Wonder horse

Title:

Wonder horse

Author:

Summary:

A fictionalized account of Bill "Doc" Key, a former slave who became a veterinarian, trained his horse, Jim Key, to recognize letters and numbers and to perform in skits around the country, and moved the nation toward a belief in treating animals humanely. Includes an author's note.

General Note:

"The true story of the world's smartest horse"--Cover.

Edition:

1st ed.

Physical Description:

1 v. (unpaged) : col. ill. ; 29 cm.

Genre:

Picture books.

Personal Subject:

Key, Bill, 1833-1909-Juvenile fiction.

Key, Bill, 1833-1909-Fiction.

Subject Term:

Horses -- Training -- Fiction.

African Americans -- Fiction.

Publisher:

Henry Holt,

Publication Date:

2010

ISBN:

9780805087932

Publication Information:

New York : Henry Holt, 2010.

Call Number:

P MCCULLY

Holds: Copies:

Available:*

Item Barcode	Collection	Call Number	Status	Item Holds
33607002714643	Picture Books	MCCULLY	Searching... Unknown	Searching... Unavailable

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Summary

In the late 1800s, former slave and veterinarian Bill "Doc" Key realized that his new foal, Jim, was no ordinary horse. Believing in the power of kindness and patience, Doc taught Jim to spell, recognize the primary colors, and even make change from a cash register!

Performing in shows across the country, Jim stunned audiences with his incredible skills. But when some people called Jim a fake, Doc set out to prove them wrong and to show the world that, thanks to the power of kindness and patience, Jim was truly a wonder horse.

Caldecott Medalist Emily Arnold McCully's account of this fascinating, true story comes alive in her striking illustrations. Wonder Horse is a 2011 Bank Street - Best Children's Book of the Year.

Author Notes

Emily Arnold McCully was born in Galesburg, Illinois on July 1, 1939. She graduated from Pembroke College, now a part of Brown University, in 1961 and received an M.A. in art history from Columbia University.

After graduation, she held a variety of jobs in the art field that included being a commercial artist, a designer of paperback covers, and illustrating advertisements. When one of her illustrations was seen on an advertisement in the subway, she was asked to illustrate Greg Panetta's Sea Beach Express. She accepted that offer and went on to illustrate over 100 children's books. In 1969, she illustrated Meindert de Jong's Journey from the Peppermint Express, which was the first children's book to receive the National Book Award.

Her first solo venture, Picnic, won the Christopher Award in 1985. Mirette on the High Wire won the Caldecott Medal in 1993. Her other children's books include Amazing Felix, Crossing the New Bridge, Grandmas at the Lake, My Real Family, and The Pirate Queen.

(Bowker Author Biography)

Reviews (2)

School Library Journal Review

K-Gr 2-Based on the true story of a remarkable self-made man whose love for animals won him fame and fortune, this book is sure to grab young readers. Bill "Doc" Key was born a slave and had a special way with animals even as a youngster. Following the Civil War and the Emancipation Proclamation, he worked as a veterinarian and preached the gospel of kindness to all creatures. Despite the racial climate in the Jim Crow South, he joined a medicine show and became wealthy selling a liniment that he invented for both animals and humans. With his newfound wealth, Doc bought a racehorse and bred her in hopes of producing a champion. When the foal was born, his twisted legs meant racing was not in the cards. But Jim Key was an unusual and smart horse, and his antics tickled his owner. Doc set about teaching him to pick out letters and colors, and to count and do arithmetic, and he mastered all of these tasks. Could this horse really do the things he was said to have done? Was it trickery on Doc's part? A team of Harvard professors was brought in to determine exactly what Jim Key could and could not do. McCully's signature watercolors make this title as beautiful as it is fun to read, and its humane message is an important one.-Joan Kindig, James Madison University, Harrisonburg, VA (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Publisher's Weekly Review

A horse that recognizes the alphabet, fetches, and dances takes center stage in this true story from the late 19th century. McCully's tale is as much about the beloved and clever animal as it is about his owner and trainer, Bill Key. Born a slave, Bill also is an animal whisperer who "could soothe and... cure just about any creature." Later freed, Bill becomes a veterinarian known as Doc Key, and he spends years training a weak foal named Jim. Taking him on the road, he shows off the horse's many feats. "People will be amazed by how much you know. They will see that animals have feelings, and it's wrong to make them suffer." McCully (Manjiro: The Boy Who Risked His Life for Two Countries) brings the story to life through her watercolors, especially vig-nettes of Jim playing fetch and learning the alphabet. Despite hecklers and the racist attitudes of the Reconstruction-era South (briefly alluded to in the text, and explained more fully in author's notes), Jim and Doc Key are a testament to hard work and the nascent movement for humane treatment of animals. Ages 4-8. (July) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved