The Alchemy of Lightness

The untold story of the favorite children’s book author, featuring original artwork by Wesley Dennis from some of Henry’s best-known books, as well as over 100 personal photographs, letters, and artifacts.

In certain circles, her name inspires immediate recognition and pronouncements of a committed admiration that has likely spanned decades. As an author, Marguerite Henry was indeed remarkably prolific, with 59 books published, millions of copies sold, and nearly 80 years of her life spent writing them—or responding personally to the stacks of fan mail she received—at her typewriter. Her books, most meticulously researched historical fiction about influential horses and the hosts of fascinating characters who surrounded them—to name just a few, her Newbery Award winner King of the Wind, the book that changed an island Misty of Chincoteague, and the glowingly reviewed Justin Morgan Had a Horse—have had an outsized influence on those who grew up reading them, ultimately leading to writing careers, lives dedicated to riding and caring for horses and other animals, and even fan memoirs describing Henry’s impact.

But despite a professional existence that became profoundly public, particularly after Misty of Chincoteague, published in 1947, became a bestseller and eventually a popular feature film in 1961, Henry’s own life was mostly shielded from view.

With particular purpose to uncover what is little known about the author, as well as superb instincts for illustrating fascinating details that help readers construct the settings in which Henry’s creative mind, intensive historical and scholarly research, and storytelling ability matured and evolved, accomplished journalist and author Lettie Teague has provided a unique biography that is as much a pleasure to read as her subject’s own books. Highlighting over a dozen titles that represent, to Teague, not only the best of Marguerite Henry’s work but help tell the story of Marguerite Henry herself, and following the trail of some of her remarkable collaborators—most importantly, the charismatic and talented artist Wesley Dennis—Teague gives Henry fans what they always strived for through their thousands of letters: personal connection.

Perhaps what Henry would deem less important, but becomes more and more valid as time passes, is Teague’s desire for the author’s legacy to live on. Many of Marguerite Henry’s books are still very much in print, but as time passes, fewer will remember once writing her fan letters, or perhaps think of the author at all. In these pages, Teague ensures that Marguerite Henry the writer will always be considered as every bit as remarkable as the books that she wrote. Featuring original artwork by Wesley Dennis from some of Henry’s best-known books, as well as over 100 personal photographs, letters, and artifacts few have seen, this is a warm and wonderful biography for bibliophiles, horse lovers, aspiring writers, and Marguerite Henry fans, young and old.

First published in 1934, Mary Thomas’s Dictionary of Embroidery Stitches has long been a well-loved favorite of novice and experienced embroiderers alike! The new and redesigned paperback edition of this indispensable handbook includes the internationally-renowned embroiderer Jan Eaton’s revisions to the original text, with an extensive library of stitches arranged by usage, ranging from basic outline and border stitches to more complex detached-filling and pulled-fabric stitches—enabling all needle-workers to master the art of embroidery at every level, with clear, helpful photographs and step-by-step instructions.

• Over 400 stitches explained and illustrated with diagrams and photographs.
• Ideal for those starting out with needlework, as well as accomplished embroiderers seeking inspiration for different stitches and techniques.
• 14 stitch categories, including outline stitches, filling stitches, canvas stitches, insertion stitches, and more.

Over time, horses (like people) acquire postural habits, compensate for soreness and injury, and develop poor movement patterns. This limits performance ability, causes unsoundness and health issues, and ultimately undermines the horse's overall well–being.

Jec Aristotle Ballou has made a name for herself advocating for the horse and providing sensible instruction in his schooling, conditioning, and care. Her bestselling books and popular clinics are designed to enable any horse person to correctly apply proven principles that bring measurable progress while avoiding boredom and confusion.

In her latest collection of mounted and unmounted corrective exercises, Ballou demonstrates how we can actively work to improve the horse's posture and movement, whether he is:

• An active performance or pleasure mount.
• An aging or older horse that benefits from gentle exercise.
• A horse being rehabilitated following injury, illness, or lack of conditioning.

Ballou's positive cross–training techniques are free of shortcuts, and her guidelines for analyzing the horse's posture and way of going help readers gain a new awareness of the equine body. Applicable for all disciplines and full of quality color photographs to explain the exercises, this is an integral collection that optimizes how the horse uses his body and helps ensure he stays sounder and healthier for more years of his life.

A sensitive retelling of events that shaped a childhood, a career, and an evolving philosophy on what it means to love something—and for that love to be enough.

“Following a passionate path usually isn’t easy,” writes horsewoman Chelsea Canedy in this uninhibited and deeply thoughtful memoir tracing her experiences in the horse world and how they have impacted her development as a competitor, a teacher, a wife, and a mother. From a gate left open and a herd of horses galloping desperately down a busy road to a sage-burning “clearing space” in a barn; from falls, poor rides, and heart-wrenching divorce to connection, opportunity, and transformative friendships, Canedy digs deep to identify themes that not only tell her unique story but speak to the reader’s own. Writing with the same natural feel she found at an early age in the saddle, Canedy coaxes us to grasp the broader truths that working with horses can so often unveil.

 Reminiscences, both tender and painful, prove a catalyst for deeper exploration of what it is we are really looking for when we pursue a passion—and what it is to be human at every stage of that journey. Canedy’s sensitive retelling of the events that molded her are hewn from the barn and arena, but her perceptive questions about existence, both in its most general sense and its most nuanced, offer any reader valuable lessons in true and lasting personal growth. Canedy bravely shares the painful mistakes she has made with both horses and people, the intense guilt that has accompanied these transgressions, and how learning to accept setbacks and starting over “the best way you know how” is sometimes, maybe, what gets you where you want to go.

 Offering distinct lessons in how to be compassionate, curious, flexible, tenacious, open, aware, and ready to roll with the punches, Canedy’s book is for every reader with a passion they feel driven to pursue, while perhaps questioning its value as the years unfold. “Knowing what it is that ‘fills you up,’” writes Canedy, “in this life, that is enough.”

A quick, concise, fully-illustrated guide to the native butterflies of the Green Mountain State. 

Butterflies are a delight to observe, and a charming reminder of childhood summers. They’re also pollinators, crucial to sustaining Vermont’s biodiversity. This neatly organized, easy-to-carry handbook goes beyond simple butterfly identification. It includes full-color photographs, descriptions, and flying times as well as the ecosystems in which each species lives: their habitats, their host plants, and their favored sources of nectar.

Explore the butterflies that make Vermont their home. Consult quick-reference photo guides to host plants and butterfly species to make an identification at a glance. Deepen your understanding of these beautiful insects with an overview of butterfly anatomy, biology, and behavior while learning how you can help keep butterflies safe and abundant in Vermont for generations to come.

Keys to riding your horse in an optimal, athletic frame for any equestrian sport or activity—without a bit.

In her inspiringly illustrated new book, horsewoman Ali Kermeen, author of The Working Equitation Training Manual, shows readers how it is possible to get a horse soft and round without using a bit, side-reins, or longeing apparatuses. 

For many, riding “bitless”—without a bit in the horse’s mouth—can feel like a leap of faith because of a perceived lack of control. But, Kermeen argues, most of the time, the control a rider has over a horse (who is a thousand pounds of muscle and reaction) has more to do with training and partnership, and less to do with equipment. Kermeen is not lobbying for all horses to be ridden bitless—as she notes in her book, there are bitless bridles that are just as severe as those with bits, and plenty of horses have the mouth shape, understanding, and rider to happily carry a bit. Ultimately, however, she feels the decision as to whether a horse should be wearing a bit or going bitless should be up to the horse. In addition, Kermeen writes, Learning to ride and train horses bitless has made me a better rider with the bit.” 

To be successful at transitioning a horse from bitted riding to bitless riding, you can't just “trade out the equipment and hope for the best.” Over years of working with horses and competing them without a bit, Kermeen has developed a series of exercises that she uses for all horses, regardless of their likely sport or activity. Her method sets horses up to understand how to be soft and round. A soft horse and rider produce a picture of harmony and understanding. They work as a partnership. A horse that can carry his own body in a round frame, without being forced, is able to be athletic and is in an ideal position to be influenced by the rider. In these pages, learn:

• Important groundwork skills to set your horse up for success.
• Valuable comparisons of different kinds of bitless bridles.
• Expert recommendations for choosing and fitting a bitless bridle.
• Ridden exercises for connecting the groundwork basics under saddle, without a bit.

Kermeen explains that learning to be an effective rider without a bit has made her a better rider when she uses a bit. And her easy-to-use, approachable guide is for anyone who wishes to improve their own performance, as well as being aware of and proactive about their horse’s health, comfort, and well-being.