Haunting Hounds by Karen Bush

When I was very young – but probably old enough to know better – I used to be an avid reader of ghost stories (I still am, and now I’m definitely old enough to know better.) I loved nothing more than curling up under the covers and scaring myself silly with tales of headless horsemen, phantom nuns, and grey ladies. Of course, one of the good things about being a ghost-mad kid in Britain is that Blighty’s a notoriously haunted country, in which just about every village and country lane boasts its fair share of ghosts. And not all of those ghosts, as Karen Bush proves in this lovely collection, come in human form.

If men can return from the dead – and, according to folklore throughout the centuries, they can – then I suppose it follows that man’s best and most loyal friend might also do the same. The spectral dogs in this collection are every bit as diverse as human ghosts. Some are horrible, and some are helpful. Some are gloomy, and others are playful. Some come back to haunt the living because of unfinished business, and others do so for no apparent reason whatsoever.

There are plenty of famous spectral hounds here, from the hounds that ride with the Wild Hunt to the mysterious black dogs that haunt lonely roads, either helping or harming the humans they encounter. There are literary dogs, like the inspiration for Conan Doyle’s Hound of the Baskervilles and the Isle of Man’s Moddey Dhoo, which features in Sir Walter Scott’s work. There are vicious dogs and placid dogs, guard dogs and guide dogs, witch dogs and even fairy dogs. And as well as the well-known spectral dogs, there are plenty of more obscure local legends; a huge amount of research must have gone into this book.

Whether you believe in ghosts or not (‘All argument is against it; but all belief is for it,’ according to the opening quote by Samuel Johnson), they’re undoubtedly an intrinsic and fascinating part of folklore, and rather revealing on a psychological level. Ghost stories are often as reassuring as they are frightening, and the same applies to ghost dogs: it’s comforting to think that our canine companions might survive death. And this fascinating, affectionate tribute to our four-legged friends is, ultimately, comforting – not least because of Claire Colvin, whose beautiful and humorous illustrations really make this book a treasure. Highly recommended to anyone who loves ghosts, or dogs, or both.

Haunting Hounds can be purchased at Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com.

The Five Pound Pony by Karen Bush - reviewed by Susan Price

The Five Pound Pony by Karen Bush

          I am not the ideal reader for this book, The Five Pound Pony. I am old and grumpy, and have never in my entire life, longed for a horse, not even for a moment.
          Nevertheless, I read the whole book, in one binge, thoroughly enjoying every page.
          All of the stories are about horse-mad children - most of them girls, but some boys. Several of them come from homes which can't afford to supply them with ponies, or even riding lessons. Yet they long for horses, dream of horses - to misquote Tolkein, they desire horses with a profound desire. Karen Bush has the gift of conveying this longing to even such a horse-blind reader as myself.
         As a result, I identified like mad with all the characters and cheered them on. I can only conclude that a child who really is into horses, who really does fantasise about owning one, and really does hopefully add 'pony' to every Christmas list for Santa (like a girl in one of the stories), would totally love this book.
        Karen Bush is particuarly good at capturing that child-like view of the world, where innocence, optimism and longing combine to make it seem genuinely possible that a horse shoe will help you win a competition, or Santa will deliver a horse.

A model horse - Wiki Commons

          As a bonus, each story is followed by a short article about something mentioned in the story. In this way, I was charmed to discover the world of model horse competitions, something I had never suspected existed. (The girl in the story makes her model horse shoes from drink-can pull-rings.)
          Other essays give tips on 'how to win a rosette,' how to raise money for horse charities and information on the Shetland Pony Grand National - something else I knew nothing about and would rather like to see!

 A clip from YouTube, showing Shetlands leaping fences.

         
           In short, this book wins a rosette!

          Karen Bush is a highly experienced teacher of horse-riding.
Links to her short stories, books on riding, and on the care of dogs can be found here.

The Dark Horse by Rumer Godden

The Dark Horse

This is one of those terrific horsy books that will appeal as much to those who don't know their snaffles from their martingales - or indeed, one end of a horse from the other - as to those who are hard-core horsefolk. Based on a true event, it is set in 1930's India: Dark Invader has the makings of a champion racehorse, but due to the demands of his ambitious owner, fails to realise his potential. He is bought as a bargain and shipped out to India in the company of his devoted stable lad Ted Mullins, and the pair of them thrive in their new environment - it is a fresh start for both of them, as Ted has his own private griefs. But just as everything is looking rosy, disaster - naturally - is about to strike the pair, although their misfortune proves to be a godsend for the Sisters of Poverty ... It is lovely to see Rumer Godden's books finally appearing in e-book form, and I'm looking forward to getting re-acquainted with the others. The Dark Horse is one of those books with wide-spread appeal, which teenagers will enjoy as much as adults. As with all of Rumer Godden's books, this is a delight; a feel-good book written with compassion, understanding and considerable charm; it hovers on the brink of mawkishness but never actually falls into it. Read it. You won't be disappointed.

The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch

The Lies of Locke Lamora

If you like a slice of fantasy - well, in this case a pretty sizeable chunk of it - in your life, this is well worth trying on for size. Think The Musketeers meet The Sting and you won't be too far off: it swashes its buckle very satisfyingly.
Set in a Venetian-style city filled with mysterious structures built by a race of alien people long since forgotten, the plot centres on master of the con-trick Locke Lamora and his gang of Gentleman Bastards. Unknown to the local mob boss they have amassed a vast hoard of wealth from their previous exploits, but despite their care at covering their tracks, before long they are up to their necks in trouble as an outsider attempts a coup and ropes in Locke to help.
Flashbacks are interspersed with the current action and it's a device that works very well: in addition to explaining the back story the changes of pace don't detract from the main plot or slow the pace but if anything actually increases it and heightens the suspense.
The acid test comes, of course at the end when you turn the last page and read the last sentence. It's not the greatest last sentence in the world, but on my part at any rate, reaching the end did leave me feeling that I'd like to read more. Although it's a stand-alone book in that it is complete in itself, if you enjoy it the good news (I think) is that there are more of them - apparently seven projected titles in the series. A couple are out now, which I'll be ordering while keeping my fingers tightly crossed that it doesn't go the way of GRR Martin's Ice and Fire series ...

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Lies-Locke-Lamora-Scott-Lynch-ebook/dp/B002VBV1S6/ref=tmm_kin_title_0