Book Descriptions
for When the Horses Ride by by Eloise Greenfield and Jan Spivey Gilchrist
From Cooperative Children's Book Center (CCBC)
From The United States Board on Books for Young People (USBBY)
Dedicated to the courageous children of the world, Greenfield’s poems of children’s puzzlements about conflict across time and around the world are illustrated with stunning collage. For the opening, “I Think I Know,” a poem about how wars begin, Gilchrist juxtaposes faces of innocent children with insets of battlements, warriors, and fighter jets. Each spread matches the geography and history of the subject—whether line drawings of Chinese workers or textured paintings of Egyptian warriors. In the poignant “Wher ever We Are,” children speak of simple needs: “Wherever we are, / we search for a place / to be unafraid. / Wherever we are” (n.p.). IRA Notable Books for a Global Society, CCBC Choices. nlr
From the Publisher
Through these graceful and eloquent poems, written from the child's perspective, readers will experience this resilience, this optimism, and understand that it is possible to get through difficult and unsettling times while holding onto one's hopes and dreams for a better, more peaceful future.
WE ARE THE HELPERS
We tend the farm,
help to make the food grow,
Somewhere there is fighting,
but we are here, helping the sun
and the rain and the rich earth
bring forth the plants of life.
Wars have occurred throughout history, in all parts of the world, and they continue today. In spite of the hardship and suffering of wartime, children often find ways to see beauty and hope - in the natural world, in the love of family and friends, and in the ordinary activities of childhood. Through these graceful and eloquent poems, written from the child's perspective, readers will experience this resilience, this optimism, and understand that it is possible to get through difficult and unsettling times while holding onto one's hopes and dreams for a better, more peaceful future.