Laura Hesse

Review A Filly Called Easter

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It was late when I finished A Filly Called Easter. Memories of man pre-teen nights under the bed covers with a flashlight and a book from the black-stallion series enveloped me as I turned out the lamp.

Hesse continues to demonstrate the strength and abilities of pre-teens/teenagers. From cleaning barns to driving tractors, these ranch kids are capable and are needed. The result is responsible, resourceful and confident kids – characters that I admired.

I found the first chapter a bit difficult as I had not read the previous tow books in the series: One Frosty Christmas and The Great Pumpkin Ride. I had to absorb the names and relationships and at some points I found the a little sweet. Ultimately though, I was surprized to find I had kept turning he pages until I finished – out of interest and curiosity, not out of obligation.

This book is written for pre- and early teens. Buy it for any dreamy-eyed animal-loving child. Anyone who has ever dreamed of that perfect horse, or felt that connection and pleasure of enjoying the world from the back of a horse, should give it a try.

Janet Peto VIP Pets

Review Two Independents

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eview by Laura Neufeld, The Canadian Horse Journals

Two Independents, the fourth installment in Canadian author, Laura Hesse’s popular Holiday Series, is an exciting, heartwarming tale set in British Columbia’s interior.

The novel introduces June, the matriarch of the Stetler family. She is a kind, insightful woman, and though suffering from debilitating arthritis, possesses a physical and emotional strength which gives the novel its heart.

June lives with her husband, Bill, their dog named Horse, and an old Norwegian Fjord, CD. She travels up to their cabin in the mountains each summer, and this year she will be accompanied by her grandchildren: Billy, a horse-crazy eight-year-old who longs to be a “real” cowboy, and Susie, a surly fifteen-year-old from California who would much rather be spending her summer on a surf board than one horseback. The story follows the family as they head up the mountain and settle in for a quiet vacation. The summer, however, brings much more than they expected.

Two Independents has all the makings of a great story – for you and old alike. Hesse has created nuanced characters who come alive on the page, and tells a story filled with twist and turns. There is even a bit of a romance thrown into the mix.

Hesse owns a Norwegian Fjord and her love for the breed is obvious: CD and his new companion Independence are as strongly developed as the human characters. Hesse also puts her years of experience with the Alberta Forest Service to good use, depicting the dangerous conditions which arise when the summer is too hot and dry. Her detailed observations place the reader right in the thick of things.

Two Independents is a great choice for the horse lover looking to add a little excitement to their reading list.

The making of Gumboots!

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I so thoroughly enjoyed writing this book that I had to make it a series. The idea of a crime fighting duo including a pot-bellied pig and a cop were just too fun and delicious to ignore.

I had the joy of meeting and getting to know a pot-bellied pig named Alfie who would do anything for a dog biscuit. He was highly intelligent and devoted to his owner. Sadly, both have passed now. I hope I did his memory justice in creating the “Gertrude” character.

And I don’t, by the way, have anything against cops. I have family members who serve in law enforcement and am proud of them. What can I say…I’m not politically correct. What writer is?

Seal Island is loosely based on Lasqueti Island. It’s a great place. No electricity. No running water. Loads of self-expression and creative living. It’s a step back in time, filled with millionaires, artists, eccentrics, and just plain nice people. Lasqueti, thanks for the inspiration, you rock!

One Frosty Christmas – the beginning

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The number one question that I get asked at book signing events or author readings is: where do you get your ideas? So here’s how “One Frosty Christmas” began.73 dpi frosty

The old mustang in the story, Frosty, is based on an actual pony called “Frosted Tip”.  This little fellow was delivered to Thunderbird in Vancouver several years ago en route from Wyoming to northern BC. A friend of mine was working at the horse show when the scruffy white pony with frostbitten ears was dropped off. The horse transporter asked if she would mind looking after the pony until he was picked up by his new owner? She was delighted. “Frosty”, as my friend aptly named him, was the cutest, if not homeliest, pony she had ever seen. She hoped to meet his new owner, but her responsibilities kept her as busy in the show ring as they did in the barn, and he was gone before dinner the next day.

I was so taken with the story of Frosted Tip…How did he lose the tips of his ears? What adventures had he lived through? Why buy a frostbitten pony in Wyoming and ship him to northern BC? What made this pony so special?…that I just couldn’t stop thinking about it. It must have been frightening for the pony to travel all that distance in the care of total strangers. Before I knew it, my imagination took hold and the concept behind “One Frosty Christmas” was born.

The human characters were a little harder to bring to life. The character of Hannah Storey developed out of time spent working as a volunteer with a couple of therapeutic riding associations and by growing up around numerous WWII vets including my Uncle Mac, who was an amputee. Johnny Joe is a composite of several people – my father, a gentle and peaceful man with a great sense of humour and determination, a native boy from Port Alberni who quietly offered to “sing” for my father’s spirit along with his grandmother and aunt’s on their passing, and Walter, one of the camp cooks I worked with while stationed at Fort McKay, Alberta.

To write, one must ask questions. The first step begins with a thought or an event, like a frostbitten old mustang traveling from Wyoming to northern BC, and the rest is up to the writer.