I have many fond memories of reading through my primary school library's collection of Pony Pals books when I was a kid, so I would be remiss if I did not revisit the Pony Pals series. Much like The Saddle Club, Pony Pals focussed on a core group of three friends (Pam, Anna, and Lulu) and their horsey adventures. Also, much like The Saddle Club, I remember being very determined to decide which Pony Pal I was most similar to. (I was convinced I was a Lulu.)
I Want a Pony introduces us to our protagonist, Lulu Sanders. Lulu has been sent to live with her grandmother in the small town of Wiggins. Her father, an animal researcher currently working in Brazil, has sent her to live with her grandmother. Naturally, Lulu is already bored shitless and daydreaming that her father will ring her and say he's changed his mind.
Lulu runs downstairs, where Grandmother Sanders (who was apparently born in the 1700s) tells Lulu it's not ladylike to run. I must also not that Grandmother Sanders is referred to as Grandmother Sanders, and not her name, for nearly the entire book. I find this weirdly creepy. Lulu's father rings, and he tells her that he's sent her all her pocket money for the entire year upfront, and that it's her responsibility to budget $25 for each week. (I crunched the numbers, and this means that Lulu's dad sent her $1,300 in total - I feel like entrusting this to a ten-year-old is a recipe for disaster.) Lulu complains that there's no toy stores or cinemas or anything for her to spend her money on, so what's the point? Honestly, this moment is giving poor little rich girl.
That night, Lulu thinks back on her life with her father. Her mother died when she was four, making her a member of the dead parents club, so it's been just the two of them for a long time. They spent the past two years living in London, where Lulu was able to take regular riding lessons. She wishes she could continue riding in Wiggins. She's woken from her sleep by a pony crashing around on her grandma's front porch. Lulu goes outside to find their neighbours, the Harleys, trying to catch their pony, who has jumped the fence. Their daughter, Anna, manages to catch the pony, who is named Acorn. She apologises to Grandmother Sanders who, instead of accepting a sincere apology from a ten-year-old, proceeds to be a bitch about it. Lulu goes back to bed, and is determined to visit Acorn in the future.
The next day, Lulu visits Acorn in his paddock, and spies on Anna as she grooms him and tacks him up. Anna then proceeds to take Acorn out on a trail ride, and Lulu follows them. She watches as Anna and Acorn meet up with Pam and her pony Lighting, a pretty chestnut mare. Anna complains about the mean old lady next door (fair) and how her parents are totally mad at her (somewhat reasonable.) When Pam's dog spots Lulu, Lulu realises that she could either own up to her actions and introduce herself, or make a run for it. She bolts, with Pam and Anna shouting that she was spying on them. When she gets home, Lulu realises that it probably wasn't the best idea, as she, Pam, and Anna will be attending the same school and she will now be known as the town weirdo. Determined to avoid the girls for the rest of the day, Lulu packs herself some snacks and heads out on a hike.
While exploring Wiggins, Lulu comes across a white pony in a field. Seeing nobody else around, she decides have a picnic next to the paddock. She shares her apple and carrot with the pony. Lulu also notices that the pony is in need of a good grooming, and picks the burs out of her mane.
The next day, Grandmother Sanders gives Lulu a hairbrush, and Lulu decides to return to the pony's paddock to brush her. When she arrives, she sees that the pony has trapped one of her legs in the barbed wire fence, and she's badly injured. Lulu sits with the pony and calms her down, and decides to wait with the mare until help arrives. Pam and Anna eventually ride by, and Lulu manages to flag them down. The girls leave, and return with Pam's father, Dr. Crandal, who is a veterinarian. After he administers some first aid, he suggests that the girls try and get the pony on her feet. They walk the pony to her stable in the paddock, and Pam and Anna race ahead to take a look at it. When Dr. Crandal and Lulu arrive, Pam and Anna tell them that the stall was filthy, and that it seems this pony's been neglected. Pam remembers that she saw the name 'Baxter' on the mailbox, and Dr. Crandal recognises the name. He goes in search of the Baxters. Before he leaves, Lulu asks what will happen if they decide not to pay to continue the pony's medical care, and Dr. Crandal gently explains that she will have to be put to sleep. He tells Lulu that, even if the Baxters do pay for the pony to receive further treatment, she might not be able to recover.
While they are waiting for Dr. Crandal, the girls notice a bunch of awards and ribbons in storage. They discover that the pony's name is Snow White. Anna has to leave, so Lulu and Pam get to know each other. The most important thing we discover here is that Pam has twin siblings named Jack and Jill. (I guess her parents were huge fans of the nursery rhyme?)
Mr. Baxter arrives, and immediately throws a tantrum about how these girls have injured his daughter's pony. He's shouting and stomping his feet about how this is all their fault. Dr. Crandal tries to explain what has happened, but Mr. Baxter will hear none of it, and shouts at Lulu about how she was trespassing until Grandmother Sanders swoops in and saves the day. She harshly scolds Mr. Baxter for being so rude to Lulu, and subtly scolds him by reminding him she does his wife's hair. Burn!
It turns out Snow White belongs to Mr. Baxter's daughter, Rema. He wanted to sell Snow White before Rema went off to a fancy boarding school. Lulu reminds him that Rema will probably want to see Snow White during the school holidays. She and Mr. Baxter make a deal - he will pay for Snow White's medical expenses upfront, but, if she needs to be put down, Lulu will pay him back. This is, objectively, a terrible deal, and there is no way Grandmother Sanders should've let her shake hands on this. Dr. Crandal takes Snow White to his animal clinic, and Lulu and her grandma head home. Later that night, she's invited to a sleepover at Pam's house. There, Lulu, Pam, and Anna visit Snow White in her stall, where she's recovering from surgery, which was successful. They have a sleepover in the stall next to her, and the girls spend the night keeping Snow White company and getting to know each other. They all become fast friends, and Lulu begins to settle in at her new school with them. She takes care of Snow White every morning and afternoon, and wishes that Snow White could be her own pony.
Mr. Baxter is reluctant to bring Snow White home when she is still recuperating and needs increased care, so the girls convince him to let her stay at the Crandals' for another three weeks. During this time, the girls brainstorm ways that they can get Mr. Baxter to let Lulu keep Snow White. They each come up with a suggestion for what to do, and settle on writing a letter to Rema to ask if Lulu can lease the pony. To make the deal more appealing to Rema, Lulu specifies that she will return Snow White to Rema during school holidays. A few weeks later, Rema writes back. She writes that she will agree to Lulu's proposal if she agree to the following terms: that Lulu will pay for Snow White's feed, and all other costs will be paid for by the Baxters, and that Lulu will sent Rema a monthly report on how Snow White is going. Rema writes that if Lulu does this, then she won't have to pay a leasing fee. (No farrier or vet bills for Lulu? TBQH, this is a pretty good deal.)
Lulu is thrilled that she's going to be able to keep Snow White for the rest of her stay in Wiggins, and the book ends with Lulu riding Snow White for the first time.
I'd say this was a fun book to revisit. There are moments where it does feel very nineties - like when Grandmother Sanders talks about wanting to give Lulu a perm. Eeek! I like that not everything was tied up neatly with a bow - it's not said outright, but you are left wondering how long Lulu will be able to keep Snow White, and what will happen if and when her owners want her back. From what I remember, Rema Baxter does show up further along in the series, causing issues for Lulu and Snow White. Overall, I'd say that the book holds up well, and does a good job at setting the stage for the future adventures of the Pony Pals.
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