Catch Rider

Gr 8 Up—Living in small-town Virginia, 14-year-old Sid feels trapped. Between avoiding her unemployed mother's increasingly abusive new boyfriend and constant reminders that most townspeople end up working in the paper mill, Sid's only escape is taking care of and riding horses. To earn money, she agrees to work at an upscale show barn with her Uncle Wayne. While there, she has the opportunity to participate in an equitation show. The plot never drags but, with the exception of Sid and her uncle, the characters are one-dimensional. Sid is likable and her language is authentic, if a bit rough around the edges. Readers will root for her. She faces many difficulties, including a deceased father, the abusive man, insufficient money, mean girls, and horse injuries, but she overcomes them with little effort. The one situation she fixes on her own is to get rid of her mother's boyfriend, pulling a gun on him instead of getting authorities to intervene. While this is ultimately a feel-good book, it is an additional purchase.—Tammy Turner, Centennial High School, Frisco, TX