Gentle Like A
Cyclone: Stories of Horses and Their Riders
Selected by Phyllis R. Fenner, illustrated by Lorence F.
Bjorklund
1974, William Morrow and Company
Two excellent stories from Western author Jack Schaefer
bookend this short collection of horse stories aimed at the young adult
reader. In the first, a cowboy reflects
on a special horse and how trust can be lost; in the second, a rancher’s iron
will meets a thief’s grim determination.
The H.E. Bates story about a dying mare is virtually unbearable to
anyone who recognizes the panicky cruelty of a human in the midst of denial
about a beloved animal’s ill health. The
others are solid – the South African drama of polio-crippled Helen and her mare
Lucy, the fearful rodeo star staring down a final ride before retirement, a
bad/good luck charm in colt form, and the rebel to the end of Breakneck
Hill. Only “Blood Royal” lacks; it’s a
straightforward adventure story without much depth.
In the process of digging for author info, I came across the
original Kirkus review of this collection.
I generally like Kirkus, but felt their review of this anthology was a
bit harsh.
The stories
“That Mark Horse” by Jack Schaefer, from the book The Plainsmen (1963)
“Blood Royal” by Montgomery M. Atwater
“Breakneck Hill” by Esther Forbes (can be read online at
Google Books)
“Chiltipquin” by William Brandon
“Throw Your Heart Over” by Stuart Cloete
“Last Bronc” by Colin Lofting
“Lanko’s White Mare” by H.E. Bates
“Jeremy Rodock” by Jack Schaefer, from the book The Plainsmen (1963)
That Mark Horse
He was a big batch of
damned good horseflesh, and he knew that and was proud of iti and he had a hell
of a lot of self-respect. He just plain
wouldn’t be pushed around and that was that and I had to understand it.
A Western cowboy and a big Thoroughbred cross from the East
form a partnership after a few misunderstandings. When horse and rider confront a rodeo bull,
one of them flinches and the other can’t forgive.
Blood Royal
A throwback to his Arab ancestors, Kentucky Roamer is
worthless as a racehorse but invaluable in his new home with the U.S. Forest
Service.
Mildly annoying for some sexist comments about the horse
being too much for a woman to ride.
Breakneck Hill
“There’ll be no soap
made out old Cuddy,” Gething interrupted him.
“I’ll ride him out – up to the top of Breakneck Hill and shoot him
there. You’d better begin the trench by
noon. When it’s dug, I’ll take him to
the top and – “
An aged steeplechaser too rank for retirement is scheduled
for death, to the relief of the abused grooms, but a sentimental impulse from
his old jockey could prove tragic.
Chiltipiquin
Luis Rodriguez, a sometime thief and bandit who dwells on
both sides of the Mexican border, finds in the little red colt Chiltipiquin the
worst and best luck of his life.
Throw Your Heart Over
Everything the mare
did was wonderful. The way she ate. The way she drank from the bucket Herman
brought her. The way she rolled, kicking
her legs in the air. When she’d done all
this, the horse came and stood beside the girl with her soft gray nose almost
in her lap, while Helen stroked her face and pulled her ears.
Helen’s father, a farmer forced into other work by a
drought, pushes his finances to the limit to buy his polio-crippled daughter
the horse she longs for, and then to send her to a specialist. The roan mare Lucy turns out to have a number
of talents, including jumping.
Last Bronc
Eric Gordon yearned to be a rodeo star, and made it. Now the former world champion is
uncomfortable back home on his parents’ ranch, and knows his nerve is
gone. He wants to go home, to the ranch
and to the girl next door, but first he has to prove – if only to himself – that
he’s not a coward, that he’s not running away from the bucking horses.
Lanko’s White Mare
A long partnership between a man and his grey mare is marred
on one bright morning when he becomes impatient with her age and slowness.
A troubling, sad story.
It’s possible to read that Lanko’s rare anger at her tips the elderly
horse over into a sudden decline – a reading which seems popular online – but
it’s also possible to see it as a case of the owner becoming angry and
frightened and violent when the subtle signs of decline become impossible to
ignore.
Jeremy Roddock
A hard-bitten rancher with a reputation for hanging horse
thieves goes on the trail of three rustlers who mutilated his mares. When he catches up with them, he honors his
promise to the sheriff not to hang them – but has a punishment nearly as brutal
in mind. He begins to regret his plan
when one thief shows unexpected stubbornness.
About the authors
Jack Schaefer (1907-1991)
A journalist and novelist best known for his book Shane.
Both stories here were taken from his 9-story collection for younger
readers, The Plainsmen (which is,
oddly, called The Plainsman in the
front matter of this collection.
Montgomery M. Atwater (1904-1976)
The Oregon native was an avalanche expert, skier and
outdoorsman. He wrote several fiction
books, all with an outdoors theme, for young adults. These include: Avalanche Patrol, Smoke Patrol, The Trouble Hunters, Hank Winton
Smokechaser, Rustlers On The High Range, Cattle Dog, and The Ski Lodge Mystery.
Esther Forbes (1891-1967)
This short story, originally published in The Grinnell
Review while she was still in college, won the O. Henry Prize for short stories
in 1915. She is most famous for her
children’s novel Johnny Tremain (1943),
which won the Newberry Award, was made into a movie and has never been out of
print.
William Brandon
I found only a possible link, and I’m not at all sure it’s
the same person, so am not including it.
Stuart Cloete (1897-1976) aka Edward Fairly Stuart Graham
Cloete
A South African novelist and short story writer, Cloete
frequently wrote historical and post-apocalyptic fiction.
Colin Lofting
I believe this is Colin MacMahon “Skipper” Lofting, a son of
Dr. Doolittle author Hugh Lofting. Colin
appears to have spent much of his youth out West, and wrote a great deal about
the rodeo world. Back East, he married
into a Pennsylvania family who lived near the East Coast outlet of the King
Ranch cattle operations.
H.E. Bates
Herbert Ernest Bates (1905-1974)
A prolific writer best known for his Uncle Silas
stories. He also wrote a series of
children’s books about a donkey.
About the Author
Phyllis Reid Fenner (1899-1982) was a 1921 graduate of Mount
Holyoke College and a librarian for many years at an elementary school in New
York state. She wrote extensively on
library science, and amassed 34 collections of stories for children. This secondary career reportedly began after
a comment to a publisher that she kept a list of horse stories on hand for
certain children.
*largely from Pioneers and Leaders in Library Services for
Youth (2003), ed. Marilyn Miller; text available at Google Books
Collections by Fenner
Animals
Midnight Prowlers:
Stories of Cats and Their Enslaved Owners
Elephants, Elephants,
Elephants
Dogs, Dogs, Dogs
Sports
Behind The Wheel:
Stories of Cars on Road and Track
Speed, Speed, Speed:
Stories of Race and Chase in Hot Rods and Jets, Trains and Planes, Submarines
and Speedboats
Where Speed Is King:
Stories of Racing Adventure
Crack of the Bat:
Stories of Baseball
Kick Off: Stories of Football
General
Consider The Evidence:
Stories of Mystery and Suspense
Contraband: Stories of
Smuggling The World Over
Danger Is The
Password: Stories of Wartime Spies
Desperate Moments:
Stories of Escape and Hurried Journeys
Finders Keepers:
Stories of Treasure Seekers
Open Throttle: Stories
of Railroads and Railroad Men
The Dark And Bloody
Ground: Stories of the American Frontier
Yankee Doodle: Stories
of the Brave and the Free
Circus Parade: Stories
of the Big Top
Feasts And Frolics:
Stories for Special Days
Giggle Box: Funny
Stories for Boys and Girls
Cowboys, Cowboys,
Cowboys
Indians, Indians,
Indians
Pirates, Pirates,
Pirates
Heroes, Heroes, Heroes
Fools And Funny
Fellows: More Time To Laugh Tales
Folktales and the
Supernatural
There Was A Horse:
Folktales From Many Lands
Ghosts, Ghosts, Ghosts
Time To Laugh: Funny
Tales From Here and There
Demons And Dervishes:
Tales With More-Than-Oriental Splendor
Giants And Witches And
a Dragon Or Two
Princesses And Peasant
Boys: Tales of Enchantment
With Might and Main:
Stories of Skill and Wit
Outdoors
The Hunter and the
Hunted: Stories of Forest and Field
Perilous Ascent:
Stories of Mountain Climbing
Stories Of the Sea
Full Forty Fathoms:
Stories Of Underwater Adventure*
War
The Price Of Liberty:
Stories Of The American Revolution
Brother Against
Brother: Stories of the War Between The States
Over There!: Stories
of World War I
No Time For Glory:
Stories of World War II
*Which is reviewed briefly on the website Classic DiveBooks, which I had to mention as, well, we who are obsessed with weird niche
publications really need to stick together…
Links
Montgomery M. Atwater papers at the University of Oregon
Montgomery M. Atwater on Wikipedia
1964 article on avalanches by Atwater
“Breakneck Hill” on Google Books
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