(3) 1-3 Horse Diaries series. Illustrated by Astrid Sheckels. Rose, a Tennessee Walking horse, lives on a Southern plantation until the Civil War begins and she accompanies her master into battle. When her owner is killed, Rose and a young runaway slave start a life free from bondage. The horse's first-person narration is engaging, and the American history lesson is successfully woven through. Information about the breed and the Civil War is appended.

Reviewer: Maeve Visser Knoth

(3) 1-3 Horse Diaries series. Illustrated by Ruth Sanderson. Horse Maestoso Petra narrates his life in Austria under German occupation during WWII. A Lipizzaner stallion, Petra is thrilled to perform with the Spanish Riding School, run-ins with Nazis and bomb raids not withstanding. Kendall effectively incorporates history and horsemanship into her engaging story. An appendix gives more information about horses; additional details about historical fact versus fiction would have been welcome.

Reviewer: Elissa Gershowitz

(4) 4-6 In this continuation of Miranda and the Movies, the young orphan and her friends from the American Moving Picture Company relocate to California to pursue their dream of making silent films. Miranda and Bobby snag bit parts in numerous movies, see the premiere of Birth of a Nation, and experience Hollywood circa 1915. Despite some plot contrivances, the era and place are vividly evoked. The endlessly posturing characters are occasionally off-putting.

Reviewer: Peter D. Sieruta