If I was a Horse by Sophie Blackall

Begin here with this video where Sophie talks about her book. 

'If I was a Horse is for anyone who ever wanted, 
even for a moment, to be something else.'

Now pick up the book and move the cover up and down so you can see the glitter on the tutu. I am very curious about the image under the dust jacket but sadly my copy, borrowed from a library, is covered in plastic so I cannot check this - I know Farmhouse also by Sophie Blackall had a delicious image hiding under the dust jacket so I assume there is one here too. 

If you watched the video above you have seen the end papers in action - pictures of horses - sophisticated and simple galloping across the page. 

Image source - Books of Wonder

Book seller blurb: If I was a horse, I would gallop all day. I could go anywhere I want . . . If you were a horse, what would you do? Could you fit in your clothes? Would you give your little sister a ride? Would your brother even notice? Gallop along with two-time Caldecott Medallist Sophie Blackall through this riotous day in the life of a child who imagines their life as a horse. Sophie's delightful text and resonant illustrations that feature a giant horse in familiar settings offer a visual feast, a grand dose of joy and a celebration of the real power of imagination to help us navigate the world.

Here are some excellent very detailed teachers notes for If I was a Horse. And also a set from Lamont Books (I highly recommend their Standing Order service).

Each page in this charmer contains one easy sentence or phrase that expresses an idea about “horsiness,” allowing very young listeners or emergent readers to focus on the clear, simple language and to follow up with their own imaginative responses. Kirkus

Blackall has created a wonderful story around a not uncommon childhood dream of being someone or something else. With the girl imagining herself to be a horse, we hear of all the things she most loves in the world, and the things she is not too keen on or thinks less of. If she was a horse, she would  gallop all day, going anywhere she wanted to, but come home for a meal. She would let her little sister ride on her back to school, where everyone would welcome her onto their team, but her older brother would not believe her. In the rain she would stay outside, rolling in the mud, laughing all the while. ReadPlus

Gallop along with two-time Caldecott Medalist Sophie Blackall through this riotous day in the life of a child who imagines their life as a horse. What ensues are uproarious, resonant episodes that feature a giant horse in familiar settings offering both a visual feast, a grand dose of joy, and a celebration of the real power of imagination to help us navigate the world. Powells

Check out my blog post where I explore other books by Sophie Blackall - she is a favourite illustrator of mine. Here is her webpage. 

If I was a Horse has been shortlisted by our CBCA (Children's Book Council of Australia) for the 2024 Picture Book of the Year award. 

Here are the judges' comments: Attention is demanded right from the appealing dust jacket and clever endpaper illustrations that communicate the context of childhood growth beautifully. Full of imagination and gentle humour, the main character leads the reader through highly relatable aspects of family life through the perspective of a horse. The delightful illustrations provide outstanding detail and invite the reader to pore over the images. The simple plot is expressed through scarce but rhythmic text, with the exquisite illustrations doing most of the storytelling. The clever representation of home and school settings effectively contributes to the storyline of playful rebellion against the ‘constraints’ of childhood.

Tiny things to notice in the illustrations in If I was a Horse:

• Title page - horse shoe on their front door
• Painting of an apple - you will see more apples on the following pages (such as the lounge room).
• The dappled coat of the horse matches the t-shirt worn by the older sibling
• The flowers in the field on the first page echo the wall paper and also contain dandelions which we associate with wishes
• In the kitchen there is a bowl of apples; there is only one cookie in their cookie jar; and dad has given the kids tiny carrots with their sandwiches. Horse love carrots.
• On the school window you can see a sketch of each child in the class including one child who has drawn a horse!
• The brother loves knitting. You can see the wool trailing across the floor while he works on the computer and later we see him knitting while mum is reading (a book) and dad is reading (his Kindle) on the lounge.
• Every room in the house has a book collection - even the bathroom!
• The horse drawing on the child's bedroom wall is the same image as the one we saw on the end papers.
• The night scene also has a trojan horse; a horse race poster; and even horse stickers on the bed - this kid really loves horses. 
• On the back cover the child has a horse on their backpack and a first place ribbon. There is a painting on the wall of a horse running across a field. This house must have two staircases because the wall paper on the back cover is different from the front cover.

Do you remember the picture book Daddy's Having a Horse. I remember Lisa Shanahan talking about hearing a young child talking at the shops. The child declared mummy's having a baby and daddy's having a horse and thus a book idea was born! I kept thinking about that book when I read If I was a Horse because this book was also inspired by a simple conversation with a young child.

With your class or library group it would be good to talk about the skill needed to draw horses. I do have a Pinterest collection of picture books about horses. The link to the teachers notes above also contain a list of terrific picture books that feature horses and horse riding. 

Here are some books I really like about horses.

This is a splendid junior novel with brilliant sketches of horses. Jerry

Merrylegs