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Dandi Daley Mackall
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Wild Thing (Winnie the Horse Gentler, Book 1) Mass Market Paperback – Illustrated, April 1, 2002

by Dandi Daley Mackall (Author)
4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 454 ratings
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Twelve-year-old Winnie Willis has a way with horses. She can gentle the wildest mare, but other parts of her life don't always come as easily. Along with her dad and sister, Lizzy, Winnie is learning how to live without her mom, who was also a natural horse gentler. As Winnie teaches her horses about unconditional love and blind trust, God shows Winnie that he can be trusted too. Readers will be hooked on the series' vivid characters, whose quirky personalities fill Winnie's life with friendship and adventure.

In #1 Wild Thing, Winnie's fearful heart finally begins to trust God again as she tries to gentle the horse of her dreams, Wild Thing.
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Previous page
  1. Reading age
    9 - 12 years, from customers
  2. Book 1 of 8
    Winnie the Horse Gentler
  3. Print length
    173 pages
  4. Language
    English
  5. Grade level
    3 - 6
  6. Dimensions
    4.1 x 0.5 x 6.7 inches
  7. Publisher
    Tyndale Kids
  8. Publication date
    April 1, 2002
  9. ISBN-10
    9780842355421
  10. ISBN-13
    978-0842355421
  11. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

"I have to have that horse. And I'll do whatever it takes to get her."
Twelve-year-old Winnie Willis loves horses-just like her mother did. But since her mom died two years ago, Winnie, her sister, Lizzy, and her father have moved five times. Winnie never cared much-until now. She has a chance to buy the horse of her dreams at an upcoming auction-but how will she ever earn enough money? More importantly, how can she possibly convince her dad not to move them to another town . . . again?

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ 0842355421
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Tyndale Kids; Illustrated edition (April 1, 2002)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Mass Market Paperback ‏ : ‎ 173 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 9780842355421
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0842355421
  • Reading age ‏ : ‎ 9 - 12 years, from customers
  • Grade level ‏ : ‎ 3 - 6
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 3.52 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 4.1 x 0.5 x 6.7 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 454 ratings

About the author

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Dandi Daley Mackall

Dandi Daley Mackall

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Dandi won her first writing contest as a 10-year-old tomboy. Her 50 words on "Why I Want to Be Batboy for the Kansas City A's" won first place, but the team wouldn't let a girl be batboy. It was her first taste of rejection.

Since then, Dandi Daley Mackall has become an award-winning author of nearly 500 books for adults and children of all ages, with sales of 4 million copies in 22 countries. MY BOYFRIENDS' DOGS is now a Hallmark movie. THE SILENCE OF MURDER won the Edgar Award for Best Young Adult Mystery. Her picture books range from rock and roll, ROCK AWAY GRANNY! to legends and history, like Legend of Ohio, Legend of Saint Nicholas, Rudy Rides the Rails: A Depression Era Story, FLIPSIDE STORIES, showing the same story from different points of view. Awards include: Notable Book; Notable Social Studies Trade Book for Young People National Council of Social Studies; Children's Book Council; the Angel Award; Award of Excellence from Chicago Book Show; Christian Book of the Year; Mom's Choice Awards & Amelia Bloom Award. Eva Underground, Harcourt young adult novel, nominated ALA Best Book with starred reviews, awarded a Top Teen Read by New York Public Library, finalist for Ohioana Award, was based on the author's experiences behind the Iron Curtain. Love Rules was awarded Romantic Times' Top Pick. Middle-grade fiction, Larger-than-Life Lara, which teaches how to write, while tackling the problem of bullying, made the KY Bluegrass Award List, William Allan White Award list, KS, Delaware, and KY Children's Choice lists. Her Winnie the Horse Gentler series has sold over half a million books and Starlight Animal Rescue is a Gold Medallion finalist. Dandi received the Helen Keating Ott Award for distinguished contribution toward promoting high moral and ethical values in children and young adult literature. She also received the Distinguished Alumna Award in 2008 from the University of Missouri.

Her latest novel is WITH LOVE, WHEREVER YOU ARE, based on the incredible true story of her parents, Army doctor and Army nurse in WW2, received starred reviews. Visit: https://youtu.be/LJL59-UsAyo

and www.withlovebook.dandibooks.com

Dandi is a national speaker, keynoting at conferences and Author events, and has made dozens of appearances on TV, including ABC, NBC, and CBS.

Visit Dandi at her website (www.dandibooks.com) and on social media websites:

facebook.com/dandi.mackall

goodreads.com

and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=85oaIUbJ8j8

Customer reviews

4.6 out of 5 stars
4.6 out of 5
454 global ratings
Entertaining storyline for age-appropriate readers 9 to 12 years of age.
4 Stars
Entertaining storyline for age-appropriate readers 9 to 12 years of age.
Reader must have a true interest for horses in order to fully follow all aspects of the story. I enjoyed the inserts of history trivia regarding the cat of Charles Dickens (named Wilhemina) and the cat of Winston Churchill (named Nelson). Another interesting tidbit of information was the author's explanation of the Galvayne's groove in the horse's teeth used to estimate a horse's age.
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Top reviews from the United States

garfsgirl
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent for tweens and older
Reviewed in the United States on June 16, 2014
Verified Purchase
Wild Thing is the first book in the Winnie the Horse Gentler series. It appears to be aimed towards a tween audience but I think even adults would enjoy this book. I was surprised at the depth of emotions and spiritual lessons in this book. Winnie, her younger sister Lizzy, and their father are living in Ohio, having moved numerous times in 2 years after the accidental death of their mother. Winnie loves horses and can "tame" them, like her mother did. She sees a wild Arabian at a local stable and tries to figure out how she can buy her. There were some really funny moments and characters in the book. I especially enjoyed Lizzy, her lizard-loving sister, and Pat, the pet store owner, who would spout some animal expression and then promptly apologize to the animal. You have to read it to understand but I thought it was so funny. Everyone in Winnie's family is still grieving over the loss of Winnie's mom but Winnie feels personally guilty and responsible for her mother's death. She also believes her father blames her, too, and that is why he is so distant and emotionally cold towards her. Winnie was really struggling spiritually and emotionally...could God still love her? can He forgive her for her mother's death? Those are weighty issues for anyone at any age but especially for this 12-year old who feels alone and guilty. I liked how the the author includes spiritual nuggets in the story and appreciated that she uses Scripture to speak to Winnie. The only character I wasn't crazy about was Winnie's dad. His behavior towards Winnie seemed cold and his turnaround at the end was not quite believable. On a side note, the book contains a diagram of the parts of a horse, a dictionary of horse body/sound language, and a dictionary of the types of horses and other equine-related terms. I thoroughly enjoyed this story and would recommend it for any tween and older.
5 people found this helpful
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CGirl_WithAPen
5.0 out of 5 stars A book my eight-year-old self would have loved!
Reviewed in the United States on August 30, 2014
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I think that, at some point in their lives, all girls go through a horse-crazy stage. I know that I did. When I was about eight, I devoured every book I could find on horses. Now that I am an adult, I am still looking for good horse books to share with the special girls in my life, and that search led me to the Winnie the Horse Gentler series. Wild Thing is a great start to this series of horse books for girls. Winnie and her family have just moved to a new town - again. When she discovers a beautiful Arabian horse in need of gentling, she is willing to do whatever it takes to keep her.

I enjoyed this book, and know that as an eight-year-old I would have loved it. The story is entertaining and includes topics such as fear and guilt, which are addressed in a method appropriate for the intended audience. A descriptive writing style and a cast of quirky characters make this an enjoyable read. As an added bonus, the back of the book includes a guide on horse behaviors and breeds.

If there is a horse-crazy girl in your life, this would be a perfect book to share with her!
One person found this helpful
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BadWolf
4.0 out of 5 stars Quite Entertaining!
Reviewed in the United States on November 5, 2012
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I think that this book is great! It's not the best book I've read because some things aren't that realistic. But it's story line is well-thought and interesting. The characters are mostly believable, but there's some things that would probably never have happened. Being a horse-lover myself, I liked this book a lot! I'd already read all of the books, but I thought that I'd enjoy another read. I like to re-read books :D! As some other random suggestions for books, if you're a girl, you'd probably enjoy the rest of this series and another series called the Andrae Carter Series. It's a remarkably good book series and I wish that I was able to read all of them, but I have only read about half. Enjoy the book!!!!! :)
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Dottie Parish
5.0 out of 5 stars Very enjoyable book
Reviewed in the United States on December 26, 2012
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This is a delightful, well written book for middle grade girls who love horses. It is written from a Christian perspective but is not preachy nor does this detract from a very good story about Winnie, a twelve year old girl who has lost her mother. In search of work her father has moved Winnie and her sister five times in two years leaving their Wyoming ranch behind. In a small town in Ohio Winnie finds the horse of her dreams - Wild Thing. She has learned from her mother how to be a horse gentler. No one can tame Wild Thing. Can Winnie do it? Will the horse be sold? Will they move again? All these questions in addition to Winnie's guilt about her mother's death and estrangement from her father are the back drop to a great story. The author, knowledgeable about horses, describes in the story the ways horses can be abused and shows ways to train horses gently.
One person found this helpful
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Jenny Rose
5.0 out of 5 stars Wow! Very emotional.
Reviewed in the United States on August 13, 2011
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Wild Thing by Dandi Daley Mackall (Winnie the Horse Gentler series)

Winnie Willis used to work with horses with her mother before the accident. The accident that killed her mother. Winnie blames herself. Now she, her dad and her younger sister Lizzy spend their time moving--a few months here and a few months there. Winnie is so desperate to be around horses that she mucks the stalls at Spidell's stable where she learns a beautiful new Arabian horse has arrived. It is love at first sight for Winnie, but nobody seems to be able to handle the wild horse. Winnie buys the Arabian at an auction and using everything her mother taught her, Winnie slowly befriends the horse. Then she gets ready to sell the horse she has become so fond of at a sale because her family could really use the money.

Dandi Daley Mackall is obviously a talented writer. I ran through so many emotions as I read. If you know a young girl age 8-12 who loves animals, especially horse, she would love this book. If you know a girl who has ever read Pony Pals (Scholastic), Mackall's writing is very similar and not preachy.

I downloaded this as a free e-book to check it out for my daughter, but I would gladly pay money for any of Mackall's books and plan to get more of what she has written.
3 people found this helpful
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Jesus!3!
5.0 out of 5 stars A cool story of a horse and a girl who found comfort in each other.
Reviewed in the United States on March 5, 2016
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Wow! What a marvelous story of how Winnie was able to be healed of her anxieties and guilt of her mom being killed and for being able to tame Wild Thing.... I enjoyed it! I would like to recommend this ebook for anyone who enjoys horse stories and also give it five stars for it being such a neat ebook. I received this ebook for free and in return, now here is my honest review. Super job Dandi! By Angela
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Top reviews from other countries

Lorena Schramm
5.0 out of 5 stars Wild thing
Reviewed in Brazil on September 10, 2014
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Fantastic, fascinating, brings you back to your childhood, you really feel like you are there with her, I enjoyed a lot!
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Paigee6617
5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on May 9, 2015
Verified Purchase
The book is so interesting. If you thing that there is no horse book to read then you are wrong, this book is full of real life scenarios whereas in other ones it is stuff like the horse always gallops off in the sunset. It is so good. X
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Tartan terror
5.0 out of 5 stars Winner
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 8, 2012
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downloaded this for my seven year old grandaughter and she enjoyed reading this book and found it easy reading and it did not take her long to finish it. She loves horses and loved the storyline very much
One person found this helpful
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Bethanhazel
4.0 out of 5 stars Lovely little horse story
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 23, 2011
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Thought that this was a good little read. I read it in just a few hours so it's not great value for money in that respect but I did enjoy it.
Winnie has had a difficult couple of years following the death of her mother . Her family have moved house several times and seem to be struggling to find a sense of normality. I was impressed by Winnie's horse knowledge but wondered if her horse taming was perhaps too good to be true and the name they eventually choose for Wild Thing is terrible. But these are only small issues and I did enjoy this story, there were lots of likeable side characters and lots of animals. Would recommend this to anyone who loves horses but think it is most suited to children aged about 12 like Winnie is. Looking forward to reading more about Winnie and Wild Thing in other books in the series.
4 people found this helpful
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Sara woodward
5.0 out of 5 stars Fab book
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on May 10, 2015
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This is one of the best horse books I have read and I am a horse person myself I would recommend this book to any one!
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