucket. "Mamita!" she exclaims in a rare moment of joy in captivity. "I am drinking a star!" JILLIAN DUNHAM, a writer and editor, is a farmer instructor at the United States Pony Clubs.

Born in the hold of a Spanish galleon destined for the New World, the young filly Estrella knows nothing of the feel of the earth under her hooves or the joy of the pasture, but her mother's soft murmurings hint at a greater destiny for the young horse and her friends. Determined to lighten their load and save their quest for gold, the sailors dump the horses overboard. Perlina, Estrella's dam, exhorts them to swim for the nearby island, but a hungry shark has other plans for her filly. Perlina sacrifices herself for the herd, but her life is not her only gift. Before dying, she gives Estrella a vision of freedom. It falls to Estrella, the youngest of the surviving horses, to inspire the others to journey toward the promise of a life without masters where the sweet grass grows. As in works such as her Guardians of Ga'hoole series, Lasky uses animals to touch on very human issues. The herd must face the cost of freedom and the adversity that comes with the pursuit of one's dreams. Complex and distinctive characters offer a fresh view of familiar historical events. A promising start to a new series. (author's note, map) (Historical fantasy. 8-12)]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.