Out of the Valley of Horses
Out of the Valley of Horses
In the mountains there was a valley, and in the valley were the horses.
There was a rainforest too, with trees, berry bushes, flowers, and strong swinging vines. There were birds and butterflies fluttering, cheeping, and calling. There was a river that circled the mountain like a castle moat and sent a clear, rippling creek into the valley. Near the creek there was a white and blue van with an ice cream cone painted on the side, and in the van there was a family.
But it was the horses that started it all, thought Honey. Without the horses, the family wouldn’t be here and they wouldn’t be happy.
Because when Honey was four and Rumi was a tiny baby, a terrible sickness swept through the world. Grandpa died and Nanna’s grief locked her in like a nut in a shell; the world they’d always known became as strange and scary as a house with its roof blown away. The city was gray and quiet, and in the street in front of their flat, the white and blue ice cream van sat lonely and still. Nanna cried every time she saw it and sometimes Papa did too. Because it wasn’t an ice cream van anymore. Grandpa had loved driving around selling ice cream to happy people, but when the world got sick he and Nanna turned the van into a camper. It was all ready for the great expedition they’d planned, but now it looked as if it would never move again.
“It wouldn’t be the same doing it on my own,” said Nanna.
“We’ll all go!” said Momma.
“It’s time to get out of this sad old world,” said Papa. “Let’s have an adventure instead.”
Out of the Valley of Horses is by Wendy Orr, author of the magical Nim’s Island. The story is about 11-year old Honey whose family have been living in a renovated ice-cream van for the last seven years. After crossing an unfamiliar bridge leading to a mountain, at the foot of which a herd of horses are gathered, the family members find themselves in a valley filled with stunning fauna and flora, but absolutely no people or connection to the outside world— and no way to leave. As the story progresses, readers learn that everyone the family left behind has been desperately searching for them since their disappearance. When Honey’s father becomes very sick, she sets out on her own to find a way out of the valley and get help for her father before it’s too late.
The descriptive writing in this book is lovely; evocative without being long-winded, detailed without ever becoming dull. The cover artist for the edition I read, Tara Anderson, is to be commended for capturing the ethereal spirit of the book itself.
Out of the Valley of Horses could easily be put in the category of magical realism, but one of the most interesting elements of this writing is how incredibly subtle the magic actually is. It’s almost like a light mist settling over the entire story; it’s not soaking wet, but omnipresent and important. The way the horses interact with the family, the disappearing bridge, the inability to connect with the world beyond the valley—it’s all very mystical and unexplainable.
In between each chapter, there is a short message, such as the transcript of a voicemail, a text message, or an email, that snaps readers instantly back to a non-magical setting where readers learn that life in the “real world” has continued on without Honey and her family and that those left behind have never given up hope of finding them. It’s such an interesting balance, keeping readers from ever getting too comfortable with the valley setting and making it very clear that, while the magic of the valley is keeping them safe, it’s also keeping them trapped. Sound familiar?
At its core, Out of the Valley of Horses is a story for young readers, but if you’re a parent, especially one who parented through the COVID-19 pandemic, it’s for you too. You’ll likely see yourself in the adults as they problem solve with the resources available, educate the children as best they can, and make do with what they have available. This book brought back a very familiar feeling. It was the exact same way I (and probably many others) felt when the world was shutting down and I found myself parenting two young children during a global pandemic. So much energy was spent trying to shield children from reality, protecting them from the worst, bearing the brunt of it and essentially pretending the whole thing was just a fun adventure, exactly what the parents and grandmother are doing in Out of the Valley of Horses. All that is to say, this book brought up some big feelings for me, and I can see it doing that for others as well.
Allison Giggey is an intermediate school teacher-librarian in Prince Edward Island.