When the Horses Ride By

Review
By Booklist

‘Wherever we are / we search for a place / to be unafraid /wherever we are.’ From Native Americans displaced from their land to young protesters in apartheid South Africa and a Muslim girl in Iraq, the clear, stirring words and beautiful mixed-media collage illustrations in this picture book show particular wars across time and place as well as suggesting the universal fears, dreams, and courage of children caught up in terrifying conflict. On one of the first double-page spreads, a child imagines how fights begin, in the schoolyard and on the battlefield (‘This one was mad at that one / and that one was angry, too’). On the following pages, photos and original art filled with realistic details come together to create an evocative picture of each historical conflict, which is identified in notes at the back of the book. The rhythmic connections in words and pictures will move peace activists, old and young.