{"id":25232,"date":"2014-09-04T22:10:41","date_gmt":"2014-09-05T02:10:41","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/sonderbooks.com\/blog\/?p=25232"},"modified":"2014-09-04T22:33:36","modified_gmt":"2014-09-05T02:33:36","slug":"review-of-the-winter-horses-by-philip-kerr","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sonderbooks.com\/blog\/?p=25232","title":{"rendered":"Review of The Winter Horses, by Philip Kerr"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Winter Horses<\/em>\"winter_horses_large\"<\/a><\/p>\n

By Philip Kerr<\/p>\n

Alfred A. Knopf, New York, 2014. 278 pages.
\nStarred Review<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s a World War II tale unlike any other I\u2019ve read. I loved it from the start. This book will appeal to animal lovers as well as readers who like to see an underdog succeed against all odds. I liked the way the people the characters met were good or bad depending on their own values, not on which side of the conflict or what nationality they were.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s what the author has to say about the truth of the tale, before it gets underway:<\/p>\n

Much of this old story has been gathered together like the many fragments of a broken vase. The pieces do not always fit as best they might, and indeed it\u2019s quite possible that several of them do not belong here at all. It cannot be denied that the story has many holes and could not withstand much scrutiny. Historians will object \u2013 as they always seem to do \u2013 and say there is no real evidence that the old man and the girl who are the story\u2019s hero and heroine ever really existed. And yet if today you were in Ukraine and dared to put your ear into the wind or perhaps took a trip across the steppe and listened to the deep voices of the bison, the whoop of the cranes, or the laughter of the Przewalski\u2019s horses, you might learn that about the truth, the animals are never wrong; and that even if there are some parts of this story that are not exactly true, they could<\/em> be, and that is more important. The animals would surely say that if there is one truth greater than all of the others, it is that there are times when history must take second place to legend.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

This preface is the perfect touch to keep our suspension of disbelief in check. At the end of the book, we see a picture of a Przewalski\u2019s horse at the Askaniya-Nova nature reserve in Ukraine today. So the horses did survive World War II. In fact, we\u2019re told that all of the world\u2019s Przewalski\u2019s horses today are descended from just nine of thirty-one horses in captivity at the end of the war. So that\u2019s enough to convince me this beautiful story might<\/em> have happened.<\/p>\n

The book opens at the Askaniya-Nova nature reserve in the Ukraine. The Germans are coming, so the Communists tell Maxim Borisovich Melnik to kill all the animals so the Germans won\u2019t eat them.<\/p>\n

Max has no intention of obeying. Wasn\u2019t it a German, the Baron Falz-Fein, who first set up the sanctuary? Wasn\u2019t he the kindest man Max ever knew? And aren\u2019t the Przewalski\u2019s horses a national treasure, and the rarest horses in the world?<\/p>\n

Max was not the only person at Askaniya-Nova who was fond of the wild Przewalski\u2019s horses. A girl had been hiding in the woods at the edge of the steppe for some time, and although she had, like many girls, loved horses as long as she could remember, for some reason that even she could not easily have explained, the wild Przewalski\u2019s horses made friends with her. This was just as well since she had no human friends. Her family were all dead, and the few people who inhabited the scattered villages in the region drove her away from their doors because they were afraid \u2013 afraid that if the girl was arrested by the Germans, then they might also be arrested. The girl understood this and did not blame them for shunning her; she forgave them for it and told herself she would probably have done the same, although as this story proves, this was clearly not the case.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The Germans do appreciate the horses at Askaniya-Nova \u2013 but mainly the beautiful Hanoverian horses, not the wild Przewalski\u2019s horses. Their view, with animals as well as people, is that \u201cinferior\u201d bloodlines should be eradicated.<\/p>\n

So they gun down the horses, and neither Max nor the girl, Kalinka, can do anything to stop them. But two horses escape, a stallion and a mare. And just as winter starts up in all its fury, Kalinka and the horses come to Max\u2019s door.<\/p>\n

This book is the story of how Kalinka saves the horses, and how the horses save her. Okay, I have to admit it\u2019s on the unbelievable side. Could Kalinka really<\/em> have formed such a bond with wild horses? But I agree with the author \u2013 There are times when history must take second place to legend. This beautiful story is a triumph.<\/p>\n

randomhouse.com\/teens<\/a><\/p>\n

Buy from Amazon.com<\/a><\/p>\n

Find this review on Sonderbooks<\/a> at: www.sonderbooks.com\/Childrens_Fiction\/winter_horses.html<\/a><\/p>\n

Disclosure: I am an Amazon Affiliate, and will earn a small percentage if you order a book on Amazon after clicking through from my site.<\/p>\n

Source: This review is based on a library book from Fairfax County Public Library.<\/p>\n

Disclaimer: I am a professional librarian, but I maintain my website and blogs on my own time. The views expressed are solely my own, and in no way represent the official views of my employer or of any committee or group of which I am part.<\/p>\n

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