Miranda and Starlight (The Starlight Books, 1) [Paperback]

Janet Muirhead Hill (Author), Pat Lehmkuhl (Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 2002 | Age Level: 9 and up | Series: The Starlight Books, 1

Interwoven within the pages is a tale of the mishaps and adventures that seal and bond of love between two spirited creatures: a girl and a horse. Miranda learns many real life lessons in honesty, trust and courage as she pursues Starlight, the horse of her dreams.

This heartwarming story is the first in The Starlight Series, a new line of horse adventures for the young and young at heart.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 4-6-Sent to live with her grandparents while her less-than-dependable mother tries to find work and a place to live, Miranda immediately becomes entangled in situations that can only lead to more problems. When another student challenges her to ride a strange horse in a field, the fifth grader impulsively accepts the dare. The animal runs away with her and the furious owner of Shady Hills farm happens upon them and forbids her to trespass on his land again. Already smitten with the young black stallion that lives on the farm, Miranda continues to try to find ways to return to Shady Hills. Eventually her lies and misdeeds catch up with her, but not before she almost causes the death of the stallion that she has named Starlight. By the story's end, all is neatly resolved; the girl has her horse and has sworn off lying. Although Miranda is a feisty character, she is not a particularly likable one. Apologies after the fact seem to be her answer to every problem, and she basically gets away with her reckless behavior. The adults are too broadly drawn. Chris, a boy who is afraid of his own horse, is an interesting character but his relationship with his parents is too stilted and they are devoid of any sensitivity toward their son. With all of the horse stories available, libraries can pass on this one.
Carol Schene, Taunton Public Schools, MA
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Gr. 4-6. Sent to live on her grandparents' farm while her mother strives to make a living in Los Angeles, Miranda makes three friends: a new girl in her class, a boy who is afraid of riding, and the horse of her dreams, Starlight. Miranda's reckless determination to ride horses and, later, to save Starlight from certain death lead her into a series of lies that she finds impossible to sustain. In the end, though, her tenacity and the goodness of those around her, help Miranda find resolution to a number of conflicts. Though some of the characters seem idealized and even the more realistic ones are carefully provided with reasons from their pasts for their present imperfections, Miranda emerges as a believable and sympathetic heroine. Illustrated with attractive ink drawings, this paperback original is recommended for horse lovers. Carolyn Phelan
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 9 and up
  
• Paperback: 168 pages
• Publisher: Raven Pub (June 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0971416109
• ISBN-13: 978-0971416109
• Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 5.2 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #6,320,597 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

In 1994, Riding the ski lift at Bridger Bowl, just north of Bozeman, MT, "Miranda and Starlight" was conceived. My then eight-year-old granddaughter, Jayme insisted she ride up the mountain with me and that I tell her a story on the way.

"And what would you like the story to be about?"

"A horse."

"Of, course. A horse and a girl?"

"Yes, a girl like me."

"What shall we name this girl?"

"Ummm, how about Miranda?"

"Okay. Miranda, a girl who wants a horse more than anything in the world?"

"Yes! Just like me."

The story unfolded out of my imagination, lift ride after lift ride and while warming our toes in the lodge until by the end of the day, I decided it was worth writing down. Five more books followed about Miranda's adventures with Starlight, the young, black stallion she loves.

I write stories based on situations I see in life, and the people who encounter them. The result is, though wholly made up, the books are honest -- honest because I ask my characters how they think, what they would say, and how they feel in the dilemmas presented to them. I write what they show me.

Jayme's situation, and thus Miranda's, involved living with her grandparents away from her mother, attending a small rural school in which she felt left out, and believing that having a horse would solve all of her problems...or at least make them matter less. Miranda is impulsive, quick-tempered, and sometimes disobedient. She is also loving, loyal, and learns from her mistakes.

I wrote Danny's Dragon based on the experiences of kids I heard about in the news and our neighborhood; kids whose parent or parents went off to fight a war, leaving them behind. I put myself in the child's heart and mind. A bit of homesickness I experienced at age nine helped me understand. The death of my parents gave me an inkling of what a child that age would go through. Research on the stages of grief for a child helped me better understand the impact and the stages of grief he would suffer. So I made up Danny and his horse Dragon and put them on a cattle ranch in Montana. Danny's dad goes to war and is killed. Dragon, the horse his dad bought for him, becomes the object of Danny's anger, guilt, denial, and escape. For a time he loses Dragon, too. His relationships with his mother and his teenage sister fall apart as each cope with their grief in their own ways. Life changes make Danny's life even harder, but gradually open his mind to new ideas and realities. End the end, relationships mend, Danny and Dragon are reunited, and Danny has grown from a lost little boy to a stronger, wiser, youth.

Kyleah's Tree is based loosely on my own run-away-from-home fantasies as a preteen. It's also a twin story. I see the closeness of twins and ask, :"what would it be like if they were tragically separated?" Kyleah ends up in a foster home in Kansas after her mother dies. She was torn from the arms of her twin brother when her parents divorced years earlier. The biggest dilemma for Kyleah is a lack of self-esteem. She doesn't believe she's loveable so she doesn't let anyone close. "If only I were pretty," she thinks, "then people could love me." This lack of belief in herself contributes to her decision to run away with an older boy from the same foster home. They travel across Kansas, Colorado, Wyoming, Montana and into Saskatchewan with high adventure, narrow escapes, hardships, and loneliness along the way. Kyleah doesn't find her father and brother as she hopes, but she finds herself and what "home" really means.

Kendall's Storm explores the parallel life of Kyleah's twin as he flees one place after another with his errant father. He remembers his sister and wonders if she and his mother are alive, and if they ever think of him. A bedraggled puppy that he rescues from a storm becomes his friend and solace. Kendall is meek and fearful, wanting his father's love and acceptance, but often falling short of the mark. He must make decisions about his own life. Will he follow his father's footsteps? Will he conquer his fears? There is a foster home in his story, too, but a very different one from the one Kyleah fled and then returned to.

Not yet finished is the story of how the twins eventually unite. Several more stories are either written or in process. Homelessness, peer pressure, a two book series ritual abuse and escape to a fantasy world that turns out to be just as frightening, are a few of the subjects addressed.

I'm a grandmother, a wife, and a mother. Family is of primary importance to me. So is writing stories that reflect life and give readers heroic, yet human characters to relate to and learn from; books that not only engage the reader, but encourage and comfort them in the knowledge that they are neither bad nor alone.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Starlight and Miranda, April 28, 2003

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Miranda and Starlight (The Starlight Books, 1) (Paperback)

Miranda and Starlight is my ALLTIME favorate book! Miranda goes on adventure after adventure!!! She always has a new daring idea!! These books are a MUST read!!!!

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent for the whole family, December 3, 2002

By 

nancy (montana) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Miranda and Starlight (The Starlight Books, 1) (Paperback)

My daughter, who loves horses just about more than anything else, loved this story. Since she isn't able to read at this level yet we would sit down every evening and read a few chapters together. My daughter, son and husband all enjoyed the story and each one got something different from it. We can't wait to read the sequel...

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A highly recommended story for young readers, August 6, 2002

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Miranda and Starlight (The Starlight Books, 1) (Paperback)

Miranda Stevens is a lonely fifth grader who feels that if she only had a horse of her own everything else in her life would be okay. Then in response to a dare by Chris, a boy who has a habit of bullying others, she mounts a beautiful black horse named Starlight who is pastured in a field just beyond the schoolyard fence and begins a wonderful adventure of scrapes, narrow escapes and quandaries that teach Miranda life lessons in honesty, trust and courage. Beautiful black and white illustrations by Pat Lehmkuhl enhanced Janet Muirhead Hill's charming and highly recommended story for young readers.