Daniel Margate has a very special family treasure. It is a scrap book filled with letters written by his great-grandfather, Cuthbert H. Brown Jr, who was a child during the American Great Depression. The letters are written to the legendary racehorse Seabiscuit, a horse who at the time captured the imagination of the nation.
Parallel with this, Daniel and three other students in his "bottom" reading group have to meet two challenges. They have to read in front of judges and live television and Daniel has to run in a race. Daniel has great difficulty with running and he always falls over he is also dyslexic. The challenges seem impossible. The Skakespeare group are sure to win the reading challenge and the school bullies seem set to win the race but Daniel has a special gift. He sees things differently. He is a problem solver and this problem can be solved with help from a stray horse that he has befriended.
In honour of Seabiscuit Daniel names the horse Jammy dodger. Australian children might need to see a picture of this type of biscuit.
This book was on my November and December reading pile. It's taken me until early January to read it. I did enjoy reading this story, especially the included letters from 1936, but it is quite long - perhaps a little too long for the target audience. One strength, though, is from the storytelling which contains just the right amount of tension has Daniel works hard to hide his horse, stay safe from the gang of bullies and master reading which he finds so difficult. Daniel is also a really wonderful friend to the others in his group. Here is an interview with the author. If you have a horse fan in your family this could be a good read aloud book to share.
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