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Terrible Horses: A Story of Sibling Conflict and Companionship

by Raymond Antrobus

CCBC Review:

A young, brown-skinned boy wants to share his big sister’s toys, and her friends. Instead, the two of them fight. “Push Pull Hurt Hide. We do not use our words.” The boy, who wears hearing aids, takes refuge in his room and writes stories about “terrible horses.” “In the stories, I am a pony. Everyone else in the world is a horse … It is lonely being a pony.” The sibling discord continues and so, too, do his stories about “ghastly, galloping,” “nagging, neighing” horses. “I write about the pony that can’t compete / that can’t speak / that can’t sleep.” Then his sister finds his book of stories. She smiles “a whole smile.” She says sorry. “She never says sorry.” She offers a hug. He wonders what she saw in his stories. He wonders, “Is she a terrible horse? Or a pony?” A spare yet emotionally rich text explores the pain of the boy’s feelings of disconnect and isolation, the power he finds in creative expression, and the solace of a hopeful (re)connection. Uncluttered mixed-media illustrations anchor the story’s feelings and actions with images that show the two siblings and the boy’s imagined world. The boy’s concluding, open-ended questions are a wonderful invitation to young readers and listeners to consider what, if anything, has changed, and why. Highly Commended, 2025 Charlotte Zolotow Award ©2025 Cooperative Children’s Book Center

Illustrated by Ken Wilson-Max

CCBC Age Recommendation: Ages 4-8
Age Range: PreK-Early Elementary (Ages 4-7) Grades 3-5 (Ages 8-10)
Format: Picture book
Subjects: Arguments/Conflict Art and Artists Deaf and Hearing Impaired People Empathy and Compassion Imagination/Imaginary Play Siblings Writers and Writing
Diversity subject: Brown Skin Unspecified Cognitive/Neurological

Publisher: Candlewick
Publish Year: 2024
Pages: 32
ISBN: 9781536235487
CCBC Location: Picture Book, Antrobus

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