New Marguerite Henry Book!

 I am thrilled to announce a brand new book about Marguerite Henry, Marguerite, Misty, and Me!

Two years ago author Susan Friedland reached out to The Misty of Chincoteague Foundation, shared her ideas for this book, and asked if we might be interested in supporting the project. We have been a part of the project ever since. Sunday I received an email from Susan with the news that the book will be launched at BreyerFest.

Susan will be in attendance all three days doing book signings and she has asked that the board of directors of The Misty of Chincoteague Foundation share the news. I am happy to do that, so below is a note to fans of Misty and Marguerite with a link to information about Susan's newest book.

A book launch is a great way to begin BreyerFest week!

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Hi Marguerite and Misty fans,

I wanted to reach out and thank those of you I got to speak with last year as I researched for my bibliomemoir Marguerite, Misty and Me. I've got great news:

This week Marguerite Misty and Me will launch at Breyerfest (I'll be at the Taborton Books booth doing signings all three days).

The following week I will be on Chincoteague for Pony Penning. I've been asked to speak at the library and Museum of Chincoteague. This is all very exciting, and the enthusiasm for my book proves people still love Marguerite Henry!

All the pre-orders have been shipped (to both individuals and brick and mortar). I've been enjoying selling direct from my Shopify store so I can nurture a relationship with readers, but the book is also up on Amazon.

I love the cover and think the whole thing turned out so pretty! Please take a look. https://saddleseekshorse.shop/products/pre-order-of-marguerite-misty-and-me

As a former little girl who dreamed of having a horse of my own (but the answer was always no), Marguerite gave me the gift of being with horses on the pages of her book. When a family friend who lived in Wayne, IL invited me to come ride her field hunters, I graduated from books to the saddle. It was very cool to me back then (and still is) that I rode a chestnut quarter horse on the same trails, over the same fields where Marguerite rode when she lived at Mole Meadow. 

And as a former English teacher, it's special to bring to the forefront the talented writer and beautiful human she was. 

Horse Illustrated recently featured the backstory of this book and the upcoming August issue of Sidelines magazine is going to promote it as well.

It would mean so much to me to have additional support from each of you in spreading the word. As you know, book recommendations from friends are the best for finding a next read.

Thanks again for your support and I hope you are having a fabulous July!

Susan Friedland Author | Blogger | Educator SaddleSeeksHorse.com

Marguerite Henry - a New Biography

About a year ago, Wall Street Journal columnist and author Lettie Teague contacted The Misty of Chincoteague Foundation and shared that she had an idea for a biography about Marguerite Henry. She asked to talk to the board about it.

We listened and liked what she had to say, and then provided some support for her as she traveled and researched. (To read about my involvement with the MCF, go here.)

Fast forward a year, and the project has moved forward and now has a publisher with a release scheduled for 2024.

Dr. Rebecca Giusti, who serves on the Board of Directors for The Misty of Chincoteague Foundation, responded to the news that the book was, indeed, going to be published. This is the full text of her response:

The Misty of Chincoteague Foundation Board is eagerly anticipating the new biography on the life of award- winning author and mentor, Marguerite Henry.

Marguerite Henry was a tenacious and thorough researcher, a great writer and a visionary. She was determined to carve out her own life and body of work and do it her way.

Part of her brilliance was reaching out to artist Wesley Dennis. With her words and his vivid illustrations, readers are transported across countries and oceans and in many cases, history is burst into colorful and vivid life. Her works are actually crossroads that appeal to a huge audience; potential and current artists, writers, travelers, explorers, historians and animal lovers. Distant places such as Meknes, Morocco, Siena, Italy, and Vienna, Austria become tangible and real to young readers.  With her book, Misty of Chincoteague, she put Chincoteague and Assateague Islands on the map and they now draw huge crowds and tourism during Pony Penning and year-round. Vermont and the Grand Canyon are now viewed within the context of the American-bred Morgan horse and an unforgettable donkey, Brighty who helped solve a murder.

Many of the characters in her books are young and are role models to all her read her works. They must often overcome challenges, demonstrate sound work ethic, and all have compassion to those around them, especially animals that are vulnerable to the whims of humans. 

After the Storm of 1962 that decimated the herd of wild Assateague ponies, Marguerite Henry toured with Misty and Stormy to raise money to help replenish the herd.

Her book, Dear Readers and Riders, was a brilliant stroke.  Through this work, her mentorship and guidance transcend her death and offers practical and no-nonsense advice to the younger generation while simultaneously igniting passion for imagination and the concept of no limits.

But who is this woman who accomplished so much in her lifetime? 

In the current times, we often discuss women of Ms. Henry's generation and their accomplishments against the backdrop of a male-dominated environment. One would not hear that from Ms. Henry. What seemed to matter to her was what you accomplished as a human being. You are not defined by the times. You define the times you are in. And she did, with strength, dedication and for the sheer joy of living and creating. 

While we can glean something of the author through her own works, we are so excited to hear about Marguerite's amazing life and drive in a book dedicated to her!

Here is the press release from Trafalgar Square Books:

For Immediate Release

Biography of Marguerite Henry, Beloved Author of Horse Books, to Come from Trafalgar Square Books

Trafalgar Square Books (www.HorseandRiderBooks.com) is thrilled to announce a deal with Wall Street Journal columnist Lettie Teague to write a biography of Marguerite Henry, beloved author of 59 books, including the famed Misty of Chincoteague; King of the Wind; and Justin Morgan Had a Horse. Teague is the winner of three James Beard Awards for her writing and the author of three books. She is also a horse lover—her first horseback ride took place around the same time as the first time she read a Marguerite Henry book, at the age of nine.  

“Lettie Teague’s skilled writing, extensive journalistic experience, and personal connection to both horses and the books Marguerite Henry wrote about them make her the ideal individual to take on this exciting and challenging project,” says TSB Managing Editor Rebecca Didier. “The preliminary research she has already done in the existing archives and the contacts she has made promise to yield a rich and wonderful telling of the life of a massively influential writer and truly remarkable woman.”

An accurate and entertaining chronicle of Marguerite Henry’s evolution as a writer (she published her first story at age eleven), extensive travels (she visited many of the places she wrote about in her books, including Siena, Italy; Vienna, Austria; Reno, Nevada; Lexington, Kentucky; and of course, the island of Chincoteague in Virginia), and grand friendship with illustrator Wesley Dennis, whose artwork graced the pages of 15 Henry books, will require cooperation from the important groups who continue to work today to preserve the Henry legacy. TSB is grateful to the University of Minnesota, which houses the Henry archives, for working with Teague. In addition, TSB and Teague are excited to have the blessing of The Misty of Chincoteague Foundation, a group of educators, professionals, business people, artists, and children of all ages, which works “to promote literacy, writing, and conservation of places that allow the imagination to soar unfettered.” 

“The Misty of Chincoteague Foundation Board is eagerly anticipating the new biography on the life of award-winning author and mentor, Marguerite Henry,” says Board Director Rebecca Giusti. “Henry was a tenacious and thorough researcher, a great writer, and a visionary. She was determined to carve out her own life and body of work and do it her way…. While we can glean something of the author through her own works, we are so excited to hear about Marguerite Henry's amazing life and drive in a book dedicated to her!”

The biography of Marguerite Henry is scheduled for release in 2024.

For more information about this book or author Lettie Teague, contact Martha Cook (mcook@trafalgarbooks.com). 

End of Press Release

I love Marguerite Henry and her books, and have been delighted to serve on the board of MCF, the foundation that Marguerite herself started. Being a small part of the production of a biography that honors her life and legacy is a real thrill.

MCF: Another Misty

 I've always had a fondness for Misty of Chincoteague, but since becoming a board member of the Misty of Chincoteague Foundation (MCF), I have actively looked for models, books, and other items related to Misty and author Marguerite Henry. 

Recently I found this in-box Misty on Facebook Marketplace. 

Misty was first introduced in 1972 and is one of Breyer's longest running (if not the longest) models. Judging from the yellowing clear plastic, I figured this one was twenty years old or so.

I wasn't too far off - inside the box was a JAH flier and the 1996 Breyer catalog.

I slid her out of her box and compared her to the two other Mistys already in my collection. 

The differences between the three are pretty unremarkable although the underside of her hooves are pinker than the other two. 

I carefully put my new Misty back into her box (that yellowing plastic is brittle) along with the catalog and flier. Most likely I will keep her in the box, at least for now.

This post is the first in a series I will be writing about Marguerite Henry, her books, the Breyer models of horses from those books, and more. Since my interest is prompted by the Misty of Chincoteague Foundation, all titles will have MCF in them to make them easily searchable.

Stay 'tooned!

My First Meeting with the MCF Board

The Misty of Chincoteague Foundation had a meeting this past Saturday and I was introduced as a new board member and secretary. I was nervous and even a bit intimidated.

Board member Dr. Ann H. McCormick is a name I already knew from education circles. (Reader Bee, Reader Rabbit.) One board member is a doctor in California, another served in the Foreign Service in Morocco (he worked with Marguerite Henry when she was writing King of the Wind). There is a Chincoteague Islander who seems to be a sort of liaison between us and the cultural history preservation work on the island, and so forth.

Liz Cory herself is quite an accomplished woman. Among other things she is a former TV news anchor in Chicago and she has been spokesperson for the Federal Aviation Administration (check out this podcast) for several decades.  

Then there's me. Teacher, wife/mom/grandmother, model horse collector, horse owner. Would I really fit in? Liz (who doesn't intimidate me; she's one of my closest hobby friends) reassured me that I did and that I, too, had something to offer as I served on the board.

Time will tell, but as I get started in working with The Misty of Chincoteague Foundation, I am excited to connect the dots between my love of horses, kids, and literacy. 

(Now, I'd better get those minutes typed and sent out.)

My New Project: The Misty of Chincoteague Foundation

Last month while talking about my signed models, I mentioned that I had begun working on a project with Peter Stone. I wasn't able to say too much at the time as things were still unfolding then, but I can now. I have been asked to serve as a board member for The Misty Of Chincoteague Foundation. 

The Misty of Chincoteague Foundation was founded in 1990 by Marguerite Henry, Peter Stone, and some others who wished to promote literacy, writing, and the conservation of Misty's homeland on Chincoteague island. 

Marguerite Henry with Misty. (Photo from Google Images.)

My friend Liz Cory is president of The Misty Foundation and has been on the board since its inception. The board had recently lost a member and she called me and asked if I might be interested in serving. As I thought about it, I ran down the following check list in my mind:

Horses?  ✔

Literacy? ✔

Children?  ✔

Preserving where Misty had lived and supporting the preservation of the pony culture on Chincoteague and Assateague Islands?  ✔

Absolutely, I was interested in serving!

The board voted me in and has asked me to serve as secretary. I'm also on a couple of committees and one of my roles is to provide the perspective of a teacher as we work to promote and support literacy in schools.

I am still getting familiar with the foundation and its mission, and have met all the members of the board. (Truth be told, when I began getting emails from Peter Stone, I told Craig I wasn't sure if I could get used to seeing his name pop up in my inbox. Definitely a fan girl moment the first time or two it happened.) 

My first meeting as a board member was yesterday and I found the other directors to be warm, welcoming, and passionate about things that mean a lot to me - kids, horses, and literacy.

I am really excited to be able to serve.