Lightning Jack by Glenda Millard and Patricia Mullins
Scholastic, 2012. ISBN 9781741693911.
(Age: 4+) Highly recommended. From the moment that Sam Tully sees
the stallion, black as midnight, in the muster at the park, he is
determined to ride him. Together he and Lightning Jack stop a mob of
steers from stampeding down the mountainside and elude a grazier who
offers 500 steers for the horse. Like Pegasus, the horse rises into
the sky :
'Horse of the gods, diviner's horse.
The horse called Lightning Jack.'
More adventures follow as they evade Ned Kelly who wants a horse as
fast as Lightning Jack and then they race against the legendary but
ghostly Phar Lap.
Millard has written a wonderful poem that will remain in the minds
of all who hear it. She has taken different aspects of horses from
folklore and legend and made them into one huge adventure for the
imaginative Sam. Written in the style of The man from Snowy
River, this story begs to be read out loud so that the listener can
gain the movement and flight of the horse and the dreams of Sam
Tully.
Patricia Mullins has captured the beauty and the movement of the
black stallion as it gallops with the herd, dares Sam to ride him
and then changes into a wonderful creature of mythical proportions.
Finally the reader sees him as a carousel horse. The black of the
stallion stands out against the beautiful yellows, greens and blues
of the landscape and sky.
The combination of the beautiful collages and drawings and a
wonderful verse story make this is an outstanding picture book,
which is not to be missed.
Pat Pledger