The Mud Pony

Cohen, Caron Lee

ISBN 10: 0590415255 ISBN 13: 9780590415255

Publisher: Scholastic, 1988

Synopsis

A poor boy becomes a powerful leader when Mother Earth turns his mud pony into a real one, but after the pony turns back to mud, he must find his own strength

About this title

Reviews

Grade 2-5 According to the acknowledgments, " The Mud Pony is one of a number of ancient boy-hero stories told among the Skidi band of the Pawnee Indians." A poor Indian boy longs for a pony of his own. He sculpts a pony out of mud and takes care of it as if it were real. When his tribe accidently leaves him behind, the mud pony becomes real and leads the boy to their new camp. The boy and his magical pony help the tribe defeat their enemies, and after many years the boy becomes a powerful chief. The pony appears to the grown boy in a dream and tells him that it's time for the animal to return to Mother Earth. The chief lets him go. A quietly told tale, solidly built upon Pawnee traditions; for example, the symbolic use of Mother Earth is characteristic of this tribe who lived in dome-shaped earth lodges. The watercolor illustrations are executed in earth tones with spatter backgrounds. The primitive style, with minimal details and flat perspective, almost resembles Indian artwork found on the walls of their housing. An authentic Indian folktale. Karen K. Radtke, Milwaukee Public Library
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From the Skidi branch of the Pawnee Indians of the Plains comes this tale of a boy who achieves greatness in his tribe with the guidance of a pony he made out of mud. Too poor to own a pony like the other boys, he fashions a small mud pony and goes to see it every day. It is during one of these visits that the rest of the tribe moves west in search of buffalo, and the boy is left behind. Not only does the mud pony become a living, breathing horse, but she takes him to his tribe; later, she helps him become the chief of his tribe by giving him great power in battles. "I am here, your Mother Earth. You are not alone!" are the words he hears when the mud pony has once again gone back to the earth. Cohen retells this story with grace; Begay, a Native American artist, provides evocative paintings that derive strength and impact from the suggestion of action rather than fully detailed scenes. Ages 5-8.
Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Edition details

• Publisher: Scholastic
• Publication date: 1988
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0590415255
• ISBN 13: 9780590415255
• Binding: Library Binding
• Illustrator: Begay Shonto
• Number of pages: 32