This Blog is dedicated to the Noble and Great horses in our lives and throughout history. Visit the land of the unicorns in Behind The Mist, the horse lover's fantasy for pre-teens to adults.


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http://behindthemist.com/

Showing posts with label horses and unicorns. Show all posts
Showing posts with label horses and unicorns. Show all posts

Monday, December 22, 2014

THE MIST TRILOGY HONORED WITH NATIONAL AWARD



 I received fabulous news! The Mist Trilogy: Behind the Mist, Mists of Darkness and The Rising Mist were selected to receive the Mom's Choice Gold Medal Award.

I am especially honored to receive this award because of the stringent evaluation that the books had to go through to be chosen. The Mom's Choice Award judges follow a strict evaluation process. Entries are scored on a number of elements including production quality, design, educational value, entertainment value, originality, appeal and cost. The judges look for books that help families grow emotionally, physically or spiritually: are morally sound and promote good will; and are inspirational and uplifting. (according to their website: www.momschoiceawards.com.

The gold medal is awarded to the books or products that receive the highest scores. I am so grateful that the panel of judges felt that my work adds something good to the world.




Saturday, August 9, 2014

ANOTHER GIVE AWAY!

Dena at the Blog: Batchofbooks.com did a wonderful spotlight on The Mist Trilogy. At the end she is offering a drawing for a free copy of  The Rising Mist. You can see the spotlight here:
http://www.batchofbooks.com/2014/08/spotlight-and-giveaway-for-rising-mist.html
 or you can go directly to her raffle here:/ZWQ1MmRjOWVhYTdmZDM5MjRjNjU3YTFjYTU3OTE3OjY5/
This drawing is for your choice of an ebook OR an autographed copy of the print book. The print book is to be released on August 19th so the drawing is set for that day.

One part of The Rising Mist that you are really going to love reading is the account of Nick and Lazari and Bethany and Shema's efforts to rescue the Lipizzan Stallions from Vienna that have been kidnapped and held for ransom. As you can guess, the kidnappers know nothing about how to care for horses. They are not concerned about the welfare of these magnificent animals. Their only concern is getting money. Had the fairies not seen the kidnapping taking place and sent the Legion of the Unicorn to help them, the horses all would have died. I included a lot of interesting history about the spanish riding school in those chapters that you will have fun reading.

Go to the spotlight and enter the drawing to win a FREE copy of The Rising Mist!

Monday, August 4, 2014

THE RISING MIST GIVE AWAY!


IT'S HERE! THE MIST TRILOGY IS COMPLETE! 
I am so excited. So, I decided that it's time to celebrate! The best way to celebrate is a give-away! Go to the Behind the Mist Facebook page. "Like" it and leave a comment with your email address. We will have a drawing on August 19, the official release date, and the winner will get a FREE copy of The Rising Mist-The Final Book of The Mist Trilogy. Easy as pie, or as they say now: Easy Peasy. Here is the link to the Behind The Mist Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/BehindTheMist

Tuesday, December 24, 2013

THE PERFECT CHRISTMAS JOKE GIFT FOR UNICORN LOVERS!


My son Chris is quite a jokester! Last Christmas he gave me the can you see pictured above. The label is hilarious so I thought I would share it with you. I especially loved the % of daily requirements:
Magic        100%
Hopes and Dreams      100%
Giggles      100%
Smiles       100%
Rainbows  100%
Stars         100%
Happiness  100%
Kisses and Hugs         100%
Sunshine    100%
Superglue  1000% (That's kind of mean!)
Love         All you need
Surprises   You'll see

Below that it lists the ingredients: 100% organic, free-range, care-free unicorn meat.
(I love that!)

Lest you be concerned that unicorns are being slaughtered for their meat, read on:
"At Radiant Farms we guarantee that the geriatric unicorns in our care are treated with the utmost love and respect until they go over the double rainbow bridge. That's what makes Radiant Farms Unicorn Meat so delicious. The secret ingredient is love. And sparkles."

Now, dear readers, while I think this is hilarious, all my readers KNOW that unicorns are immortal!

MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL OF YOU!

Visit my website to see what I am writing 
and read excerpts from my books.

Thursday, November 21, 2013

BLIND DRESSAGE HORSE A UNICORN NOW!


Valiant, an upper level dressage horse lost his life on Nov. 15th to an infection on the innermost lining of the heart. He was twenty seven years old. That is not the remarkable part of this story, however. The remarkable part of the story began when he was six years old. At that time he stepped on a nail and developed an infection that resulted in total blindness. His owner, Jeannette Sassoon, refused to give up on him. Slowly and lovingly, she trained him to follow her aides as she took him around his dark world...a dark world that included the dressage show rings of Florida. She competed with him clear up to the Pres St. Georges level! 

I am so sorry that Jeannette has lost her beloved companion but he was one lucky horse to have had her for his owner. Now, as one of the noble and great horses, he is undoubtedly working toward earning his unicorn horn and, just think, now he can see all the beauty of Celestia around him.  

Here is a news story about him from Youtube:




Christmas is coming and the best thing you can get your horse lover is a great book!
Behind the Mist, Mists of Darkness and The Rising Mist are ready and waiting. (The Rising Mist is just available on ebook format at the moment and Behind the Mist is also available as an audio book.)

Monday, April 1, 2013

CELEBRATE THE RELEASE OF NORTH MYSTIC WITH A GIVE AWAY!

To celebrate the release of my new fantasy: North Mystic, my blogging daughter-in-law, Paige Evans is offering a give-away of an autographed copy of Behind the Mist. The drawing will be held on Friday, April 5, 2013. To enter, you must go to her blog: www.paigeandchris.com and leave a comment that you would like to win a free autographed copy of Behind the Mist. She will draw one  name on Friday. Here is your chance to read the first of the horse-lover's trilogy: Behind the Mist.

About North Mystic: This is the fanciful story of three children who find their way to a village of Leprechauns only to find out that the villagers have been expecting them for hundreds of years. Their unique skills and talents are needed to help the Leprechauns fight for their freedom from a grotesque and greedy band of trolls that have been taxing them 100% of all their gold for nearly a thousand years. North Mystic is currently available on its website: www.northmystic.com and will soon be available everywhere!

If you love to scrapbook, you will want to visit Paige's blog regularly!

ENTER NOW BY CLICKING HERE:

Tuesday, October 9, 2012

BEHIND THE MIST BOOK TRAILER



Enjoy the beautiful book trailer made for Behind the Mist. If you are looking for a fun book to read for yourself or to give as a gift, get Behind the Mist. It is the first book of the Mist trilogy. The second book, Mists of Darkness will be out soon.

All copies of Behind the Mist that are ordered from the website will be autographed!

Click here to order Behind the Mist from the website.
www.behindthemist.com

It is also available in many book stores and all internet sites.

Happy Reading!

Wednesday, January 4, 2012

Behind the Mist Book Trailer

Enjoy the just completed book trailer for Behind the Mist.



If you haven't read Behind the Mist yet, you can order it on its own website: http://www.behindthemist.com/ or wherever books are sold.

Wednesday, December 21, 2011

WAR HORSE-See a future unicorn in action

On December 5th I was privileged to be able to preview the new movie "War Horse" by Steven Spielberg to be released on Christmas Day. What an experience! What a great Christmas gift to all of us, horse-lover or not! I loved this movie, not only because I love horses and hate war but because of all the messages within and around it.

Steven Spielberg saw the fantastic play "War Horse" in London and it inspired him to put aside all other projects and make that story into a movie.




If you haven't heard about this play it is quite amazing. The horses are all depicted by puppets and the puppeteers have so thoroughly studied the natural movements of horses that you completely forget that the puppets aren't real.

The story is about the love between a boy and a horse, just like in Behind the Mist. The story opens in England just before World War I when the boy's father, in a state of inebriation spent all of the families meager funds on a young, untrained thoroughbred colt instead of the needed plow horse. With loving training by the man's son, "Joey" as he is named becomes not only loyal but very strong. When the war comes, the farmer is forced to sell Joey to save the farm, breaking his son's heart, and Joey is sent off to war, but not before the boy promises to find him.

There are several touching moments in the film that had me crying...sobbing actually, and others that had me gripping by husband's arm tightly. One of the most touching scenes reminded me of the story about the Christmas Eve during WWI when the soldiers from both sides set down their guns and sang "Silent Night" together. In this movie, Joey escapes the German's who have captured him and is running between the trenches in "No Man's Land." It is a brutal scene as the horse becomes entangled in the barbed wire. (Barbed wire is every horseperson's worst nightmare!) An English solder risks his life to go out to try to save him and is joined by a German soldier who has a pair of wire cutters. The depiction of the bond of humanity that connects these two young men who have enmity forced upon them is worth the price of admission.


I don't want to spoil the movie for you but let me just say that it has shades of "Black Beauty!"

Movie producers think that "Horses don't sell." Let's prove them WRONG! Go see WAR HORSE!



After you see it, send me your comments either here, on Face book: Behind the Mist, or on my email: mjevansbtm@gmail.com

I have no doubt that Joey has earned his unicorn horn by now!




MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL OF YOU!

Wednesday, November 23, 2011

MESSENGER-Famous Imported Thoroughbred




Messenger was a grey thoroughbred stallion. Messenger has crosses to all three of the Thoroughbred foundation sires, particularly Godolfin Arabian. Messanger's sire was a trotter but Messenger was never used in a trotting race. However, his great grandson, Hambletonian became the father of American Trotters and Pacers so I guess he kept that talent and passed it on. For more information on Hambletonian, read my post on December 15, 2010.



Messenger was bred in England. There, he started in 16 flat races and won ten of them. Messenger's races, usually less than two and half miles, were mainly "match" races in which the side bets far exceeded the purse.


In May 1788 Sir Thomas Benger imported Messenger to Pennsylvania. In 1793, Messenger was sold to Henry Astor. According to an article in Wikipedia, "Messenger was once advertised in a Philadelphia newspaper as: Available for service: Inquiries to be made to a certain Alexander Clay at the sign of the Black Horse in Market Street." I love little bits of history like that. It makes a famous horse like Messenger seem so real!


Messenger became a very successful stud and produced great race horses. Messenger was bred throughout Pennsylvania, New York and New Jersy. The mares he was bred with were not of the highest quality, but even so he proved himself a superior stallion, siring a great many successful thoroughbred racehorses. One example is Messenger's daughter, Miller's Damsel, also known as "Queen of the American Turf." His genes can also be found in the American Saddlebred and Tennessee Walking horses. Messenger died on January 8, 1808 at the age of 28. He is buried on Long Island.


Send me the story of your Noble and Great Horse. Write to me at:



or visit the Behind the Mist Facebook page.


ORDER YOUR VERY OWN COPY OF BEHIND THE MIST TODAY:

Saturday, October 22, 2011

Luke, the boy book critic reviews BEHIND THE MIST

You have to watch this darling little boy give his review of Behind the Mist!


Behind the Mist was written for the middle grade readers: 9 to 14. But this boy is just 8 so if you know of a precocious 8 year old, they will love it, too!

Wednesday, September 28, 2011

SHERGAR - Kidnapped and killed now runs free in Celestia



I have a sad story to tell you. It is a true story but very sad none-the-less. In 1978 an exceptionally beautiful, bay thoroughbred colt was born in Ireland. His name was SHERGAR. His owner and breeder was a wealthy Muslim prince named Prince Karim Aga Khan IV. The colt grew up to be a kind and gentle stallion with a distinctive white blaze on his face. He won nearly all his races as a 2 and 3 year- old, including the famous Epson Derby. A side note: The Epson Derby is the original Derby. It began in Epsom, England in 1780. The British pronounce it "Dah-be." He won that race in 1981 by a record ten lengths and became a national hero in Ireland. He was named the 1981 European Horse of the Year.

Things looked great for Shergar at this point. He was retired to become a stud. When he arrived in Newbridge in October, 1981, her was greeted by the town band and school children waving green and red flags, the Aga Khan's stable colors, as he was paraded up Main Street.

The first year Shergar stood at stud at the Ballymany Stud Farm in Kildare County, Ireland, he produced thirty-five foals. Things were looking promising for the people who bought shares in him.

But things changed quickly. 1983 was in the middle of the decades-long struggle by the Irish Republican Army. The IRA was a paramilitary organization whose aim was to remove Northern Ireland from the United Kingdom and establish a Socialist Republic by force or Political persuasion. On a foggy night, the 8th of February, 1983, a stolen horse trailer (called a "horse box" in Great Britian,) pulled into the unsecured farm. The groom who lived on the grounds with his large family sent his son to answer the knock on the door. He entered the room to see his son sprawled on the floor and masked gunmen in the room. They forced the groom, named James Fitzgerald, to take them to Shergar's stall and load the beautiful horse in the trailer. Shergar was never seen again. His body was never found and it wasn't until twenty-five years later that the sad truth about his brutal ending from machine gun fire was revealed. The ransom was never paid and a beautiful horse became the innocent victim of man's infighting.

Shergar now runs free across the fields of Celestia as a member of the Legion of the Unicorn.




Send me the story of your Noble and Great Horse.
Write to me at:

http://mjevansbtm@gmail.com

or on the Behind the Mist Facebook Page.

Tuesday, September 13, 2011

RADIUM - A Unicorn from Down Under!

themisttrilogy.blogspot.com

Radium is one of the most famous Campdraft stock horses in Australia. "What is a campdraft horse?" you say. Well, a campdraft horse in Australia is just like one of our American cutting horses. Have you ever been to a stock show and watched the cutting horses segregate one steer or calf from a herd? Cowboys do this to separate a calf that needs branding or medication or for some other reason.


While Radium died in 1947 at the age of 29, he still has his own Facebook page...That's a pretty with-it horse, I'd say! This is what it says on his facebook page:

Radium was an outstanding Australian bred campdrafter and very influential ancestor of Australian Stock Horses. He was a bay stallion bred by Donald Beaton of Levedale, Gloucester, New South Wales. This son of the outstanding campdrafter, Cecil (1899, by Red Gauntlet from Meretha II) from Black Bess by Hukatere (1882) was foaled on 11 November 1918. Beaton took great care in the breeding of his horses requiring horses with ability and stamina, for which he culled heavily. Radium’s sire, Cecil was so successful that in 1913, his owner, Arch Simpson was asked to leave his champion campdrafter at home in order that other competitors had a chance to win the campdrafting event at Geary’s Flat Bushman’s Carnival.

Radium was broken in by Archie Grant and Billy Tout when he was a two year old, after which he had several trips to the Cooplacurripa area. He began to show his exceptional ability as a stock horse as he developed and matured. Donald Beaton often drove long distances to compete at bushman’s carnivals with Radium tied behind the buggy. Radium would then compete in the campdraft, often winning and if he was going well, round off his success with an exhibition of campdrafting without a bridle.

In circa 1928, Radium was sold to Herb O’Neil, who, as a friend of Donald Beaton, had ridden the horse in competitions for Beaton when he had been unable to get away from his property. Herb O’Neill competed extensively with Radium, winning over a large area of the state. Just prior to the Second World War (WWII), Radium won a Championship Campdraft at Kempsey, New South Wales with the next ten placings going to Radium’s sons and daughters. Radium was also highly successful in led contests for the best type of Stock Horse. During WWII, at a Dungog Bushman’s Carnival over 20 horses were competing in the led stock horse class. In this event Radium received the first placing with the remaining four all being his sons.

I especially liked the part about Radium being "Towed" to shows tied to the back of the buggy. That reminds me of myself as I pull into Dressage shows and park my rusty stock trailer next to the huge, fancy multi-horse-with-living quarters-trailers! Go Radium! And now you have left your mark on Australia's stock horse breeds. Enjoy galloping around Celestia and cutting cattle in the Animal Kingdom! (If you don't know what I am writing about you need to read Behind the Mist!)


Here is an informative video about cutting horses that you will enjoy and learn from!

Send me the story of your Noble and Great horse!
email: http://mjevansbtm@gmail.com

Wednesday, August 10, 2011

T.S. BLACK TIE AFFAIR - Trick horse

Continuing my theme of horses immortalized by Breyer, I contacted the owner of T.S. Black Tie Affair, a new Breyer horse. Jan Sharp sent me the following pictures and stories about this beautiful stallion who will surely earn his unicorn horn someday!




Black Tie is a 21 year old 7/8 Arabian pinto stallion. When I saw his photo in an Arabian magazine, I contacted his owner on the other side of the country to ask about breeding some of my mares to him and ended up buying the whole horse instead. When I got him home, he would charge the front of his stall at me. So, being a trick horse trainer, I knew he needed to change his attitude and give him a new direction and focus in his life, so I would begin to teach him tricks. The first trick I taught him was to lay down. The next day when he charged his stall door at me, this time I turned around and yelled at him. He looked a bit startled, then retreated to the rear of his stall and promptly lay down. He had no idea what I was yelling about, but he had connected that laying down made me happy, so he lay down. That was the start of his brilliant trick horse career and he never charged the door again.

Eighteen years later, he had performed for tens of thousands of people, stood amid wheelchairs and walkers, and put his head into baby buggies so toddlers could pet him. Many kids first contact with a real live horse has been by touching Black Tie's velvety soft nose. I use him to both entertain and educate children about horses. They always ask the most funny questions. They want to see his teeth and his horse shoes, things they never get to see if their only contact with horses is from their TV set.
We have a good time teaching kids about horses. Black Tie stands motionless amid hundreds of kids when we visit schools. He knows he needs to be careful around them.

Not only did Black Tie become a star trick horse, but also in the show ring. He has earned 22 Pinto World and Reserve World Championships, the Pinto Open Supreme Championship, two World Show trophy saddles, and over 3800+ show points in all divisions. In 2010, he earned the Arabian Ambassador Award from the Arabian Horse Association for his many years of sharing his talents with so many people for so many years. Black Tie is also the star of the how-to book, "Trick Training Your Horse To Success" (Eclipse Press).
In 2011, Black Tie became a Breyer model horse, which opened the doors to him reaching every more people. Just knowing that somewhere out there, there are little girls sleeping with a Black Tie model, or have it standing on a place of honor, makes me happy. I hope that Black Tie and I have done our own little part of helping to ignite a love of horses to a whole new generation of children. That would make us very happy.

Jan Sharp

Thank you Jan!
You can follow Black Tie Affair on his own facebook page by clicking here:
www.facebook.com/pages/TS-Black-Tie-Affair/210648081391

Visit me next week for another story by Jan Sharp.

You can send me the story of your noble and great horse to:
mjevansbtm@gmail.com

or to the Behind the Mist facebook page:
www.facebook.com/pages/Behind-the-Mist/109311669122635?ref=ts

Wednesday, July 27, 2011

KRIPTON SENI II - Andalusian unicorn




Another new breyer horse is Kripton Seni II. This mighty Andelusian stallion was the United States Equestrian Federation horse of Honor in 2009 which means he was one of the five finalists for Horse of the Year. He was the winner of 12 national championships!




This magnificent stallion is now standing at stud at the Amandalusian farm in California.

I wanted to write about the Andelusian breed today.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Andalusian horse
Distinguishing features Strongly built, compact, elegant, thick mane and tail
Alternative names Spanish Horse, Pura Raza Española
Country of origin Spain, Iberian Peninsula
Common nicknames Horse of Kings

The Andalusian, also known as the Pure Spanish Horse or PRE (Pura Raza Española), is a horse breed developed in the Iberian Peninsula. Its ancestors have been present on the Iberian Peninsula for thousands of years. The Andalusian has been recognized as an individual breed since the 15th century, and its conformation has changed very little over the centuries. Throughout its history, it has been known for its prowess as a war horse, and was prized by the nobility. The breed was used as a tool of diplomacy by the Spanish government, and kings across Europe rode and owned Spanish horses. During the 19th century, warfare, disease and crossbreeding reduced herd numbers dramatically, and despite some recovery in the late 19th century, the trend continued into the early 20th century. Exports of Andalusians were restricted until the 1960s, but the breed has since spread throughout the world, despite still-low population numbers. As of 2003[update], there were over 75,000 registered living Andalusians worldwide.

Strongly built, and compact yet elegant, Andalusians have long, thick manes and tails. Their most common coat color is gray, although they can be found in many other colors. They are known for their intelligence, sensitivity and docility. A sub-strain within the breed known as the Carthusian, is considered by breeders to be the purest strain of Andalusian, though there is no genetic evidence for this claim. The strain is still considered separate from the main breed however, and is preferred by breeders because buyers pay more for horses of Carthusian bloodlines. There are several competing registries keeping records of horses designated as Andalusian or PRE, but they differ on their definition of the Andalusian and PRE, the purity of various strains of the breed, and the legalities of stud book ownership. At least one lawsuit is in progress as of 2010 to determine the ownership of the Spanish PRE stud book.

The Andalusian is closely related to the Lusitano of Portugal, and has been used to develop many other breeds, especially in Europe and the Americas. Breeds with Andalusian ancestry include many of the warmbloods in Europe as well as western hemisphere breeds such as the Azteca. Over its centuries of development, the Andalusian breed has been selected for athleticism and stamina. The horses were originally used for classical dressage, driving, bullfighting, and as stock horses. Modern Andalusians are used for many equestrian activities, including dressage, show jumping and driving. The breed is also used extensively in movies, especially historical pictures and fantasy epics.

As the article above states, this breed is used a lot in movies...especially fantasy movies. So, when Behind The Mist becomes a movie, I think we should use a white andalusian stallion for Urijah, the Lord of Celestia. I can just see this sparkling unicorn with his long, thick, flowing mane and tail and golden horn. It would be fabulous!

Two weeks ago, I wrote about the new Breyer statue of Zanyetta. However, I think the new Breyer statue of Kripton Sni II is the most beautiful I have ever seen! Don't you agree?





Get your own copy of Behind The Mist and find out how the noble and great horses become unicorns in the afterlife. CLICK HERE:









or CLICK HERE:









or visit your favorite book source!

Wednesday, July 20, 2011

STORM AND HIS UNICORN RIDER BEKA

You must watch this video from You Tube of Beka and her horse Storm. Storm is completely blind as a result of an illness in 2005. She refused to follow the veterinarian's recommendation to put him down. Instead she built a trust so complete it can only be rivaled by Nick and Jazz in Behind The Mist.

If this video doesn't bring tears to your eyes then I don't know what will!



I, hereby nominate Storm to the Legion of the Unicorn and nominate Beka as a Unicorn Rider. Someday you will ride together across the flower-filled fields of Celestia! You are a credit to horsemanship, Beka!

Send me the story of your Noble and Great horse!

email it to:
http://mjevansbtm@gmail.com

or send it on the
Behind The Mist Facebook page.