The first in the 'Jill' series, reissued in 2009 by Fidra Books with the full, original text, unmodernised and un-Bowdlerised, and the Caney illustrations. Between 1949 and 1962 she gained great popularity with the "Jill" books for her step-grandchildren, Libs, Sallie, and Pip.

I was thrilled to find that this book is published with the original text (some of the newer versions updated the language to reflect modern times) as this was the text of my original books. Missing two paragraphs (20 lines) describing Ann having lunch at Jill’s, what the girls wear, make up and nail varnish, and Mrs Derry arriving with Ann’s sisters to collect Mrs Crewe. There is so much of this book I remember which goes to show how much I loved it when I first read it. Missing nine paragraphs (41 lines) of Jill describing the essays (about horses at her suggestion) being read out aloud at school and subsequent report. The Jill books are a series of nine children's novels about young equestrienne Jill Crewe and her adventures with her two ponies, Black Boy and Rapide.

These books have not been updated in the years since they were first published (1949 for Jill's Gymkhana) so some may find the diction slightly old fashioned but I think most pony mad youngsters these days wouldn't mind at all and would still find them wonderful. Does starting the year with a 72 year old English book for older children and young teens seem weird?

And yet I know I knew that a bit at the time, and that I saw myself as pretty awful too, so we were good company for each other. Four-and-a-half paragraphs have been removed detailing Jill’s improved relationship with Mary and Pierce, her exams, a letter to her Mother, joy at being home and the observation the chapter is more about moral lessons than horses.Jill's Gymkhana, A Stable for Jill, Jill has two ponies (later republished as Jill and the Runaway), Jill enjoys her Ponies, Jill's Riding Club, Rosettes for Jill, Jill and the Perfect Pony, Pony Jobs for Jill (later republished as Challenges for Jill) and Jill's Pony Trek. The Hampton and Armada versions have an extra phrase: ‘getting me down and making me pretty unbearable to live with. Also I recommend always finding an unchanged version; yes there is some language that isn't acceptable in 2021, and the money is weird, but a) if you update the money it's still always locked in time to when that updated version was published; the 1990s sanitised versions that tried to change the money values are now wrong too, for example and b) reading racist language from the 40s didn't make me racist as a kid/teen in the 1990s because I wasn't dumb and knew it was from another time? He started out as a journalist, studying at the Edinburgh College of Commerce, and winning the Fraser Award aged just 21 for his writing.

It’s a must read for anyone who loves ponies and although some of it is quite dated it still resonates with any child who dreams of owning their own pony. People often ask me if their Jill book is abridged: unless you have one of the hardbacks then yes, it probably is. Written in 1949, the book shows its age in the usual way of vintage children's books: the sheer amount of freedom that the children are routinely allowed and, contrastingly, how terrifyingly strict Jill's mother is in some respects.Jill and I’ and ‘said Jill’ have been corrected to ‘Ann and I’ and ‘said Ann’ in the fourth paragraph. The plot is that Jill wants a pony, because Jill is an 11-year-old girl, and Jill gets a pony, because Jill is an incredibly lucky 11-year-old girl. By using the Web site, you confirm that you have read, understood, and agreed to be bound by the Terms and Conditions. Light brown hardcover cloth binding with black imprint illustration on front clean, tight, but spine cocked, very mild water stain outside bottom of spine - interior not affected. The 103 third parties who use cookies on this service do so for their purposes of displaying and measuring personalized ads, generating audience insights, and developing and improving products.