Mallory and the Dream Horse is the 54th book in The Baby-Sitters Club series by Ann M. Martin.
Back Cover Summary[]
Mallory loves horses. She loves reading about them. She loves writing about them. And most of all, she loves daydreaming about them.
Then Mallory's parents agree to let her take professional riding lessons. It's a dream come true! Mallory is so excited she can hardly concentrate at the BSC meetings anymore. But then the lessons begin and Mallory discovers that dreaming about horses can be a lot more fun than actually riding them.
Summary[]
Mallory signs up for horse riding classes and gets over enthusiastic, due to her love of horses. The other kids in the riding classes don't seem to want to be her friend, due to her being overenthusiastic.
Subplot[]
Nina Marshall becomes attached to a blanket when she first starts preschool because she misses being at home. Meanwhile, the Pikes put on a talent show with the whole neighborhood called Stars of Tomorrow.
Characters[]
Mallory's Family
- John Pike
- Dee Pike
- Mallory Pike
- Pike Triplets: Jordan, Adam, Byron
- Vanessa Pike
- Nicky Pike
- Margo Pike
- Claire Pike
BSC Members
Kids
- David Michael Thomas, Karen, Andrew, and Emily Michelle Brewer
- Nina and Eleanor Marshall
- Marilyn and Carolyn Arnold (mentioned)
- Sean Addison (mentioned)
- Buddy and Suzi Barrett (mentioned)
- Haley Braddock
- Charlotte Johanssen (mentioned)
- Becca and Squirt Ramsey (mentioned)
- Kids at the talent show
Pre-teens
- Allison Anders - student in Mallory's riding class
- Megan - student in Mallory's riding class
- Kyle - student in Mallory's riding class
- David - student in Mallory's riding class
- Amber - student in Mallory's riding class
- Kelsey - student in Mallory's riding class
- Signe - student in Mallory's riding class
Adults
- Mrs. Marshall
- Lauren Kendall - Mallory's riding instructor
- Dr. Johanssen (mentioned)
Locations[]
- Pike House
- Kishi House
- Kendallwood Farm
- Marshall House
- Stoneybrook General Hospital
- Amber's House
Pop Culture and Real-Life References[]
- Yankee Doodle Dandy Song - State anthem of Connecticut
- Misty of Chincoteague books
- Black Beauty
- The Black Stallion (film)
- Lassie
- Shirley Temple in The Little Princess
- The Nutcracker
- Tarzan
- Barbies
- Star Search
- Kensington Stakes
- Sesame Street
- Nintendo
Continuity and Inconsistencies[]
Continuity
- Mallory is still mentioned to be good at bargaining which is first introduced in Mallory and the Trouble with Twins.
- Mallory remembers the events of Mallory and the Trouble with Twins and Jessi's Secret Language
- Jessi remembers how she was treated when she moved to Stoneybrook in Hello, Mallory.
- Mallory mentioning Charlotte's lack of participation in the Little Miss Stoneybrook Pageant.
Inconsistencies
- Mallory says that this is her first time getting riding lessons, however, she mentions riding at Camp Mohawk. She also mentions riding western style before and this is English style.
- Mallory's doctor is Dr. Calloway in this book when the family pediatrician is Dr. Dellenkamp.
- In chapter 15, Mallory says Becca "both [she and Charlotte] of them had sworn they would never appear on the stage again" despite never being apart of the pageant. Charlotte was part of a beauty pageant in Little Miss Stoneybrook ...and Dawn, but she got stage fright during the talent competition and went home early.
- In chapter 5 (Mallory’s first riding class), she says there are eleven other people in the class. In chapter 11 (Mallory’s last riding class), the class is said to have six students.
Ann M. Martin's Dear Reader Letter[]
Dear Reader,
Mallory Pike loves horses, and when I was younger, so did I. I took riding lessons at a stable outside of Princeton, New Jersey, called Hasty Acres. My favorite horse was named Mr. Chips. He was very gentle, and I tried to ride Mr. Chips at every lesson. My least favorite horse was Sky High, who was as big as he sounds, and rambunctious, too. All year we prepared to appear in a show in the spring. And all year I tried to ride Mr. Chips at every lesson. However, when we were assigned horses to ride in the show, I was assigned Sky High. I was terrified! But I rode him anyway, and I won third place. Although I didn’t continue my riding lessons, I did continue to love horses. And every now and then, I still go out for a ride — most recently, while on vacation in Santa Fe.
Trivia[]
- This book confirms there is only one Pike listed in the phone book.
- Mallory's dream is to be a writer and live on a ranch with horses in this book.
- It takes Mallory a little less then twenty minutes if she rides her bike to get to Claudia's house.
- Mallory's dream horse is an Arabian with a beautiful head and delicate nostrils. He was nearly all white, with a white mane and tail and a light dappling of gray that made his coat look like marble.
- Sean Addison can play Old MacDonald on the tuba.
- Buddy is part of Cub Scouts.
- Haley can twirl a baton.
- A lot of the students in Mallory's riding class went to the same school. Its name isn’t mentioned.
- Kristy is late to call a meeting to order in chapter 13.
- Kristy was once hit in the face by a baseball when she was at bat and it took her nearly a year to stop flinching every time the pitcher threw the ball.
- This book’s working title was Mallory's Dream Horse as advertised on her bookmark.
Gallery[]
