King of the Wind

Rating:
Summary: Great
Review: I'm 15 and play sports most of my waking hours. But when I get a chance to sit down and read a good book, I want one I can get lost in. King of the Wind is easy to get into. I thouroghly enjoyed it and read it all the time. It is definetly woth getting.

Rating:
Summary: Emotional Aspects of King of the Wind
Review: .... Marguerite Henry's novel King of the Wind is a beautiful story of a horse and his faithful groom. Throughout the novel the boy and the horse suffer through triumphs and tribulations. Their struggles are in silence, however, because the boy cannot speak. By making the boy a mute, Marguerite Henry makes the reader aware of the emotional aspect of the book. The audience is able to sympathize with the characters as the book progresses. The story begins in Morocco where Sham, the horse, is born in the Sultan's stable. Agba, the mute boy, is in charge of taking care of Sham. The Sultan decides to send the King of France a gift of six of his finest stallions, of which Sham is one. He commands the six grooms to remain with their mounts until the horses die, then return to Morocco. The trip is a disaster and five of the horses are returned to Morocco. Sham is kept to be used as a carthorse because of his fiery temper. He is sold many times and is forced to endure many hardships. Throughout all of his ordeals Agba is there taking care of him. The story ends when Sham is bought by the Earl of Godolphin and becomes the founding sire of the English racehorse. Nearly every Thoroughbred today can be traced back to the Godolphin Arabian. The story brings out feelings from the audience and Henry captures this emotion in Agba. Agba and Sham are the best of friends. No one can do anything with the horse if the boy is not around. Neither the boy or the horse can communicate verbally and this makes their emotions even more acute in the book. Their pain and suffering were made even worse by the fact that they couldn't explain to their tormentors what was happening. Henry does a wonderful job of putting the reader in the boy's position. It is very frustrating to want to tell someone something so bad, but not be able to. Portraying Agba as a normal speaking boy would have ruined the story. It forces the reader to feel the boy's pain and frustration rather than just reading about it. On page 169 the narrator states, "For the first time in his life, he was glad he could not talk. Words would have spoiled everything. They were shells that cracked and blew away in the wind. He and Sham were alike. That is why they understood each other so deeply". The bond between the horse and the boy would not have been nearly as strong and compelling if Agba communicated verbally. As mentioned in Dr. Allen's article some studies have suggested that people with speech disabilities can have bonds with animals that are as strong as past friendships with other people. These most frequently perceived aspects of animal-human relationships were described as companionship, emotional bond, usefulness, loyalty and the quality of needing no negotiation. Agba and Sham could communicate with each other even though they could not communicate with the rest of the world. This special bond between horse and boy brings the story to life. This story is a beautiful version of the story of the Godolphin Arabian. Portraying Agba as a mute gives the reader the opportunity to feel and experience what the boy and the horse both feel. Had the boy been able to talk this story would not have been nearly as effective or interesting. The bond the horse and boy share is unlike any other a normal speaking human could possess with an animal. Because Henry chose to take away the power of speech from the boy and the horse the reader has gained a wealth of emotion and feeling in this novel.

Rating:
Summary: One for the Ages
Review: After all these years, I still get choked up reading about Sham and "the small brown horseboy who loved him." As a child I was horsecrazy and a voracious reader, and King of the Wind was my absolute favorite book. As an adult and horse owner, I still gravitate to it when I want to be touched and inspired. Horses are magnificant animals and what we humans have done to them over the ages is shameful. Sham's story shows that there is hope for us all.

Rating:
Summary: Sham
Review: I'm 9. And siked about horses. When I begun this book I thought that his life would be easy being the horse of a sulton but I was very wrong, when the sulton decides to give his 6 best Arab's to the boy king he pays a captain an amout of money to buy oats but he uses the money for himself and fills bags will straw when the boy king saw the horses he laughed Agba{the keeper} wanted to tell him what happened but he could not talk at all..........

Rating:
Summary: Magnificent Story
Review: This is my all-time favorite book. Maybe it's because I'm partial to Arabians and love horses, but I think this is the best story I've ever read, and of course I love Margerite Henry. I have a copy of this book, and I read it once a year. It's one of the kids books that has carried over to my adult life.

Rating:
Summary: Great Horse Book
Review: Have you ever wondered where the horses we call Arabians come from? Many people (including me) think that they are the most beautiful horses in the world.This is the story of one of the original Arabian stallions. This story begins when six Arabian stallions and their grooms are sent on a ship as gifts to the Prince of England. A dishonest sea captain does not feed them properly, and when they arrive in England,they are sick and thin. The prince is not impressed, and the Godolphin Arabian,Sham,is made into a cart horse. The horse is sold many times. Sham's groom,Agba, struggles to stay with him. Finally, after being sold and mistreated many times, Sham finally gets the respect he deserves. King of the Wind is a super book and I would recommend it to anyone, not just horse lovers.

Rating:
Summary: Not your run-of-the-mill Black Beauty reprise!
Review: This book is just beautiful - a stunningly emotional story, and one of the best horse stories I've ever read (even over Misty of Chincoteague). Everything weaves together flawlessly and your sympathies flow freely. Yes, the horse inevitably is abused and unappreciated - a staple in horse stories - but in the end it is a wonderfully uplifting, beautiful story. This book is without a doubt a quintessential childhood book.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent
Review: One of the best books of my childhood! While not as well known as the Misty or Black Stallion books, it is a treasure. A must read for any child that is wild about horses.

Rating:
Summary: it`s a wonderful book
Review: a colt is born in a stable with a star on his head which stands for ''speed'' but the spot on his chest stands for ``misfortune`` but as his life goes on he is mistreated by some owners and others are very good to him ... agba is a boy that loves him and wants to be with him forever but can not the golden stallion is named ( shame ) as the sun ... this is a very good but and i hope you read it

Rating:
Summary: ABSOUTELY ELECTRIFYING
Review: THIS BOOK IS JUST ELECTRIFYING. WHEN I READ IT, IT TOOK ME BACK TO MORROCO WITH AGBA AND SHAM. I CRYED THROUGH OUT MOST OF THE BOOK, DURING THE GOOD AND BAD TIMES. THIS BOOK IS A MUST FOR EVERY HORSE LOVER.