Praise for The First Horse I See:

" Willo is a resilient and believable heroine with whom readers will empathize, making this well-written story a worthwhile and entertaining read." ~ School Library Journal (starred)

"This tale has much to offer beyond the standard equine love story themes... Keehn quietly delivers a powerful emotional punch through empathic characterizations and a deceptively simple story line . . . Keehn movingly illustrates the redemptive power of love, as well as the importance of letting go when love just isn't enough." ~ Publishers Weekly

"A typical girl-and-her-horse story is transformed by Keehn ... into a novel about pain, loss, love, forgiveness, and redemption." ~ Kirkus Reviews

About the Book

A promise is a promise, and before she died, Willo's mother made her father promise Willo could finally have a horse. Her grandfather, Willo's most loyal advocate during these difficult days, warns her: don't pick the first horse you see. But Willo falls in love with that first horse--a feisty ex-racehorse who has been mistreated by her former masters--and convinces her grandfather to buy her.

There, on their Chesapeake Bay farm, Will will love the mare, train her, and jump her. The trouble is, Willo's father, shocked by the choice she's made, gives her a deadline for making it work. Yes, Willo has the trainer Diana by her side, and Diana's son, the strikingly handsome Colin, who rides with Willo, but in the end it is Willo alone who takes on the wild Tess. What hangs in the balance is not only keeping Tess, but Willo's very relationship with her father.

Sally M. Keehn has written a stirringly authentic horse story, one that will capture the hearts--and spirits--of young readers.

---