Publishing history
Constable Young Books, London, 1964
Doubleday, New York, 1965, cover art and illustrations by Ray Houlihan
Carousel, pb, 1974, 1981
The UK first edition of this book has cover art in the same format as the original UK edition of King Sam. Both were part of Constable Young’s “Out and About” series, and had multiple black and white pictures on a grid pattern with coloured background.
Martin has been deaf since an accident, and his parents buy him a Dartmoor pony to try and help him adjust to his new, silent world. At first he wants nothing to do with the pony at all, until it snows, and he fights through the snowy night to get the pony to shelter. From that point on, Martin and Tuppence’s relationship develops. Disaster comes when Tuppence escapes back to the moors one day, but the wild mares from her old herd turn on her, and she is so badly hurt it looks as if she will die. Martin nurses her for months, and at first it looks as though she has recovered a little, but then she unexpectedly turns vicious: the explanation for this is a surprise for the whole family.
Other editions
Vian Smith