The directory «Plots»

Henry Marguerite «Misty of Chincoteague»

Marguerite Henry was eleven when she decided she wanted to become a writer. She sold her first story to a women's magazine. It was about a collie and a group of children playing hide-and-seek in autumn leaves. Since then she has written numerous books for young people. All of her books are based on facts and are about real horses and real people. Mrs. Henry learns about her characters and the places where they live by haunting libraries and traveling to places near and far.
When asked why she writes so much about animals, especially horses, Ms. Henry replies, "It's exciting to me."
«Misty of Chincoteague», was published in July of 1947. The book was an instant success. Book stores could barely keep copies on the shelf. The book won numerous awards as well as being named a Newberry Honor Book. The book was such a success that the American Library Association even invited Misty to their annual convention in 1948.
The success of the book spread as Marguerite turned the book into a series with «King of the Wind», which won the Newberry Award, in 1947 and a number of other titles.
Misty, the horse that inspired Marguerite's success, died on October 16, 1972 at the Chincoteague Pony Farm on the island of Chincoteague. She was 26 years old. She was stuffed and can be viewed by the visitors of the Misty Museum on Chincoteague Island.
Marguerite Henry died of complications from a series of strokes on November 26, 1997 at her home in Rancho Sante Fe, California. Henry has written 58 books.

Sierra Leone, 2001, Misty