Horse Diaries #12 by Catherine Hapka

Author:Catherine Hapka
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Random House Children's Books
Published: 2015-08-04T04:00:00+00:00

“It’s all right,” she called to me. “He’s a bear. He travels with us, and he’s harmless.”

A bear. I’d never heard of such a creature. But the other horses had been grazing quite close to the bear’s cage, seemingly without fear.

I lowered my head, stepping forward as Claude urged me on. Keeping a wary eye on the bear, I joined my new herd.

Over the next few days, I learned much more about my new life as a circus horse. Very early that first morning, I was hitched to a heavy wagon beside one of the other horses, a stout palomino gelding named Midas. The rest of the horses went to work, too, although the smallest—the delicate dapple-gray mare with an arched neck—walked beside one of the wagons with the dogs.

We traveled all day, passing through a series of towns and villages before stopping in a field for the night. Claude seemed pleased with my work as he unhitched me.

“This one is strong and willing, at least,” he told Lionel, who was passing by carrying a bale of hay.

Lionel surveyed me. “Yes, but we need a performer, not a plow horse.”

Claude shrugged. “I suppose you’re right. Still, having her here gave Arabia a rest, at least.”

My muscles were tired after the long journey. I was looking forward to rest and food but was disappointed to find that we horses had only a small area of sparse grass to nibble on, with some dry hay to make up the rest of our meal.

Never mind, Midas said, noticing my reaction. Sometimes we have lots of grass, and at other times none.

The pretty dapple gray lifted her head. Yes. The next place might be better.

The other five horses had welcomed me, though I could tell they found my size and dark coat strange. My favorite among them was the dapple-gray mare, who was named Arabia. Apart from Midas, the other three were all white-gray. There were two geldings, King and Jasper, and an older mare known as Fancy. They told me more about this strange new world I’d joined, explaining that the circus was a form of human entertainment. May’s family traveled all across the land, performing for audiences in tiny hamlets and big cities alike.

Her father, Lionel, was the ringmaster. He was in charge of the show and directed all that happened. May’s mother was an aerialist.

I’ve seen her perform, Arabia said. She twirls through the air like a bird!

The horses themselves were part of the act. Uncle Claude had trained them all to perform various feats. Arabia was the star of the show, cantering gracefully around the ring night after night as Minerva did flips and jumps upon her back.

The rest of the family took part in the show, too. May’s brothers and cousins made up the clown troupe; Claude’s wife had trained the dogs to dance on command; another aunt and uncle walked on a high wire; various other cousins worked with the bear or did other things. It was difficult

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.