The Golden Mare, the Firebird and the Magic Ring by Ruth Sanderson
Little, Brown, April 2001
ISBN: 0316769061 - Hardbound
Children/Fiction
Age 9 - 12 (Read aloud to younger children)

Reviewed by Beverly J. Rowe, MyShelf.com
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Ruth Sanderson, a gifted writer and illustrator, has based this book on stories from Russian folklore and has created a masterpiece. Alexi is a young hunter who leaves home to seek his fortune. When hunting in the forest, he finds a beautiful golden mare who pledges loyalty to him for sparing her life.

The Golden mare takes Alexi to the Tsar to seek employment. The elderly Tsar hires the brave Alexi, and then, because he cannot claim Alexi's horse as his own, he assigns him a series of increasingly difficult deeds which Alexi is able to accomplish with the help of the mare and her wonderful magic. He captures the rare firebird for the Tsar, but regrets the bird's captivity. When he is required to bring the beautiful Yelena the Fair, to be the bride of the Tsar, and then her magic ring, Alexi does so reluctantly, for he has fallen in love with Yelena.

The Golden Mare has a few tricks to foil the old Tsar and bring about a surprise ending. The story is rich and lyrical with stunning, intricately detailed illustrations on every page...a visual banquet of the natural world, the clothing appropriate to the times and the characters themselves. The characters are wonderful, we are on Alexi's side in the power struggle with the Tsar, but the old Tsar is not all bad. This is a book that children will want to read over and over.