The team behind Amazing Grazing
(about environmentally safe ranching) delivers another eye-catching story of unusual interest, this one featuring the wild horses of South Dakota's Black Hills Sanctuary. Framed by ample white space, Upitis's stunning pictures of the sinewy, graceful horses encompass a variety of seasons and times of day; sunsets, nighttime views and golden autumn light evoke a wide appreciation of the majestic setting. Peterson's often poetic prose sets the scene ("This is the land of silver sagebrush and cowboy legends [where] scraggly buzzards perch on fence posts") and describes individual horses, and she judiciously frames the narrative with the story of how "cowboy-conservationist" Dayton Hyde realized his dream of a wild horse preserve. The photos don't always match up with the text. While Petersen writes of Dayton's childhood experiences with horses and gives a straightforward history of mustangs, the photographs continue to show the present-day horses at the sanctuary. If they grapple with a few terms like "conservationist," "rimrock" and "marker mares," used matter-of-factly in the text, the stirring photos and inspiring story could easily prompt readers to deepen their knowledge of the subject. Ages 8-up. (Mar.)
