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Reviewed by Emily-Jane Hills Orford for Readers' Favorite
Have you ever wondered what would happen if summer vacation started without you? Shelby wonders that as she sits impatiently at her desk on the last day of school. Nothing’s happening and the minute hand on the clock appears to be stuck. In Marty Kay Jones’ Shelby and the First Ride, Shelby is about to learn that her life is going to take a drastic change from living in the city to living in the country and, for a horse-crazy pre-teen, the best part is that she’ll take riding lessons at one of the best riding academies in the state. Can life get any better? After initially being devastated at having to say goodbye to her city friends, Shelby is looking forward to that first ride, bonding with horses, making horsey friends, and starting a new school – well, maybe not so much the latter, but it’s inevitable.
Marty Kay Jones’ middle-grade novel, Shelby and the First Ride: The Old Quarry Lake Farms Tales, is the first book in the series. Most of the story is told in the third person narrative, from Shelby’s perspective or from the other characters she interacts with at the Old Quarry Lake Farms. Interspersed throughout the narrative are segments of Shelby’s diary, which give the reader an inside look at how the pre-teen is feeling, like her confusion and disbelief when discovering her family is moving away from the city, away from her friends, away from everything she knows best. It’s a big change. The promise of riding lessons is the only thing that sweetens the deal. But, even that, as she discovers, becomes a bit of a challenge. Shelby has much to learn and a lot of growing up to do, and there are changes for her to accept. This isn’t just a story about a girl and her love of horses; it’s also a story about fitting in, being accepted, adapting to changes and new friends, new venues, new just about everything. Growing up really isn’t that easy, is it?
