Ponder: Pony

Pony, by R.J.Palacio ©2021 had been resting inconspicuously on a shelf in my family room for about the past two years, having been bought on an impulse at Costco. I have a nearly eight-year old granddaughter who is quite horse crazy and decided to pre-read the novel before giving it to her. I came across this interesting dream-horse blog post about why many girls are indeed horse-crazy. The phenomenon is quite common. I had to chuckle when one Psychology Today reference stated:

 With horses, women are practicing the same skills they use to train their boyfriends and children.

Pony is intended for a young adult audience, and the author is well praised for her book Wonder, which I thought was awesome enough that I rated it five stars. Disappointedly, even when I shifted my mindset to reflect that of a young adult book, I thought Pony was mediocre at best. Although the premise was intriguing in Amazon's description...

The bestselling author of Wonder returns with an enthralling adventure about a boy on a quest to rescue his father, with only a ghost as his companion and a mysterious pony as his guide.

... the role of the pony in the book was not nearly as major as the title might lead the reader (or the purchaser) to believe. In an Amazon review, even a 10 year old reader suggested the book be renamed, "Ghosts" or "Mittenwool".  Pony read more like a western adventure to me than an equine story at all. I had higher expectations from the author and the title.  At the risk of appearing sexist or stereotypical, I thought this book would appeal more to a shoot-'em-up, cowboy-enthralled boy than a horse-enamored girl. I will admit though, that 12 year old Silas, is quite an endearing main character, even if he isn't a horse.

I still can learn something from a book even if it does not meet my expectations. Amazon's website advertised the book as Pony Hardcover – Deckle Edge, September 28, 2021 which made me wonder, "What is a Deckle Edge?". I looked it up in Wikipedia and learned:

Paper with a feathered edge is described as having a deckle edge, in contrast to a cut edge. Before the 19th century, the deckle edge was unavoidable, a natural artifact of the papermaking process in which sheets of paper were made individually on a deckle, a wooden frame. Today, machine-made paper may artificially have its edges produced with deckle edges.

This edging seemed very appropriate since Pony was staged in the mid-1850's. This mid-19th century typical book edging contributed to the feel of western genre.

There were a fair number of coincidences in the book, particularly in the denouement, that might lend themselves to childlike amazement; but to the adult in me, those happenstances seemed contrived and lame. In re-reading this post I find it to be harsh, more so than I intended. In contrast to my point of view, Amazon reader reviews rated Pony 4.6 out of 5 stars. I, however, can not seem to get over my disappointment at expecting a pony and getting a smear of manure. I shall retreat and try to recover some of my young-at-heart spirit that I appear to have lost.

★★☆☆☆ Ok, not great; some redeeming features; I finished it