If I Was a Horse

by Sophie Blackall (Author)

If I Was a Horse
Reading Level: K − 1st Grade

In her funniest book yet, two-time Caldecott Medalist Sophie Blackall captures the astonishing spectacle of a child imagining life as a horse. And with a book jacket adorned with glitter, this romp really sparkles!

If you were a horse, what would you do? Could you fit in your clothes? Would you give your little sister a ride? Would your brother even notice?

Gallop along with two-time Caldecott Medalist Sophie Blackall through this riotous day in the life of a child who imagines their life as a horse. What ensues are uproarious, resonant episodes that feature a giant horse in familiar settings offering both a visual feast, a grand dose of joy, and a celebration of the real power of imagination to help us navigate the world.

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Hardcover
$18.99

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Kirkus

There’ll be no neigh-sayers for this one. 

ALA/Booklist

Starred Review
Charming and whimsical visual surprises are found throughout the impeccably designed pages...An exquisite equine fantasy, this encourages imaginations to giddyup and run wild and free.

Publishers Weekly

In an amusing meditation on self-determination, a young narrator imagines being free of the rules of childhood and family life--by dint of becoming a horse. Caldecott Medalist Blackall begins, "If I was a horse, I would gallop all day.// I could go anywhere I want, // and I'd come home when I was hungry." One accompanying spread shows a bay horse with a spray of white spots across its back entering a kitchen and grazing on a sandwich. A younger sibling giggles; an older sibling, absorbed in a book, notices nothing. The speaker describes giving their sister a ride to school (halting just shy of the entrance to munch flowers); swimming, goggle-clad, in a race ("Everyone/ would want me on their team"); and looking skeptically at a caregiver proffering both a bath and garments ("If I was a horse, I wouldn't wear clothes"). After bedtime, the real voice behind the words is revealed. Throughout this cozy view of longed-for freedoms in childhood, Blackall's signature-style illustrations summon giggles about the comic ill-suitedness of horses to the human-scale world. Characters are portrayed with various skin tones. Ages 4-8. Agent: Nancy Gallt, Gallt & Zacker Literary. (Oct.)

Copyright 2023 Publishers Weekly, LLC Used with permission.

Review quotes

* Charming and whimsical visual surprises are found throughout the impeccably designed pages...An exquisite equine fantasy, this encourages imaginations to giddyup and run wild and free."—Booklist, starred review
Sophie Blackall
Sophie Blackall has illustrated dozens of beautiful books including the Caldecott Medal-winning titles Hello Lighthouse and Finding Winnie by Lindsay Mattick. She is also the proprietor of Milkwood, a creative retreat housed in a restored dairy barn, adjacent to a falling-down house upon which this book is based. When not at the farm, she lives with her family in Brooklyn, NY. She invites you to visit her on Instagram @SophieBlackall.

Classification
Fiction
ISBN-13
9780316510981
Lexile Measure
-
Guided Reading Level
-
Publisher
Little Brown and Company
Publication date
October 03, 2023
Series
-
BISAC categories
JUV019000 - Juvenile Fiction | Humorous Stories
JUV051000 - Juvenile Fiction | Imagination & Play
JUV002130 - Juvenile Fiction | Animals | Horses
Library of Congress categories
Picture books
Imagination

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