The Horse Lady by C Ellen Culverwell

"...a touching story about loss and the power of "family" to transcend tragedy through love."

Maggie Forrester, who has gone to Vermont to live with her grandfather after her parents' death, has to adjust to a new life. She has been told by her contemporaries that a neighbor, known as The Horse Lady is weird, so naturally she cannot resist finding out for herself.

Maggie encounters a kind woman who looks after horses taken from people who had abused or neglected them.  Maggie soon finds herself welcomed into a richly rewarding world of caring for the horses, a world that is unexpectedly threatened.

It is a vivid and moving novel about horses; also an enlightening one about the complexity and value of human relationships and about a girl growing up with different generations. 

C.Ellen Culverwell lives on a farm patterned after The Horse Lady's farm. Her daughter Hayley lives on an adjoining farm and together, much like the Claire and Maggie characters of the novel, they have rescued and rehabilitated horses. In her youth C.Ellen Culverwell was a competition rider but now is content to train her daughter in Hunter/Jumpers. Like the character of Maggie, her daughter, Hayley, lost her father when she was very young and mother and daughter used the horses to bond and fill a void in their lives. She has a degree in Criminal Justice and was a Niagara County Deputy Sheriff before marrying and raising her daughter.

C.Ellen Culverwell was born and raised in small town resembling the town in her novel.  

C. Ellen Culverwell's The Horse Lady is a touching story about loss and the power of "family" to transcend tragedy through love.  Horse aficionados of all ages will appreciate Culverwell's ability to model horse care, handling, and what true horsemanship entails through the characters in her story.  The Horse Lady is full of life lessons and rich thematic content that makes it ideal for the educational setting as well.  As both a horse breeder and teacher, Culverwell crafts a story that is rich in detail with surprises at every bend which will keep the reader turning the pages until the very end.  Erika Stormer, Reading Teacher & Morgan Horse Breed

“Countless times I have seen the aftermath of what death, divorce and custody hearings can do to both children and adults. I appreciate the way those situations are handled in Ms. Culverwell’s novels. The characters deal with them in a direct and positive manner. If there is one message I take from her work it is: family are the people who love you, not necessarily the ones you are related to.”
Deborah A. Montesanti, former deputy sheriff serving also in community outreach programs.