I Rode a Horse of Milk White Jade -- Diane Lee Wilson
It seems that very few libraries in the area have this book—we were only able to borrow two for my book group. So I spent the morning looking for it in used bookstores (no dice) and reading it (so I could hand off the library's copy to one of the kids).
It's a very good book, and it prompted me to check out a book about Genghis Khan (Genghis isn't in the book, but Kublai is).
But.
Did Bayan really have to die? Is is a goddamn rule that horses always have to die? And don't give me any crap about about how Bayan had a baby before she died, etc. It sucked. This is why I don't read books about horses. She could have just and easily had her baby and lived to a ripe old age (Yes, I know that she was already old, but she could have lived longer—and died off screen, thank you very much). I was sitting at the beach (in the car—it's still February, you know) sobbing my brains out. THAT SUCKED. I am never, ever reading another horse book again as long as I live. Except for The Blue Sword.
I feel slightly better now.
The kids are going to be some wicked pissed about this. They're totally into the blood and gore angle—we just finished The Wreckers, and they were into all of the violence. Stumps getting his nose shot off? Cool. Caleb standing on a sailor's head to drown him? No problem. Eli getting pitchforked? Sad, but still pretty cool. The major issue? When the no-name pony falls through the mine shaft and (probably) dies. They were mad that John didn't save it, even though he was trying to save his father who was having his feet chewed off by rats.