The Girl Who Rode the Wind Paperback – September 6, 2016

I loved the storyline and I also love how Stacey Gregg always has a different country as the big focused country!

Great story.

Lola never would have guessed that getting suspended from school would be her ticket to go on a trip to Italy with her grandmother. Once she gets there, she learns all about the Palio, a horse race that’s been run through the streets of Siena for countless generations. She also learns about the rivalries between different groups who run the race, and how her own grandma was involved in a long-ago intrigue. When Lola befriends a local boy and a special horse, she gets an unexpected invitation…and discovers a family secret.The Girl Who Rode the Wind by Stacy Gregg combines historical and contemporary fiction to create a satisfying story that should appeal to adventurers and horse lovers aged 9 and up.Lola is independent, a girl who doesn’t mind working hard for the things she wants to achieve. She has learned about horses at her family’s stables in New York, where her dad and brothers train racehorses. But her grandma has taught her how to look into a horse’s eyes and see if he has the heart of a champion. She see’s that in Nico, the horse she helps care for in Siena.The Girl Who Rode the Wind should provide interesting discussion for mother-daughter book clubs. Topics include Lola’s independence and how it affects her life, World War II Italy, running away from troubles instead of facing them, the Palio horse race, and more. I highly recommend it.The publisher provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

My. 12 year old loved this book. I was happy because when we were studying pre-WWII, and we began to talk about Mussolini, the black shirts, etc, she got excited and told me what she'd learned about this from this book. It made a part of history come alive for her a bit.

Good for getting rid of news & other daily stressors before heading off to sleep

Lola Campione loved horses. Her dad, Ray was a jockey until he had to stop before it killed him. He owned a stable called Champion Racing where he trained horses. Before school Lola went to the Aqueduct to clean stalls to earn money. She would sneak and ride the horses at their stable because she wanted to become a jockey like her dad. After a fight at school with a bully Lola is suspended, which only had three more weeks. Her father was upset because she was so smart and he didn’t want her to become a jockey, instead he wanted her to become a doctor or lawyer. After a big win at the race track, Lola and her grandmother Nonna took a trip to Italy where she grew up. They stayed in a village. Lola loved it when Nonna told her the story of how she survived when she first arrived in New York. And now Lola would learn about Nonna’s childhood, the Palio race and how she got her nickname “Daredevil.” Lola wanted to race in the Palio, but there is a family secret that has shamed their name. Can Lola overcome her families past and race the great race?Author Stacy Gregg is known for writing stories involving horses. Young readers will enjoy the adventures and self-discovery of these characters. This fast-paced read is simple yet engaging. Parents and teachers will approve and suggest this read for any horse enthusiast.

Cute story but pretty shallow.