Happy Chinese New Year! What better way to celebrate the 2026 Year of the Horse than with some horse-inspired reading?
Horses are central to these stories, symbolizing freedom, adventure, and independence. Whether you’re a horse lover, looking to celebrate the Year of the Horse, or in the mood for an exciting adventure, these reads will knock your horseshoes off!
The Year of the Horse
The Chinese Zodiac calendar rotates between twelve animals, and 2026 is the year of the Horse. People born in the year of the Horse (2026, 2014, 2002, 1990, 1978, 1966, 1954, 1942…) are said to be confident, energetic, impulsive, adventurous, and reliable.
This Chinese New Year, we’re celebrating not just the start of the new year or people whose Chinese zodiac sign is the horse, but all the attributes associated with horses. They are resilient, free-willed, and dynamic, and they’re often associated with vitality and swiftly-achieved success. Not only are horses the subject matter of these novels, but the selected stories also have the spirit of the Horse—these coming-of-age stories are grand adventures towards freedom.
Year of the Horse Books for Grades 3-5
Younger readers looking for an exciting story will love these! Whether you’re a fantasy lover or a stone-cold realist, the authors of these picks use eloquent storytelling and illustrative figurative language to depict horses and their relationships with humans.
The Rose Legacy by Jesica Day George
The Rose Legacy takes place in a kingdom that forbids and fears horses. Anthea, an orphan, is sent to live with her only living family member—a long-lost uncle who, incidentally, breeds horses! In the remote mountains, Anthea learns how to take care of horses and discovers that she has a special ability to communicate with horses.
When Anthea begins communicating with horses, she learns their secrets, including how the empire she lives in has festered lies about them. Join her quest for freedom by picking up this first installment of the Rose Legacy trilogy.
Black Beauty by Anna Sewell
Even though we’ve featured Black Beauty before, its esteemed impact and influence mean we can’t skip it in a collection of horse-inspired literature!
This classic from 1877 is an autobiography from the perspective of a British horse named Black Beauty. It chronicles his lifetime, describing the many different places he’s lived in and the treatment he’s received from humans, including abuse that left a lasting impact. Anna Sewell wrote Black Beauty as a plea for humane treatment of animals, and it has been a staple animal rights book since its publication.
Middle Grade Year of the Horse Reading
Whether you’re a voracious 4th grade reader, a 9th grader looking for an easy read to get back into books, or anyone in-between, find your next read among these middle grade horsey books!
Wild Girl by Patricia Reilly Giff
Moving to a new country is destabilizing and challenging for people of any age, but especially so for kids and teens. 12-year-old Lydia struggles with feeling homesick and out of place after she moves from Brazil to New York to live with her father and brother. She spends a lot of time at the racetrack where her father trains her brother in horse racing after leaving behind years of riding in Brazil. Lydia finds comfort in Wild Girl—a horse that is just as wild and untamed as she is, who helps her build a confidence that cannot be overlooked.
As she builds a companionship with WIld Girl, she gradually builds a bridge between her two worlds, uniting her past in Brazil with a hopeful future in the big city. Readers who want a strong and determined main character finding her way forward will love Wild Girl!
I Rode a Horse of Milk White Jade by Diane Lee Wilson
Oyuna, a young girl living in 14th-century Mongolia, is burdened with a curse as an infant: her foot is crushed by a horse, leaving her with an omen of misfortune and a permanent disability. She is confined to homemaking duties throughout her adolescence, but Oyuna has big dreams that don’t fit in her family’s tent.
Horseback riding becomes Oyuna’s freedom. When her beloved mare Bayan’s life is at risk, she journeys across the Mongolian steppes to test and strengthen their bond. Readers love the rich prose of I Rode a Horse of Milk White Jade, especially the way that Wilson uses horse-inspired expressions! For instance, when describing the sloshing of stirring fermenting milk: “The cadence reawakened my heart, sent it bucking.”
Pony by R. J. Palacio
If you’re looking for more of a western than the stories above, check out Pony! This fast-paced read follows Silas, a 12-year-old boy awoken in the middle of the night by menacing men on horses who abduct his father. With the companionship of Mittenwool (the ghost of his best friend) and a pony that shows up at his front door, he embarks on a quest to rescue his father.
Set in the Civil War era, this supernatural western adventure is full of vast vocabulary, great feats of bravery, and an emotional core that leaves no reader unscathed. And it’s written by the author behind Wonder, one of the most acclaimed middle grade novels of the last 15 years.
Year of the Horse–Themed Fiction for High Schoolers
More advanced readers will appreciate these last few featured works for their depth in both plot and characters. While they are darker in subject matter than the novels above, they all still champion resounding themes of freedom-seeking and independence.
The Red Pony by John Steinbeck
This novella from one of America’s most esteemed authors, John Steinbeck’s The Red Pony is simply four stories from young Jody Tiflin’s life on his family’s California ranch. The first chapter begins when Jody is gifted a red pony—while he takes care of it and loves it fervently, it falls ill and Jody must face the looming nature of mortality.
Steinbeck examines human nature through the eyes of a 10-year-old boy in 1930s California. While each chapter is a different story, all show how Jody acclimates to the sorrows of being human through occurrences on the Tilfin farm.
All the Pretty Horses by Cormac McCarthy
Another acclaimed American author, Cormac McCarthy is known for his dark, philosophizing westerns. Set in 1949, All the Pretty Horses (the first installation in The Border Trilogy) follows 16-year-old John Grady Cole, a descendent of generations of Texas ranchers who finds himself leaving Texas.
When his mother inherits the family farm and is set to sell it, John Grady and his pal Lacey Rawlins set out south to Mexico on a cowboy journey that is more grueling than popular westerns would set you up to believe. Readers find that this story is not for the faint of heart, but it is full of hope and love—for the countryside, and for beautiful horses.
Dark Horses by Susan Mihalic
If you like the direction of those stories but you’d rather have a contemporary setting, this last featured story may be perfect for you. Dark Horses follows 15-year-old Roan Montgomery, an equestrian prodigy who prepares for the Olympics. While it should be a magnificent, positive journey to athletic success, Roan’s life and dreams are tethered by the suffocating coaching of her father.
From her deep connection with her horse and the spark of a new relationship, Roan finds the inner strength she needs to break free from her father’s control.
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If one of your New Year’s resolutions is to read more, we hope some of these Year of the Horse-themed books inspired you! Starting thematically related books during holidays is a great way to get excited about reading.
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