HAPPY DECEMBER!

Happy December! That means it is almost Christmas...YAY! I love Christmas. My husband is crazy about Christmas, too. He says the best thing, and maybe the only good thing, about having a horse-crazy wife is that it is easy to shop for Christmas gifts. All he has to do is get a gift card from the Dover Saddle Shop in our town of Parker, Colorado.

Here is my Christmas wish list:
1. Warm winter riding boots
2. Warm winter riding socks
3. Warm winter riding breeches
4. Warm winter riding jacket
5. Warm winter riding gloves

Do you see a pattern here?

If you need a gift idea for a horse-crazy kid or adult, pick an award-winning book from my website. I will autograph it and send it to you.  Click here: www.dancinghorsepress.com

May I suggest The Mist Trilogy for fantasy lovers ages 9 and up. You can buy the complete set for just $30 including shipping and handling! This is the story of the noble and great horses who are chosen to become unicorns when they die and the first boy who is allowed into their kingdom and trained to become a unicorn rider. As with all classic fantasy tales, central to the story is the struggle between good and evil. The evil takes the form of a power-hungry unicorn who no longer wants to serve the animals on earth. Rather, he wants to control and rule them. You'll love reading about the adventures and struggles.

THE LEGEND OF BABIECA

Perhaps the day of the war horse is gone but their legends live on. This is true of Babieca (there are numerous spellings!) the mount of the famous, or "infamous" depending upon the source, El Cid.

El Cid who lived from approximately 1043 to 1099, was the son of minor nobility in medieval Spain. He was raised in the court of King Ferdinand the Great and was a servant to the king's son. He became a renowned, feared and beloved war hero as he battled for the Spanish cause of expanding their territory. To this day, El Cid, full name Rodrigo Diaz de Vivar, is a Spanish folk hero and national icon. He is the subject of numerous plays, poems, and paintings.

But what of the horse? El Cid's favorite horse was Babieca, a white Andalusian Stallion. No one really knows the history of how they came to be battle partners. One story has it that El Cid was offered his choice of any of the horses in the herd of Andalusians by his godfather, a monk at a Carthusian monastery.  He chose the littlest, weakest one. His godfather thought it was such a poor choice that he exclaimed "Babieca!" which means "Stupid." 

Another story is that El Cid was given the horse by King Sancho when El Cid was challenged by another Knight to become the king's champion. The story goes that Babieca was bred and raised in the royal stables in Seville and was a highly trained and loyal war horse when El Cid got him.

Whatever the truth, El Cid loved the horse and even requested that they be buried together. 

A little side note: Did you know that our modern day discipline of Dressage has its origins in the training of War Horses?

Check out my new website for my books: www.dancinghorsepress.com

GREAT REVIEW BY VALLEY EQUESTRIAN NEWS

I am so excited to receive this wonderful review of In The Heart of a Mustang from the editor of Valley Equestrian News out of Minnesota. Other great news is that In the Heart of a Mustang has been selected by the Colorado Authors' League as one of just three finalists for their 2016 Young Adult Book Award! 

Everyone needs loyalty, love, and at times healing.

Lucky is the soul who finds all three

In the Heart of a Mustang.

A synopsis by author M. J. Evans followed by a review by Ley Bouchard, VEN Publisher

A boy is told that his father was a brave and virtuous man, a soldier who traded his life to save the lives of countless others. He was the man that Hunter needed to emulate. The only problem is the whole story is a lie, all of it. The truth, which Hunter discovers as he begins his sophomore year of high school, is that his father has actually spent the boy’s entire life in jail, paying his debt to society, but not mending his ways.

A wild mustang mare is rounded up by the BLM. The spring rains had been sparse, the forage on the plains even more so. The mare and her herd are rescued from certain starvation and placed for adoption. In a sandy corral at Promise Ranch, a home for troubled teenage boys, the boy and the mare meet. A weathered, old cowboy brings them together – a mentor for one, a trainer for the other.

The bond that forms between boy and horse becomes one that saves the lives of both.

Review by Ley Bouchard

      In the Heart of a Mustang, MJ Evans weaves a tale of two souls whose spirits meet and are irrevocably changed! Following the subtle nuances of the relationship, we understand how two animals of different species communicate, learn from one another, and those messages impact the lives of everyone around them.  Horse lovers or even one who has never experienced the love of an animal will find this page-turner unforgettable.

     I found In the Heart of the Mustang educational,  touching, poignant; I experienced complete verisimilitude, often wondering if it is a work of non-fiction.

     There are many lessons to be learned in reading In the Heart of a Mustang and each reader will apply their own significance to each one. I most enjoyed seeing through the eyes of the young protagonist, Hunter, how both characters, a wild mustang and a young boy, are able to interact and learn vitally important life lessons, by spending time together.

     The story of a boy and a horse may be geared to a young reader but is definitely a book for all audiences, horse lovers or not.  I found the reading sagacious, clever, and informing.

     I believe In the Heart of a Mustang to be a very important book.  Many people may wonder how places like Promise Ranch or Dakota Boys Ranch benefit people or youth. And it’s a hard thing to explain how working with a horse can be therapeutic. The reader will know and understand this concept upon completion of this fine book by M.J. Evans.

In the Heart of a Mustang may be found at www.dancinghorsepress.com or it is available wherever books are sold.

THE TRAIL OF PAINTED CHRISTMAS PONIES

I have a few painted ponies and this is my favorite! With my stories about the noble and great horses who are chosen to become unicorns when they die, this is one I simply had to have! Of course, there is a secret unicorn in every horse...especially yours!

The story of the founding of the Painted Ponies by author Rod Barker is interesting. The author, who lives in Santa Fe, was on a trip to Chicago to do research for a book. While there, he chanced upon an exhibit of painted cows. Everyone know horses are more beautiful than cows so he went home and came up with the idea for "The Trail of Painted Ponies." Many of the first ones were native American in theme, fitting with Santa Fe. But now, there are all sorts of designs. You can even submit your own design by going to this website: http://www.trailofpaintedponies.com/about-us.php

Except for the unicorn garden, I like the Christmas designs best! Here are some pictures of my favorite Christmas designs.

So if you need to start a new collection...

Need a great gift for your middle-grade or young adult reader...or even adults! Go to my website and pick a great book. I will autograph it and mail it to you. Click here: 

www.dancinghorsepress.com

COPENHAGEN IN THE BATTLE OF WATERLOO

Quite a while ago, I wrote a post about Napolean's horse, Marengo. As you probably remember Marengo is said to have been the favorite horse of the French emperor. Interestingly enough, it is very possible that he and one of his cousins, Copenhagen, or so it is said, faced each other in a terrible battle. On Sunday the 18th of June, 1815, near Waterloo in present-day Belgium then part of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands, Napoleon's French army lead by Napoleon, was defeated by a coalition of two armies, one led by the Duke of Wellington riding Compenhagen.

Where there is some doubt about Marengo's authenticity, Copenhagen was very real. He was a stallion with a rather mean temperament. When the Duke of Wellington returned from his victory at Waterloo, he gave Copenhagen a celebratory pat on the rump. Copenhagen responded by trying to kick the Duke in the head! Luckily for both of them, he missed. It would have been a really bad day for the Duke to survive a day of bullets and cannon fire only to be killed by a kick in the head from the very horse that carried him through the battle!

The story is that Copenhagen became much milder in his old age and became a favorite with the ladies who wanted tail hair to make bracelets. (By the Way: this is something that is going on today and some people in Colorado have actually come out to their barns to find that someone has snuck in during the night and cut off their horse's tail! So, don't buy those horse hair bracelets unless you know where the hair came from!)

Copenhagen was so well regarded that, after he died, his head was cast in bronze and put on display at Wellington College.

CHRISTMAS IS COMING!

Books make the best Christmas presents and Horse stories make the best books!

GO TO 

dancinghorsepress.com

and check out my new book:

In the Heart of a Mustang

or my popular fantasy trilogy:

Behind the Mist,

Mists of Darkness

and

The Rising Mist

Autographed copies available from the website!