School Library Journal01/01/2014
Gr 3–7—Eleven-year-old Nell Green is unhappy about having to spend her school vacation on a farm with her aunt and two younger cousins whom she hardly knows. Once there, however, she easily adjusts to her aunt's gentle nature and the devotion of her cousins. She meets their kindhearted neighbor Rita, who is grieving the recent loss of her husband. His death has prompted Rita to sell her farm animals, including her herd of 99 horses. Nell also meets the wild child Angel, who thunders into her life on a horse and takes her precious leather bag that contains an old tin carousel. As Nell attempts to retrieve her bag, she gets drawn into an adventure; there are missing animals, a midnight horse ride, and a legend about the magic of the hundredth horse.