Here are 9 books that Defining Gravity Series fans have personally recommended once you finish the Defining Gravity Series series.
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I’ve been passionate about horses and adventure since I was a little girl. I’ve owned many horses over the years, and they all forever live on in the pages of my books. I wrote my book in 2001 while recovering from major surgery. The story was inspired by a young lady I met while volunteering with Nanaimo Therapeutic Riding and a frostbitten Mustang that arrived at Thunderbird Show Park en route from Wyoming to northern British Columbia. I lost my father to cancer a year before the book’s release. In many ways, Hannah Storey’s learning to cope with loss is based on my own. Life is like that, though, isn’t it?
Nothing puts me in the mood for the Holidays like holiday-themed hanky-waving, happy-ending Christmas stories about family, life, horses, and the holidays. Everyone needs inspiration. Pick-me-up stories are the name of the game when the winter blues set in, and a page-turning series of tales is needed to keep you going.
There is nothing like the fresh smell of manure in the morning when the outside world is covered in white. Inside the barn, the frosty breath of the horses waiting for their morning feed reminds you that you have a cup of hot chocolate and a great book waiting for you once you’ve done your chores.
Get in the holiday spirit with this Christmas-themed set of short stories from some of your favorite equestrian writers! Some of the top authors in the genre have banded together to share Christmas stories from the heart. Look for best-selling authors Maggie Dana, Mary Pagones, Mara Dabrishus, Brittney Joy, Kim Ablon Whitney, Kate Lattey, and Natalie Keller Reinert -- plus an exclusive Canterwood Crest holiday short story from Jessica Burkhart!
And in the true spirit of the holidays, all proceeds will go to benefit Old Friends, a Thoroughbred retirement home providing life-long homes for former racehorses.
I’ve been passionate about horses and adventure since I was a little girl. I’ve owned many horses over the years, and they all forever live on in the pages of my books. I wrote my book in 2001 while recovering from major surgery. The story was inspired by a young lady I met while volunteering with Nanaimo Therapeutic Riding and a frostbitten Mustang that arrived at Thunderbird Show Park en route from Wyoming to northern British Columbia. I lost my father to cancer a year before the book’s release. In many ways, Hannah Storey’s learning to cope with loss is based on my own. Life is like that, though, isn’t it?
An isle filled with fog and ponies, the windswept chill of the coast, no signs of civilization, just the whisper of the wind in the grass. Away from the hustle and bustle, it is a place of dreams, of ponies, of peacefulness, until one sad day, the real world comes crashing in.
Everyone experiences it one day; they either fall or rise above. The journey is in the life lessons taught along the way. As a kid, it’s much harder to figure out, but every so often, a book comes along that sticks in your memory like a fly-paper, and the lessons learned with the pages are summoned to mind when they’re needed: love, perseverance, and hope.
Marguerite Henry's beloved story of a wild horse's gentle colt-winner of a Newbery Honor!
On the island of Chincoteague, off the coasts of Virginia and Maryland, lives a centuries-old band of wild ponies. Among them is the most mysterious of all, Phantom, a rarely-seen mare that eludes all efforts to capture her-that is, until a young boy and girl lay eyes on her and determine that they can't live without her.
The frenzied roundup that follows on the next Pony Penning Day does indeed bring Phantom into their lives, in a way they never would have suspected. Phantom would forever…
While history tells a very pragmatic story about our human tendency to gather near water, literature tells more haunting stories of water. The literature of my youth was no different. In these books, water and watery habitats are both settings and characters. Sometimes protagonist, sometimes antagonist, always present. Perhaps my years of immersion in these books imprinted so deeply that I had no choice but to arrange my first poetry collection as a journey of water. After all, water is one of Earth’s clocks, and I prefer its version of time.
This was the first book I ever pulled from the big kids’ shelves at our library. I read it in the big chair in the den until Mother chased me outside with dire threats that I was ruining my eyes.
Then I read among straw bales and a heap of yard cats until nightfall lured the cats away. Then I read in bed until Mother threatened further direness if I didn’t turn off my light. Then I read by moonlight until I fell asleep and woke again the next day to read more.
A shipwreck, an island, and a horse. A little barn in the suburbs. These were the opposite of my world. During the hours I spent with this book, I became an escape reader.
First published in 1941, Walter Farley's best-selling novel for young readers is the triumphant tale of a boy and a wild horse. From Alec Ramsay and the Black's first meeting on an ill-fated ship to their adventures on a desert island and their eventual rescue, this beloved story will hold the rapt attention of readers new and old.
This book has been selected as a Common Core State Standards Text Exemplar (Grades 4-5, Stories) in Appendix B.
Anyone who knows me knows that Christmas is my absolute favorite time of year! I devour all things Christmas, from decor to movies to music to cookies, so curling up with a magical holiday book is my idea of a very merry holiday!
This is a quintessential read for any Christmas bookworm. I read it every year at the holidays. It’s a quick read but such a fun way to immerse myself in the magic of that era. I recommend reading the book as it takes on a totally different feel in the mind than just watching the films.
Tom Baker reads Charles Dickens' timeless seasonal story.
Charles Dickens' story of solitary miser Ebenezer Scrooge, who is taught the true meaning of Christmas by the three ghosts of Christmas past, present, and future, has become one of the timeless classics of English literature. First published in 1843, it introduces us not only to Scrooge himself, but also to the memorable characters of underpaid desk clerk Bob Cratchit and his poor family, the poorest amongst whom is the ailing and crippled Tiny Tim.
In this captivating recording, Tom Baker delivers a tour-de-force performance as he narrates the story. The listener…
In addition to being a writer, I am an avid horse-person who has been obsessed with these amazing creatures my entire life. I was a pretty feral child so I spent my teen years riding bareback around the countryside, daydreaming about going to the Olympics or thwarting horse thieves or discovering a herd of Unicorns…the usual. I’ve worked at many barns, taken internships, volunteered, and have been lucky enough to own a few horses of my own over the years. The horse books I’m drawn to always have realistic protagonists who are also kind, empathic, and who understand how special and magical these animals are.
This whole series is so interesting. It follows the interconnected lives of top trainers and the (mostly wealthy) riders who show upper-level Saddlebreds. This is a world I’d known absolutely nothing about before. So, reading this series was fascinating and eye-opening. It’s like getting a glimpse of a completely different, and sometimes over-the-top, world. The author knows her subject so well that it’s like being transported to those high-stakes shows.
Stake Night is the story of a single year in the glamorous and competitive world of show horses, where the rewards are large and so are the lengths to which people will go to win. For the owners, it is about wielding power through money in their quest to proudly hold the prestigious World Championship trophy. For the riders, it is about demonstrating technical skill and nerve by out-riding their competitors and maneuvering their horse in the frenetic ring so the judges notice it. For the trainers, it is about finding the key that makes your horse out-perform others that…
In addition to being a writer, I am an avid horse-person who has been obsessed with these amazing creatures my entire life. I was a pretty feral child so I spent my teen years riding bareback around the countryside, daydreaming about going to the Olympics or thwarting horse thieves or discovering a herd of Unicorns…the usual. I’ve worked at many barns, taken internships, volunteered, and have been lucky enough to own a few horses of my own over the years. The horse books I’m drawn to always have realistic protagonists who are also kind, empathic, and who understand how special and magical these animals are.
This true-to-life series follows dressage rider, Lizzy, who gives up her job, her boyfriend, and her whole life in order to become a working student with a top trainer. It has a great cast of authentic characters, both humans and horses, and the training parts are spot on. A very enjoyable series.
You know what happens to all those girls who are just crazy about horses? Once they discover boys, the horses are history. Or maybe not. For Lizzy, and others like her, no boy, no man who knows what’s good for him, speaks the unspeakable. “It’s me or the horse.” It’s no contest. And so Lizzy snips the threads that hold her, however tenuously, to a conventional life, and begins her journey into the world of horse sports. She signs on as a working student for dressage superstar Margot Fanning, heading to south Florida with her six year old mare, for…
In addition to being a writer, I am an avid horse-person who has been obsessed with these amazing creatures my entire life. I was a pretty feral child so I spent my teen years riding bareback around the countryside, daydreaming about going to the Olympics or thwarting horse thieves or discovering a herd of Unicorns…the usual. I’ve worked at many barns, taken internships, volunteered, and have been lucky enough to own a few horses of my own over the years. The horse books I’m drawn to always have realistic protagonists who are also kind, empathic, and who understand how special and magical these animals are.
This is a great novel about a young man who is deciding if he wants to dedicate the rest of his life to training dressage horses. He interns with his cousins who are professional horse trainers and gets a crash course in classical dressage. It follows the real triumphs and struggles of working with horses for a living as well as his personal journey to become a better rider and a stronger person.
James MacLiesh shocks his conventional parents when he chooses to work with horses instead of going to college—can he make it happen?
Bucking his parents—and tradition—seventeen-year-old James MacLiesh decides he wants to be a horse trainer. When he arrives at his cousins’ farm, James enters a world completely different from that of his privileged, boarding-school upbringing. Not quite prepared for the rambling, ramshackle old house, he knows he made the right decision the minute he goes into the barn. The horses are magnificent. Ghazal, an obedient if aloof white stallion, is to be James’s first training project. But first, James…
“Horse Crazy” isn’t a description; it’s a way of life for me. I’ve loved horses since I could remember, selling Girl Scout cookies to finance my way through three years of horse camp, working weekends cleaning stalls, even pursing a degree in Equine Science. Discovering fantasy books with magical, sentient horses not only introduced me to fantasy fiction, but also just made my own experience with horses seem real. Currently, I write equestrian fantasy as well as equestrian literature (horse books for those who chose not to grow out of being horse crazy” and live on my homestead with my herd of rescue horses, who inspire me every day.
It may not be fantasy, but Anne McCaffrey is well known for her Dragonriders of Pern series, among other books (like The Ship who Sang with Mercedes Lackey). Take one English countryside farm, mix in a headstrong girl who wants to ride champion hunters and jumpers, a bit of romance, and fine horses, and you have a tale that demands to be on the screen.
Amidst the grandeur of the emerald countryside, a magnificent story unfolds. . . .
They are the Carradynes, who for more than 200 years have bred and trained horses of the finest caliber on Cornanagh—a land so beautiful it inspires the soul.
But all is not idyllic at hearth and home. At the center of the conflict is Catriona, the youngest child, a girl who dreams of riding her family’s big jumpers and show horses. Her father, Michael, is keenly aware of her immense talent, and he urges her on—only to lock wills with his insufferably pious and overbearing wife,…
In addition to being a writer, I am an avid horse-person who has been obsessed with these amazing creatures my entire life. I was a pretty feral child so I spent my teen years riding bareback around the countryside, daydreaming about going to the Olympics or thwarting horse thieves or discovering a herd of Unicorns…the usual. I’ve worked at many barns, taken internships, volunteered, and have been lucky enough to own a few horses of my own over the years. The horse books I’m drawn to always have realistic protagonists who are also kind, empathic, and who understand how special and magical these animals are.
This book is a great summer read. The relationship between young eventer Rio and her project horse is really special and the author does a good job of introducing us to this fun, quirky family, their many pets, and their dilapidated country house. The descriptions of the French countryside and the differences in how horses are cared for in France were really interesting. It is a fun, captivating read.
The moment Rio sees the skinny black gelding standing in the local meat man’s field, she resolves to save him. Gentle and exceptionally bred, Comet is the kind of horse Rio has always dreamed of owning - a horse to take on hacks through the vines, ride bareback at sunset, and maybe even compete in an event or two. Comet seems too good to be true, and Rio soon suspects that his past involved more than standing around in a field… But Rio has more to worry about than Comet. With five sisters to deal with - including Clemmie the…
