Justin Morgan Had a Horse

by Marguerite Henry

Review by Rachel Shuman

This is a wonderful book for a child interested in early American history. In telling the story of Joel Goss, the author shows what life was like for a boy growing up just after the Revolutionary War. The reader follows Joel as he spends the last summer of his childhood journeying with music teacher Justin Morgan. Upon their return home to Vermont, Joel is apprenticed out to a local miller. As he learns his trade and becomes a young man, his path often crosses that of Li’l Bub, a colt belonging to the music teacher, and the eventual founding stallion of America’s oldest horse breed. Their reunion, and the empathy Joel feels in regard to the aged horse, is deeply moving. Continue reading →