“Santa delivered a real pony to our small family farm when I was seven,” remembers equine artist Jean Abernethy. “Her name was Dusty. She was three and very green. My brother Glen, with grit, determination, and encouragement from Dad, got Dusty going nicely. She was not an easy pony. Slight, skittish, and fast, she’d had a few frightening escapades before Santa delivered her to us.”
With her own happiest of holiday stories in mind, this Christmas Abernethy has made it easier for Santa to deliver ponies to all those horse-crazy kids out there: she wrote FERGUS AND THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS, starring her own Fergus the Horse—the world’s most popular cartoon horse—and Santa, of course. The colorfully illustrated book features a hilarious retelling of the classic poem (and it fits neatly under the tree—no barn required!)
“FERGUS AND THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS brought a tear to my eye and refreshed the magic of the holidays in my heart,” says Horse Nation. “For the young and the young at heart, [it] would be the perfect holiday gift for horse lovers and budding equestrians in your family.”
“An adventure that will make any horse lover’s heart swell!” agrees Equine Journal.
“I purchased FERGUS AND THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS as a Thanksgiving gift,” shares Larri Jo Starkey, Editor of The American Quarter Horse Journal. “It was a BIG hit with my mom and all the little people she read it to. Strongly recommended!”
FERGUS AND THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS is Abernethy’s fourth Fergus book, and her Fergus the Horse social media pages and merchandise keep her very busy throughout the year, not just during the holidays.
“I wonder if Santa knew when he delivered that first pony that he had initiated careers for my brother and me,” she muses. “Glen is now a skilled horseman in his own right!”
FERGUS AND THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS is available from the TSB online bookstore, where shipping in the US is FREE.
Order by midnight tonight (Friday, December 14) to get free shipping and receive your book by Christmas Eve. (Orders after midnight will require expedited shipping to arrive by December 24—see our website or call 800.523.4525 for details.)
Trafalgar Square Books, the leading publisher of equestrian books and DVDs, is a small business based on a farm in rural Vermont.