Centaur Rising

Centaur Rising by Jane Yolen, 258 pages

Ari and her family are shocked when their pony, Agora, gives birth to a centaur.  Kai is a sweet, bright boy who grown fast and learns quickly.  Because they are concerned about him being exposed to the public in a negative way, especially before he is old enough to handle groups of people, the family tries to keep it a secret.  However, this means that several of the people who board their horses on the farm remove them which seriously cuts into the family’s income.  They were having a hard time getting by before so they’re not sure what they will do now.  And when a nosy child of a boarder finds out about Kai, their whole plan could be shot.  This was an amazing realistic fantasy story.  Except for the centaur, the rest of the story is about families and human nature and it’s incredibly well done.  This will appeal to a variety of young fantasy fans.