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Reviewed by Emily-Jane Hills Orford for Readers' Favorite
Carrie was pretty excited about returning to the summer camp she and her sister had enjoyed for several summers in a row. This year she was old enough to be a Junior Counselor. As well as learning some leadership skills, Carrie would continue to enjoy her favorite part of camp life, horseback riding. Only, this year there was an outbreak of polio and Carrie is one of the first campers to come down with the disease, leaving her paralyzed. Despondent, she finds it difficult returning to teenage life, now confined in a wheelchair. But then she meets Bob, a former miner who looked after the mine ponies, and his little pit pony, Bobbit. Mesmerized by the possibilities of working with a miniature horse and driving a carriage, Carrie’s passion for life returns. Here’s a real possibility for her to continue doing something she loves best: working with horses.
Sally Sutherland’s novel, A Pit Pony Named Bobbit: Two American Teens Coping With Desperate Odds, is a bleak look at life in 1950s West Virginia, where childhood diseases like polio affected many young lives and working the mines controlled many other young lives. Two teenagers face unexpected challenges, but manage to find a way to overcome the odds stacked against them. Two plots develop parallel to one another: Carrie’s story which begins at camp and Bob and Bobbit’s story which begins below ground in the mines. As the plot thickens, the two teenagers’ lives converge unexpectedly, leading to a resolution that benefits them both. This is an endearing story in many ways, as well as a compassionate look at the challenges presented to young people in this troubling era. A powerful story, beautifully told.
