DARK HORSE

This brief allegory by Fischer, a Christian singer and songwriter, traces the journey of a show horse that decides to leave its comfortable, conformist existence in favor of freedom on the wild plains. Where once he had striven to deceive others into believing that he was all white—the coat color most prized by horse lovers—the stallion comes to recognize his own natural beauty. "White isn't what you look like," says his liberator. "It's what you do when you follow the will of the White One." The allegory explores the Christian ideal of breaking through external boundaries to answer the call to discipleship; in one scene, the horse runs through a brush fire and finds refuge in a stream—a clear reference to the saving waters of baptism. The story can be a tad obvious, but the novella's brevity and gift packaging will ensure reader interest. (Oct.)