Pony Club Secrets
Encyclopedia
Pony Club Secrets is a series of junior/intermediate reader children's books published by HarperCollins
in the United Kingdom
. The series was created by author
and journalist
Stacy Gregg, and is loosely based on her experiences as young rider growing up in New Zealand
. It blends authentic horse
and pony
detail with a mixture of fantasy and adventure. The series is set in a fictionalised version of New Zealand, in an area called Chevalier Point.
The first two books in the series, Mystic and the Midnight Ride & Blaze and the Dark Rider were first published simultaneously in the UK in August 2007, and have since been published together as a double edition called Mystic and Blaze.
Originally there were four titles scheduled in the series, but due to its popularity it was extended to eight and then 13 titles in all, including a special Christmas book entitled Issie and the Christmas Pony
A spin-off
series was announced by the author and her publishers in 2009, called Pony Club Rival. This series features a new main character, Georgie Parker and is set in the UK and the USA. The first book in the series, Pony Club Rivals: The Auditions, was published in the UK in April 2010.
Stella Tarrant: Issie's best friend, Stella is bubbly, mischievous and described by Issie as 'boy-mad'. She has short red curly hair and a freckly complexion. Stella loves playing pranks on people. She used to own Coco but currently owns Marmite.
Kate Knight: Issie's other best friend, Kate is sensible and mature. She has blonde hair, blue eyes and is extremely tall. Kate has a way with children, which comes in handy in Comet and the Champion's Cup. She owns an ex-racehorse called Toby.
Tom Avery: Issie's riding instructor. Tom used to be a famous eventer in his youth, but after seriously injuring himself whilst competing at Badminton he had to retire from the sport. He is now head instructor at Chevalier Point Pony Club. He lives at Winterflood Farm where he keeps his horses. And in Flame and the Rebel Riders he takes over Dulmoth Park too. He is frequently seen wearing his trademark cheese-cutter cap and has a habit of always whacking his riding crop against his riding boot. However he is particulally close to Issie and is the one who brought her Anglo-Arab mare Blaze to her after rescuing her with the help of ILPH (International League for the Protection of Horses) which he works for. In Angel and the Flying Stallions he marries the head trainer of El Caballo Magnifico, Francoise D'arth whom returns to Chevalier Point to train the dressage there.
Natasha Tucker: The antagonist of the series, snobby Natasha frequently makes fun of Issie's 'circus pony' Blaze. The bratty blonde is always making nasty remarks about Issie, and by the end of Fortune and the Golden Trophy they are full-fledged enemies. After the book "Flame and The Rebel Riders" they become mildly friendly, to the hapyness of many fans who thought having a blond antagonist was rather 'offensive'.
Aiden: Aiden is Hester's farm manager and later on in the series he is Issie's boyfriend.
Hester Brown: Hester Brown is Issie's aunt who lives at Blackthorn Farm, near Gisborne. Hester trains animals for movies with the help of her farm manager Aiden. Hester owns, Diablo, Paris, Nicole, Dolomite, Titan, Scott, Torndao, Stardust, Destiny who are the 'Daredevil Ponies' and she also owns Glennie, Molly, Timmy and Julien who are all Blackthorn ponies. Hester also owns other farm animals. She has been married three times but is now divorced. She is the sister of Amanda Brown, who is Issie's mother. She calls Issie 'her favourite niece' because Issie is her ONLY niece so it is like a joke between the two of them.
Amanda Brown: Amanda Brown is Issie's mother who works for a law firm. She is petrified of horses and is divorced. Her husband left when Issie was nine. In Angel and the Flying Stallions, Amanda rides a stallion Ferdinand with the help of Roberto. Amanda is Hester's sister.
HarperCollins
HarperCollins is a publishing company owned by News Corporation. It is the combination of the publishers William Collins, Sons and Co Ltd, a British company, and Harper & Row, an American company, itself the result of an earlier merger of Harper & Brothers and Row, Peterson & Company. The worldwide...
in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. The series was created by author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
and journalist
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
Stacy Gregg, and is loosely based on her experiences as young rider growing up in New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
. It blends authentic horse
Horse
The horse is one of two extant subspecies of Equus ferus, or the wild horse. It is a single-hooved mammal belonging to the taxonomic family Equidae. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 million years from a small multi-toed creature into the large, single-toed animal of today...
and pony
Pony
A pony is a small horse . Depending on context, a pony may be a horse that is under an approximate or exact height at the withers, or a small horse with a specific conformation and temperament. There are many different breeds...
detail with a mixture of fantasy and adventure. The series is set in a fictionalised version of New Zealand, in an area called Chevalier Point.
The first two books in the series, Mystic and the Midnight Ride & Blaze and the Dark Rider were first published simultaneously in the UK in August 2007, and have since been published together as a double edition called Mystic and Blaze.
Originally there were four titles scheduled in the series, but due to its popularity it was extended to eight and then 13 titles in all, including a special Christmas book entitled Issie and the Christmas Pony
A spin-off
Spin-off (media)
In media, a spin-off is a radio program, television program, video game, or any narrative work, derived from one or more already existing works, that focuses, in particular, in more detail on one aspect of that original work...
series was announced by the author and her publishers in 2009, called Pony Club Rival. This series features a new main character, Georgie Parker and is set in the UK and the USA. The first book in the series, Pony Club Rivals: The Auditions, was published in the UK in April 2010.
Titles of the books
- Mystic and the Midnight Ride (2007) ISBN 000724519X ISBN 978-0007245192
- Blaze and the Dark Rider (2007) ISBN 0007245173 ISBN 978-0007245178
- Destiny and the Wild Horses (2008) ISBN 0007245181 ISBN 978-0007245185
- Stardust and the Daredevil Ponies (2008) ISBN 0007245165 ISBN 978-0007245161
- Comet and the Champion's Cup (2008) ISBN 0007270305 ISBN 978-0007270309
- Issie and the Christmas Pony (2008) ISBN 0007288743 ISBN 978-0007288748
- Storm and the Silver Bridle (2009) ISBN 0007270313 ISBN 978-0007270316
- Fortune and the Golden Trophy (2009) ISBN 0007270321 ISBN 978-0007270323
- Victory and the All-Stars Academy (2009) ISBN 000727033X ISBN 978-0007270330
- Flame and the Rebel Riders (2010) ISBN 000729929X ISBN 978-0007299294
- Angel and the Flying Stallions (2010) ISBN 0007299303 ISBN 978-0007299300
- Liberty and the Dream Ride (2011) ISBN 0007299311 ISBN 978-0007299317
- Nightstorm and the Grand Slam (2011)
Special Editions
- Mystic and Blaze (2009) ISBN 0007313632 ISBN 978-0007313631
- Destiny and Stardust (2010) ISBN 0007346093 ISBN 978-0007346097
Characters
Isadora (nicknamed Issie) Brown: The main character throughout the series. Horse-mad Issie is described as having long brown hair and an olive complexion. She owns Blaze, Storm, Comet and used to own Mystic before he was killed in a car accident saving the other horses, including Stella's pony Coco, Kate's horse Toby, and Natasha's pony Goldrush, during a gymkhana. Her best friends are Stella and Kate, and her enemy is Natasha Tucker. Issie is extremely talented rider, who has the ability to take it to the top.Stella Tarrant: Issie's best friend, Stella is bubbly, mischievous and described by Issie as 'boy-mad'. She has short red curly hair and a freckly complexion. Stella loves playing pranks on people. She used to own Coco but currently owns Marmite.
Kate Knight: Issie's other best friend, Kate is sensible and mature. She has blonde hair, blue eyes and is extremely tall. Kate has a way with children, which comes in handy in Comet and the Champion's Cup. She owns an ex-racehorse called Toby.
Tom Avery: Issie's riding instructor. Tom used to be a famous eventer in his youth, but after seriously injuring himself whilst competing at Badminton he had to retire from the sport. He is now head instructor at Chevalier Point Pony Club. He lives at Winterflood Farm where he keeps his horses. And in Flame and the Rebel Riders he takes over Dulmoth Park too. He is frequently seen wearing his trademark cheese-cutter cap and has a habit of always whacking his riding crop against his riding boot. However he is particulally close to Issie and is the one who brought her Anglo-Arab mare Blaze to her after rescuing her with the help of ILPH (International League for the Protection of Horses) which he works for. In Angel and the Flying Stallions he marries the head trainer of El Caballo Magnifico, Francoise D'arth whom returns to Chevalier Point to train the dressage there.
Natasha Tucker: The antagonist of the series, snobby Natasha frequently makes fun of Issie's 'circus pony' Blaze. The bratty blonde is always making nasty remarks about Issie, and by the end of Fortune and the Golden Trophy they are full-fledged enemies. After the book "Flame and The Rebel Riders" they become mildly friendly, to the hapyness of many fans who thought having a blond antagonist was rather 'offensive'.
Aiden: Aiden is Hester's farm manager and later on in the series he is Issie's boyfriend.
Hester Brown: Hester Brown is Issie's aunt who lives at Blackthorn Farm, near Gisborne. Hester trains animals for movies with the help of her farm manager Aiden. Hester owns, Diablo, Paris, Nicole, Dolomite, Titan, Scott, Torndao, Stardust, Destiny who are the 'Daredevil Ponies' and she also owns Glennie, Molly, Timmy and Julien who are all Blackthorn ponies. Hester also owns other farm animals. She has been married three times but is now divorced. She is the sister of Amanda Brown, who is Issie's mother. She calls Issie 'her favourite niece' because Issie is her ONLY niece so it is like a joke between the two of them.
Amanda Brown: Amanda Brown is Issie's mother who works for a law firm. She is petrified of horses and is divorced. Her husband left when Issie was nine. In Angel and the Flying Stallions, Amanda rides a stallion Ferdinand with the help of Roberto. Amanda is Hester's sister.
- http://www.stacygregg.co.uk Stacy Gregg's Pony Club Secrets website
- http://www.harpercollins.co.uk/Contents/Author/Pages/Authors.aspx?objId=7574 Pony Club Secrets on the HarperCollins UK website
- http://www.harpercollins.co.nz/fmi/xsl/nz/book-results.xsl?authortitlerole::AuthorCode=0023019&-token.at=0023019&-sortfield.1=PubDate&-sortorder.1=descend Pony Club Secrets/Stacy Gregg on the HarperCollins NZ website
- http://www.nzherald.co.nz/books/news/article.cfm?c_id=134&objectid=10468193 Report in the New Zealand Herald about Stacy Gregg and the Pony Club Secrets books - October 6, 2007
- http://www.nzherald.co.nz/topic/story.cfm?c_id=111&objectid=10511941&pnum=0 New Zealand Herald piece on the sale of the film option rights for Pony Club Secrets to Desert Road Films - May 23, 2008