45 pages 1 hour read

Walter Farley

The Black Stallion

Fiction | Novel | Middle Grade | Published in 1941

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Further Reading & Resources

Further Reading: Literature

National Velvet by Enid Bagnold (2019)

Originally published in 1933, National Velvet is the antithesis of The Black Stallion. A girl about the same age as Alec acquires an eccentric horse destined to be a steeple jumping champion.

I Am the Great Horse by Katherine Roberts (2006)

A fictionalized version of the life of Bucephalus, the famous war horse of Alexander the Great that many readers compare to Farley’s depiction of the Black to the historical descriptions of Bucephalus.

Further Reading: Beyond Literature (Nonfiction)

Seabiscuit: An American Legend by Laura Hillenbrand (2001)

This book is a comprehensive treatment not only of the legendary horse but also the jockeys, trainers, and track conditions of the era in which The Black Stallion was written.

Video & Podcast Resources

The Black Stallion, Zeotrope Studios, 1979

This motion picture version of Farley’s book was directed by Carrol Ballard and is considered visually stunning; the movie’s story digresses in several significant ways from the book.