The Secret of the Kelpie

K-Gr 2—Near the shore of a Scottish loch, a blacksmith's children are playing hide-and-seek when their game is interrupted by the appearance of a beautiful white horse wearing a fancy saddle. While her siblings are intent on climbing onto the horse's back for a ride, young Flora is skeptical. Observing the horse's wet hoofprints and alarming sudden growth, she realizes that it is a kelpie. In the old tales, kelpies lure humans to climb onto their backs. The humans become stuck to the kelpie, which proceeds to drown them in the loch and devour them. Flora must think quickly to discover this kelpie's weakness and save her siblings from this horrible fate. Illustrations are crafted with pencil and filled in with lovely muted blues, greens, browns, and grays and are highly evocative. The opening spread, establishing the setting on a Scottish loch, is particularly striking. Shadows and lighting in the artwork effectively convey the suspense of the tale. Words are chosen carefully, with just a few sentences per page—in refreshing contrast to many extremely text-heavy folktales that intimidate younger readers. The story is paced well, with Flora's distrust of the creature growing over several pages. Finally, it is very exciting to see a quality picture book based on Scottish folklore.