Customer Reviews

Son of the Black Stallion

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

All of the Walter Farley books are excellent for young people interested in horses.

I mean, think about this. The son of the black stallion - Satan - is so terrible at the beginning of the book that Henry doesn't want him around Alec. Henry sees something in the colt's stony gaze that makes him think that this horse is a demon, worse than his sire. Alec doesn't believe him, thinking that 'oh, this is my horse, he'll fall in love with me like the Black did'. The thing is, it doesn't work that way. And even after the horse is saved by Alec, he shouldn't all of a sudden act like he trusts the boy. If anything, in my experience with horses, the animal would be much more skittish than ever with someone connected to that event. Henry in particular, yes, but Alec too since he was around. Anywho, read the book. It's good beside that.

A riveting tale that will have you up all night! The Black stallion's son is pure evil. He hates everybody and won't let anybody touch him, much less ride him. He hates Alec, Henry, Mr. Volence--everyone. Alec thinks that with kindess that SATAN will be tame. But Henry, a veteran trainer, thinks otherwise, and is proved right. One day while Alec is at school, Henry fights with the colt--and more unusual things happen than he had ever seen on the tracks...

However, this book lacks the charm or variety of the first two books. It keeps repeating how Satan is a killer and he's worthless.

Walter Farley may be the only person alive who can actually make a horse character believable. Satan's training seems impossible till the fateful day. I love this book and wished I could be Alec! Don't pass this one by. Farley continues the saga of The Black Stallion with his customary moving prose and his sensitivity to character and story. He never twists too much, but you care about the characters, both equine and human.

In my earlier review I mentioned a promise made to Alec by Abu ishak. Well Satan, the first son of the Black is that promise. And now Satan is Alec's horse. His parent's are expectng a nice slow pony that will grow up to be a nice slow horse. But Alec has other plans. But the day at the dock when Satan is finally his everyone gets a surprise. Satan is mean, sour and waiting to strike. Will Alec's dreams go down the drain? Or will the son of The black Stallion go down in racing history?

In all I think this was a great book. But let me just get this off of my shoulders. Satan is not The Black, and never will be, So don't expect the magic that happened between Alec and the Black.

This book is great. Alec is given the Black's son as a gift. It is evident that this little colt will be just as wild as the Black was when Alec first met him and that he will have to gentle him slowly as he grows.
A great read for anyone who LOVES horses.

To tell you the truth, when I picked up this book, I didn't think that it was going to be as good as the first two were. But then I got into it, and realized how much lies in this story. It is very much complex, so I am surprised that it would be designated as a kid story, for though I may be a teen, I am a huge fan of Farley's work. There's so much story here. And it's simply amazing. This story tells of a son of The Black, who's given to Alec Ramsay for taking care of his father. But Satan, as he is named, turns out to be a wild killer, just like his father was before he met Alec. This horse had to go through a desperate situation that kept me guessing until the end, and the rage, but how he seemed to really try to make an effort to stop himself, clearly demonstrates the battle between good and evil in one creature's heart. That is one of the things that I think Farley is trying to tell us in this great book of the series. I doubted that I would enjoy it as I started it, but it is one of the greatest books of the series. Farley did another superb job with this book.

No one could have captured the thrilling tale of a boy named Alec who was givin the first son of the Black Stallion, Satan, any better than Walter Farley. Satan was wild and Was almost untamable until one day Alec saved Satan from strangeling him self and from then on Satan was loyal and loving to Alec and became a great race horse.

When the Black returns to Arabia, Abu Ishak promises Alec that he will have the Black's firstborn. When that colt arrives, it soon becomes evident that Satan has inherited his father's savage desire to run and to fight. Alec tries to win the horse's love and confidence, but as Satan grows older he becomes dangerous. Alec, away at college, doesn't realize how savage Satan has become. After Satan throws Alec, injuring him; Henry decides to "teach" Satan-with a whip. Henry realizes too late how dangerous Satan really is, and is almost killed. Henry, in a desperate attempt to save his life, almost kills Satan. Now Satan has no reason to trust humans. Can Satan ever be tamed? Will Satan finally learn to trust and love Alec?

I think this book is worth reading as part of the Black Stallion series, and I especially enjoyed reading all of the books in the order they were written. I read most of the books four or five times, but this is one I read only twice. There's something about it that seems overly long, overly repetitive, and the story line just isn't as interesting as the story line of the first two books. Still, I enjoyed this story as part of the whole.