Ride North

Maria de Jong

$17.99

Paperback

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English

Anderson Press
05 March 2025

Children's & Educational; Adventure stories (Children's&YA); Wildlife (Children's&YA); Personal & social issues: death & bereavement (Children's&YA)

Tooth is my pony, but he’s his own boss.

I take care of him and in exchange he lets me ride him. I wasn’t surprised when Tooth first communicated with me. All I knew was that with Tooth, it was different. I loved him the minute I saw him. Of course we understood each other.

Twelve-year-old Folly is angry and grieving for her mum. She isn't ready for Dad's plans for a new life in Auckland with his new girlfriend. So Folly runs away with the one friend who truly understands: her wise pony, Tooth. With her mother's ashes in her backpack, Folly sets off to the fabled Cape Reinga, the northernmost point of New Zealand. Through tourist towns and wilderness, across beaches, roads and forest tracks, Folly and Tooth find both adventure and hardship. But then a spur-of-the-moment choice sets danger on their tail. Girl and horse must fight to survive together – to the very end of the road.

Cover art by Sian James

By: Maria de Jong
Imprint: Anderson Press
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions: Height: 178mm, Width: 129mm, Spine: 15mm
Weight: 175g
ISBN: 9781839135200
ISBN 10: 1839135204
Pages: 240
Publication Date: 05 March 2025
Recommended Age: From 10 to 12 years
Audience: Children/juvenile , Children / Juvenile
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active

Maria de Jong grew up in Aotearoa/New Zealand before settling in Italy. Initially she taught English in Turin, where she also cultivated a sideline designing and making costumes for a dance-theatre company. She was living and studying literature in Frankfurt when East and West Germany reunified, and later relocated for a few years to teach near Bosa, Sardinia. Her two children were born in Rome; while working there as a translator she began writing for middle grade readers, but things only got serious after yet another relocation, this time to Amsterdam, where she currently copyedits, cycles and fabulates for her inner twelve-year-old.

Reviews for Ride North

""A gripping tale of survival … gritty and lyrical in all the right places"" * The Times, Children’s Book of the Week * ""Mixes pathos with the spirit of adventure"" * The Bookseller * ""A wise and surreal adventure… has moments of both hilarity and pain"" * The Bookseller, Buyer's Guide * ""A wonderful coming-of-age story with hope at its heart"" * Booktrust * ""I loved this: funny, quirky, exciting and moving. Folly and Tooth are a great double-act. If you’re a horse person you’ll adore it; if you’re not a horse person, it’ll turn you into one"" -- Anthony McGowan