I spotted Leah’s Pony at a library sale. Unfamiliar with Elizabeth Friedrich or Michael Garland, I was curious. The cover image is beautifully life-like and held so much promise that we previewed the book right there in the middle of the sale. My quick read told me that it was absolutely good enough to bring home with me. At home, when I had the chance to sit down and read a stack of picture books with my coffee, it became one of my favorites from the sale.
“The year the corn grew tall and straight,” papa bought Leah a beautiful pony. Fast, smart, and admired by all, he was Leah’s whole world. But, “the year the corn grew no taller than a man’s thumb,” her family faces the heartbreak of losing their farm. As the entire farm is put on the auction block, Leah makes a choice that is both courageous and heartbreaking—she gives up her beloved pony to help raise enough money to save her father’s tractor.
Friedrich’s prose is as spare and honest as the dust-blown landscape she describes, each word carefully chosen and arranged. Garland’s illustrations are a window into that moment in time, thoughtful paintings that are composed to look like colored old photos. Together, the text and art create an emotional current that flows beneath the surface – moody, beautiful, raw, and sincere, they capture the many feelings surrounding the struggle of that time and place.
What I found most moving was how Leah’s single act of sacrifice ripples outward. Neighbors who must all have been struggling, come together, forging a collective kindness that feels both timeless and deeply necessary. The tenderness between Leah and her parents is conveyed without sentimentality, and the ending—while bittersweet—lingers like a promise of renewal. It is a story of hope – remembering when people banded together to help their neighbors even though everyone was suffering.
I would happily recommend Leah’s Pony to anyone who cherishes stories of resilience: horse lovers who understand the special bond between child and animal, students of the Great Depression, and families eager to discuss the meaning of sacrifice, community, and generosity. In its gentle, unhurried way, this book reminds us that even the smallest act of courage can change the world around us.