The Saddle Club is a series of intermediate children's books published by Bantam Books between 1988 and 2001. The series was created by a publishing house using the contract writing services of self-professed equestrian novice Bonnie Bryant. Many titles were also written by ghostwriters. Spin-offs include four other book series: The Saddle Club Super Editions, The Saddle Club Inside Stories, Pony Tails, and Pine Hollow. The books were adapted into a TV show also called The Saddle Club. In the 1990s, there was also a fan club with a monthly newsletter and a line of model horses manufactured by Breyer.
The books follow the adventures of best friends Carole Hanson, Stevie Lake, and Lisa Atwood, who live in the fictional town of Willow Creek, Virginia, and ride at Pine Hollow Stables. In the first book of the series, Horse Crazy, Carole and Lisa help Stevie with her mathematics project, which launches the girls' friendship and the titular club.
At the beginning of the series, Carole and Stevie are twelve-year-old seventh-graders and Lisa is a thirteen-year-old eighth-grader. Although the characters live through several vacations and years of school, they do not age until the "Pine Hollow" series.
Structure of the Books The Saddle Club is written in a third-person style. In early books, the narration was third-person limited and shifted from character to character, often offering more insight into the thoughts and feelings of the Saddle Club members and their friends; in later books, the narrative style became much more encompassing.
Titles For a complete list of titles, see List of Saddle Club books.
Main characters
Carole Hanson First appearance: #1, Horse Crazy, Age: 12 Family: Father Mitch Hanson, a Colonel in the United States Marine Corps; mother Jeanne Hanson, a real estate agent who died from cancer when Carole was 11; a black cat from the stables who she names Snowball because he is so contrary. Horse(s): Starlight, originally called Pretty Boy. A bay half-Thoroughbred gelding whose registered name is Pretty Boy Floyd, that she receives as a Christmas present from the money her mother left her in #13, Starlight Christmas. Carole planned to buy the black colt Samson and sell Starlight in the "Pine Hollow" series, but she couldn't because Colonel Hanson grounded her for cheating on her history test after her grades slipped due to focusing on Samson instead of school. Education: The Saddle Club: 7th grader at Willow Creek Junior High School, a public school she attends with Lisa. Pine Hollow: Junior at Willow Creek High School, the local high school that she and Lisa go to. Personality: Carole is the best, most experienced, and most serious rider of the three; she began riding when she was four. Stable owner Max Regnery selected her as the best overall junior rider in #6, Dude Ranch. She is very organized as far as horses are concerned, but she can be scatterbrained regarding anything else. She tends to be a know-it-all at times, but sometimes it is very helpful. Carole has never fully forgiven Veronica for causing Cobalt's death.
Stephanie "Stevie" Lake First appearance: #1, Horse Crazy Age: 12 Family: Father, a lawyer; mother Catherine, also a lawyer; older brother Chad, 14; twin brother Alex, 12; younger brother Michael, 9; a cat named Madonna. Horse(s): Belle, a dark bay Arabian cross Saddlebred mare whom she receives in "Horse Trade" and legally owns in "Gift Horse". She also almost bought Stewball, the skewbald gelding she rides at her friend Kate Devine's dude ranch, in "Horse Tale". Education: The Saddle Club: A 7th grader at Fenton Hall, a private academy she attends with her brothers and Veronica. Pine Hollow: Junior at Fenton Hall with Alex, Michael, and Veronica. Personality: Stevie began riding when she was eight. While intelligent in her own way, she is the least serious of the three and the most disorganized. Stevie dropped her given name, Stephanie, almost before she could talk and has always been a bit tomboyish. Now being uncomfortable with the activities other girls of her age do, but at the same time getting tired of being "one of the boys," one thing remains: her love of horses. She excels at practical jokes, one of which is her first interaction with Lisa. Ironically, one of her strongest skills is dressage, a precise type of riding that requires great subtlety and poise. Stable owner, Max Regnery, selected her as the best overall junior rider in Super Edition #3, Western Star. She is the only one who has a steady boyfriend, Phil. Stevie is the only girl in her family, and her feuds with her brothers are a major element of most of the series; her brothers love to tease her about Phil.
Elizabeth "Lisa" Atwood First appearance: #1, Horse Crazy Age: 13 Family: Father, Richard, 42; mother, Eleanor; brother, Peter, 21, who is at college or studying abroad for most of the series; Lhasa Apso dog named Dolly; step-mom, Evelyn; half sister, Lily; aunt/godmother, Elizabeth; great aunt, Madge;Aunt Alison. Lisa's parents are divorced as of "Stray Horse". Mr. Atwood moves into an apartment so that Lisa can live with him during the weekend until he moves to California. Evelyn eventually gives birth to a baby girl named Lily before the start of the "Pine Hollow" series. Horse(s): Lisa never owns her own horse, although her parents once considered buying her a horse.#11, Horse Wise, they view a horse called "Pretty Boy," but Lisa knew she was not ready to own one. Lisa eventually told Carole Hanson about the horse and she ended up buying him, changing his name to Starlight. In the Pine Hollow series, Lisa's father makes plans to buy Prancer for her, a retired Thoroughbred racehorse who she rides throughout most of the series. However, Prancer dies during a difficult pregnancy, as do both of her twin foals, in Riding To Win, the ninth book of the Pine Hollow series. Education: The Saddle Club: An 8th grader at Willow Creek Junior High School, the public school she attends with Carole. Pine Hollow: Senior at Willow Creek High School, the local high school that she and Carole go to. Personality: Lisa is the oldest of the three but the newest rider; she begins in #1, Horse Crazy because her mother thinks that every young lady should know something about horses. She is extremely organized, a straight-A student, and a perfectionist. Although stable owner, Max, often tells her that she has potential, her desire to "catch up" to Carole and Stevie is an element of most of the series. Lisa is shorter than Carole and Stevie. Lisa was named after her Aunt Elizabeth. Inconsistencies: Lisa's brother is mentioned peripherally in two early books -- #1, Horse Crazy, in which Lisa's mother wouldn't let Lisa borrow a tie from him, and #7, Horse Play, in which he's at summer camp. Since Peter is eight years older than Lisa and living away from home for the rest of the series, it is likely that these are errors.
Maximilian "Max" Regnery III First appearance: #1, Horse Crazy Family: Grandfather, Maxmilian, who founded Pine Hollow Stables, deceased; father, Maxmilian II, deceased; mother, Elizabeth, who is known as "Mrs. Reg"; wife, Deborah Hale Regnery, a newspaper reporter who he marries in Stable Groom; oldest daughter, Maxine "Maxi" Hale Regnery, who is born in Super Edition #5, Before They Rode Horses; youngest daughter, Jeanne "Minnie" Regnry, who first appears in the Pine Hollow series. Horse(s): Max owns about 25 horses at the start of the series, a number that grows over the course of the books. Personality: Max owns the stable and also teaches classes for riders of all ages. He requires that all students not only ride but also take care of their horses, clean tack, get good grades in school, and perform chores around the stable; he believes that these are all part of what it means to ride. If the kids grades drop below a C average Max won't allow them to ride until their grades improve. In addition to being a respected teacher, he is also an accomplished rider. Inconsistencies: Max's full name has been spelled Maxmillian, Maximillian, and Maximilian at various points in the series.
Elizabeth "Mrs. Reg" Regnery First appearance: #1, Horse Crazy Family: Father-in-law, Maxmilian, who founded Pine Hollow Stables, deceased; husband, Maxmilian II, deceased; son, Maxmilian "Max" III; daughter-in-law, Deborah Hale; granddaughter, Maxine "Maxi" Hale Regnery; granddaughter Jeanne "Minnie/Mini" Regnery. Horse(s): It is implied that when Max II died, he left the stable to his son, not his wife. Mrs. Reg rides frequently, but does not own her own personal horse. She often rides the white Arabian gelding Barq. Personality: Mrs. Reg manages the stable, schedules classes, and coordinates orders and special events. She dislikes seeing people stand around with nothing to do and often assigns them odd jobs if they aren't already working. She is also famous for telling stories that are seemingly unrelated to the situations that The Saddle Club finds itself in. Mrs. Reg retires to Florida before the start of the Pine Hollow series.
Veronica DiAngelo First appearance: #1, Horse Crazy Family: Father, a banker and the richest man in Willow Creek; mother, a prominent social figure; multiple dogs, including two black Labradors, a poodle named Robespierre, and a puppy named Sugarlump. Horse(s): Princess, a pony that she owned when she was 11 before the series started; Cobalt, a black Thoroughbred stallion who is put down as a result of her carelessness in #2, Horse Shy; Garnet, a chestnut Arabian mare that her parents buy for her in #11, Horse Wise; Go For Blue "Danny", a well-trained, schoolmaster dapple gray Thoroughbred gelding that her parents buy for her in #49, Stable Farewell. Education: A 7th-grader at Fenton Hall, a private academy where she attends with Stevie and Stevie's brothers. Personality: Veronica is an extremely spoiled Italian American girl. She acts as The Saddle Club's perpetual enemy, particularly Stevie's, since the girls attend the same school. Veronica always has the latest clothes and doesn't approve of The Saddle Club's simpler style. Earlier books are more generous toward Veronica, suggesting that she acts badly because her parents have little time for her and often agree to buy her something as a means of solving problems. Veronica's character suggests that she would love to be part of The Saddle Club, but chooses to keep people at arm's length from her. She doesn't seem like she can trust people as she's been let down by her own parents many times. Her spoiled exterior seems like a cover for her true feelings. Veronica cried when she sold Garnet in #49, Stable Farewell, indicating that she really cared about her even though she fussed over Danny and took care of him.
Recurring characters Dr. Judy Barker - equine veterinarian who treats most Pine Hollow horses. First appears in #3, Horse Sense. John Brightstar - son of Walter Brightstar, a wrangler at the Bar None Ranch. First appears in #24, Ghost Rider. Marie Dana - injured in a car accident that killed her father and left her unable to walk for months; The Saddle Club befriends her and helps her recover. First appears in #16, Horse Games. Dorothy DeSoto Hawthorne - former student of Max Regnery and an excellent rider; suffers an injury in #8, Horse Show, that ends her career as a competitive rider, so she has to sell her horse Topside to Max. Stevie rides Topside until she owns her own horse, Belle. She marries Nigel Hawthorne in #27, Bridle Path. The Saddle Club see her and Nigel in many other books.