Hoof Prints: More Stories From Proud Spirit By Melanie Sue Bowles
by Melanie Sue Bowles
Reviewed by
Laurie Loveman
Melanie and Jim Bowles are true horse people. They know that hours spent in the saddle do not give a rider a knowledge of what causes horses to sometimes behave in ways that we don’t understand. The hours that Melanie and Jim have spent alongside their horses, rather than on their backs, have taught them far more than many of us could ever hope to learn.
So it is with great compassion and her ever-present sense of humor, that in Hoof Prints, Melanie tells us not only the horses’ stories, but gives us a better look at who she is as a person. We are “along for the ride” when Melanie and Jim make their big move from Florida to Arkansas, and we, too, feel Melanie’s bittersweet emotions as she and Jim leave their friends, and Cody, Melanie’s first horse.
In The Horses of Proud Spirit, Melanie’s emphasis was on the sometimes terrible things humans do to horses. In Hoof Prints, Melanie continues telling us some more appalling stories
but this time around she introduces us to humans doing the right thing for horses, even if they started out, often inadvertently, doing the wrong things.
Melanie’s stories demonstrate, and remind us, of how we tend to get in the way of allowing horses to be—well, horses. If you have had the opportunity to read The Horses of Proud Spirit,you will really enjoy meeting more of the equine residents of Proud Spirit. And, of course, you’ll need to have a case of tissues nearby.
HOOF PRINTS: More Stories from Proud Spirit
By Melanie Sue Bowles
ISBN: 978-1-56164-412-4
Pineapple Press
$19.95
(more info at Amazon.com)
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