Animal Ark #26: Horse in the House

Twelve-year-old Mandy Hope, and her best friend James Hunter feel horrible that their good friend, Wilfred Bennett, is being forced to sell his riding stables. Since the death of his beloved wife, Rose, both Mandy and James have assisted Wilfred in various menial tasks, including taking care of his eight remaining horses. The stables hold fond memories for Mandy, as she learned to ride on Rose's favorite mare, Matty. So when Mandy and James must accompany Mandy's veterinarian father, Dr. Adam, to a horse auction to watch each and every one of Wilfred's horses be sold to the highest bidder, they both find themselves extremely down. Mandy can't bear to part with the lovable Matty, and, deep down in her heart, she knows that Wilfred is feeling the same sadness. Matty was Rose's favorite horse, and by selling Matty, Mandy is convinced that Wilfred is selling off the last piece of Rose that he has. Unfortunately, by donating so much of their stables' business out to disabled riders, Wilfred is in quite a tight position with money, and can't keep even one of the horses. Besides, with Sam Western having already bought up all of Wilfred's land, and begun setting up a campsite for travelers, there's no room for an aging horse. However, when all of Wilfred's horses have been sold off, Matty is nowhere to be found, and Wilfred is being hush about the whole situation. The town of Welford is worried about Wilfred. With Rose gone, and now having to lose his horses and his stables so soon after her death, the townspeople begin to wonder if Wilfred will be able to cope. Mandy and James are curious about the same thing, and spend quite a bit of time trying to visit their older friend, and find out more about Matty's bizarre disappearance. But Wilfred's lack of appearances within Welford quickly takes a backseat to the newest mystery that has hit the tiny town. Sam Western's campsite is booming with business, and bringing all sorts of new people to Welford. But when rumors begin to fly that the campsite is haunted, Western's Campsite becomes one stop that people don't want to make on their vacations. According to campers, in the middle of the night, a headless horseman comes galloping through the campsite on a white horse, then manages to vanish into thin air. The rumors state that the horse and her rider are surrounded by a ghostly white light, and do nothing more than gallop through, then disappear. Mandy and James can't believe the rumors. Wilfred owned the land for years, and there were never any reports regarding a headless rider and his horse. So, under the pretense that they are holding a "badger watch," Mandy and James decide to do a little investigating of their own into the haunted campsite, to learn just how accurate the rumors are. But with all of the spooky tales floating about around them, the friends begin to wonder if Western's Campsite is truly haunted, or if someone is simply playing a joke on the unsuspecting campers. Of late, Ben M. Baglio has

As always Ben M. Baglio did a great job. Not scary, so great for little ones to read. I'm glad Mr. Baglio dropped his pen name of "Lucy Daniels" and is now using his real name. He should be known for such great children books. My Sarah loves his books.(for those who don't know, Lucy Daniels was the "Pen" name Ben M. Baglio used in the beginning of his series. Since then, he has dropped the name and uses his own. If you see a Animal Ark book with Lucy Daniels name on it, rest assure it is by Ben M. Baglio.)

This book was TOTALLY entertaining.I loved it. It was about a poor horse and it's life after his wonderful stable was gone.Mandy and James, helpes and solved the problem of "Horse in the House"It wasn't really 'Scary' so small kids can read them too.In my opinion, THIS IS THE BEST BOOK EVER!!!!! Hope this helpes!

I bought this book for my daugther and she love it.She's an animals lover especially horses.She already read it 3-4 times. Thanks!!!

Horse in the House is a great book for horse lovers or just people who want to become vets. This book kept me reading non-stop. I hope other people like it as much as I do. This book was great because I want to become a vet and also I love horses.