Belladonna

By: Mary Finn

Narrated by: Ralph Lister

A lyrical coming-of-age story about a boy, a girl, and a horse and how a chance encounter can lead to a life of intrigue and learning, a life beyond imagining.

When Thomas Rose first spots the girl hidden by the roadside, she looks as drab as a lark, with only her red kerchief giving her away. But French Hélène, who goes by "Ling," is no ordinary bird. Tiny Ling enchants Thomas with her wild spirit and tales of a circus where she danced atop her beloved horse, Belladonna. But the horse has been sold, and Ling must fetch her back. Now Thomas’s life as a clever but unschooled wheelwright’s son is about to change. Their search leads to painter George Stubbs, who euthanizes ailing animals in order to study their anatomy. Stubbs draws eerie horses that stride as if they could move out of the paper world into the real one - but he assures his young friends that their horse is safe at a nearby estate. As Ling and Thomas devise a risky plan to recover Belladonna, Stubbs hires Thomas as an apprentice, teaching him to read and write as well. In this fascinating story, Mary Finn incorporates a real 18th century artist into a beautifully imagined tale of adventure and young romance.

©2011 Mary Finn (P)2011 Brilliance Audio, Inc.

Cute Book

My daughter found this in the library and thought that I would like it. I ran out of time to read the physical copy, so I found it here. It was a cute book. This is definitely geared more towards children. I thought it was slow the whole way through and that the ending wasn't great. The relationship between Thomas and Ling was cute and Belladonna was in it some, but I wish there was more to it, especially more involving Belladonna.