Season III, Post 9: "Misty of Chincoteague"

Hello, I'm Richard Nicholas Nimz, prospector of the written word.  This next book is actually based on real life events.  It spawned a very drawn-out series of books that ended in 1992 with the fourth book, and has probably been mostly forgotten, but it has had a big impact.  This, my dear readers, is Misty of Chincoteague.

Henry, M.  (1947).  Misty of Chincoteague.  Scholastic Book Services: New York.

Summary: Centuries ago, a Spanish cargo vessel crashed off the coast of Virginia, stranding a herd of ponies on the island of Assateague.  Centuries later, just after World War II, the neighboring island of Chincoteague holds yearly Pony Penning Days, catching and selling ponies in order to maintain population stability.  The most famous of ponies in that day was Phantom, who cheated the herders for two years in a row.  That year, however, a boy named Paul and his sister Maureen decide that they will capture Phantom, but they are surprised to find that Misty has a foal this year: Misty.

Thoughts: After years of having lived on a diet of fantasy and science fiction, it feels kind of strange going back to mundane fiction.  I imagine that's also the case for many people, since fantasy is the 'in' genre right now.  The story is really simple and the characters aren't too deep, but they're still quite relatable and even admirable.  The book also has an environmental message, but it doesn't take up the entire plot, even though it does impose itself on the story every so often.  My favorite part of the book is when the children think that the foals are being separated from their parents too soon and the fire chief explains that they're ready, even admitting that he had the same concerns they did when he was their age.  It makes the adults into something other than the unthinking antagonists: these people know what they're doing and they understand where objections are coming from.

The most interesting part of the book, for me, is the fact that it's based so much on real life.  There really is a Pony Penning Day in Chincoteague, Virginia and there really was a pony named Misty.  In fact, this book helped put the Chincoteague breed of pony into the public consciousness as well as make Chincoteague itself a popular tourist destination.  Yes, it is a Caldecott honor book, but that isn't a guarantee of anything.  Personally, if you can find it and you're interested in this genre, I think it's worth a look.