Cloud’ – The Children’s Book Review

An interview about The Horses of Saddlers Ranch: Cloud by Alison Bellringer, presented by The Children’s Book Review.

Alison Bellringer shares the inspiration behind The Horses of Saddlers Ranch: Cloud, discussing friendship, responsibility, and the importance of learning from mistakes.

Set against the wide-open skies and rolling pastures of Saddlers Ranch, Alison Bellringer’s Cloud introduces readers to a trio of girls—their courage, curiosity, and care for the animals they love form the heart of this new middle-grade series. Bellringer’s storytelling captures both the beauty of ranch life and the timeless lessons that come from hard work, friendship, and second chances.

In our conversation, she shares her approach to creating authentic, animal-centered fiction, the real-world values that underpin her stories, and what readers can expect from the next adventure in the series. Through her words, Cloud becomes more than a tale of horses and riders—it’s a celebration of growth, kindness, and the quiet strength that comes from responsibility.

The protagonists in this new series are such a well-balanced trio. Are they based on real-life girls you know?

Alison Bellringer (AB): Not particularly. I wanted to convey the idea that even though these characters have quite varying personalities and core strengths overall, they can still complement each other by bringing different skillsets into the equation and combining all of their knowledge or expertise together in order to successfully navigate through difficult challenges or unexpected situations. Crafting three unique but equally important roles to be relatable while keeping the general personality of each contrasting character naturally interesting to readers, and therefore more compelling, was one of the key aspects I focused on when first creating this novel, which subsequently forms the basis of a more significant new series.

Why do you think it is important for children today to understand the difference between working animals and pets?

AB: To put it simply, both pets and working animals will be much happier if they are being treated well by humans who know their place. Pets are often far more dependent on people and rely heavily on their owners for most basic needs, whereas humans are equally counting on having ready access to reliable working animals that will help provide secure livelihoods for their own survival or that of their family. Having a pet is a wonderful privilege for lots of children and increases their understanding of looking after animals, but I think it’s still important for them not to mix that up with the role working animals occupy all around the world.

In the story, Caitlyn seems to be irredeemably bad, and she definitely doesn’t learn from her mistakes the way Tilly does. Why did you decide not to make her a more complex character?

AB: I’m not certain how intentional this was, but one thing readers can take away from this distinction is how differently these characters (or real-life people) can react when faced with similar situations. While Tilly has an impulsive personality and often acts rashly, she is always willing to take responsibility for her actions and earnestly seeks to put everything back to rights afterward. Caitlyn, on the other hand, doesn’t, and when something isn’t quite to her liking, she passes the responsibility of it onto others instead of dealing with it herself. This quite striking contrast between the two girls shows a more realistic example of what the consequences can look like depending on what attitude is exemplified when mistakes are made or errors in judgment are later brought to light.

One of my favorite things about this book is the wealth of detail about horses and ranching. Did you conduct extensive research to make the book feel authentic?

AB: I always get quite amused when people ask me something like this, as the answer is generally a resounding ‘nope!’. Writing usually comes extremely naturally to me, especially when it relates to animals, so very little deliberate research is actually required (unless you include a Google search to find the answer to something quite specific!). However, I did read a lot of ‘horsey’ books growing up, which included popular series centered around either ranching or a riding school, and I still enjoy going back to some of these middle-grade books even into adulthood. In this regard, while I didn’t necessarily put a lot of research into my own publication as such, it can be reasonably assumed that a lot of the vivid detail I have used is simply a reflection of some kind of ‘storehouse’ of information that was accumulated unconsciously over quite a significant period of time.

One of the most important messages in the book is that you must think before you act, because your actions have consequences for others. Was this a difficult message to craft in a way that wouldn’t make the story feel too preachy?

AB: I like using descriptive language that draws readers into the story as if they are right there alongside the characters, so making it not sound too demeaning or patronizing of anyone in particular wasn’t too difficult for me to avoid. I try to illustrate high standards of moral living in my books without coming across as if I am attacking the reader directly, but rather helping them to see things from another perspective and inspiring others to adopt similar values in the real world.

How do you envisage this story could be used in homes and classrooms to help young people think more about their role as helpers and workers in the family?

AB: Teaching children how their roles fit into the bigger picture would be a great way to start. An example of this particular concept, which can easily be spotted in the book, is that it isn’t just about how Coral and her friends undertake various chores before they are allowed to go riding for pleasure, but how each task contributes to various aspects of keeping the ranch running smoothly so that it adequately provides food and shelter for all its residents on an ongoing basis. Asking children different questions about other recurring themes they notice in the story could also give them greater opportunities to delve deeper into the book and discover what else it’s saying about similar ideas, such as hard work and accepting responsibility.

In the story, all three girls are given a lot of independence and responsibility, even after making mistakes. Do you think this is something that young people often lack in today’s society?

AB: Yes. Learning from past mistakes is something we all need to do from time to time, and it often helps us to grow or further develop our skills in certain key areas or even directly influences how we choose to interact with others. Without being given enough room to try out new things and risk making these mistakes, individuals will cease to have the same degree of creative drive or involvement in their obligations. When being trusted with a certain level of independence or responsibility in order to complete various tasks, it is often enough to boost our sense of self, and therefore motivates us to do a better job than we might have achieved otherwise.

What advice do you have for readers who really want to get into horse riding after reading this story?

AB: Don’t just sit on a horse and ride around like a sack of potatoes… Get to know the unique personality of the individual animal by spending time together on the ground as well, allowing you and the horse to form a more mutual understanding with each other and effectively make a better team when you are doing other, more fun things together. Also, read up about anything to do with caring for horses and ask your trainer or coach bucketloads of questions! This will help you know what to expect and how you should generally act around horses, especially if they’re nervous or showing other signs of being uncomfortable. Learning how to accurately read your mount’s body language is a key part of the process and will make both of you more confident and trusting of the other.

What are your favorite childhood horse stories that you would recommend to readers who have enjoyed reading Cloud?

AB: I have lots of favorites, but some series that are the most similar would probably be The Palomino Pony by Olivia Tuffin, Chestnut Hill by Lauren Brooke, Half Moon Ranch and Black Pearl Ponies by Jenny Oldfield, and Sandy Lane Stables and The Saddle Club books that were written by multiple different authors.

Can you give us a sneak peek at the second book in the series?

AB: It’s called The Horses of Saddlers Ranch: Golden Haze, and it continues to follow some of the same primary characters from the first book. Here is a brief snippet of what it’s all about: ‘Lexie Howard is thrilled to be staying at Saddlers Ranch for the summer holidays and even more excited to learn that her friend is supposed to be looking after a beautiful palomino mare while her owner is away. Both girls love riding the even-tempered, gentle horse as often as possible, and Golden Haze seems to enjoy all the extra attention. But when she gets a scare and unexpectedly goes missing one day, they quickly run out of places to search. Will the girls be able to find the treasured animal before Tammy returns to claim her, or does Golden Haze have some other trick in store that might just end up surprising them instead?’ The release date for it is actually during October 2025, and details for the third book are also nearing completion, although I am hopeful that there will be several more titles coming in the series even after that.

About the Book

Publisher’s Book Summary: “Come on, you beast!” The man mumbled under his breath, quite unaware that he was being observed by several rather stunned onlookers. “Get over here!”

Despite his terse command, as if sensing the man’s edginess, the gelding merely laid his ears back and started shaking his head, soon lashing out with his long, delicate legs. High-pitched squeals of outrage soon followed, and at the disturbance, another person’s face suddenly peered out of the passenger window of the cab.

“You see, Daddy? That kind of behavior is exactly why we can’t keep it! I need a reliable horse that I can depend upon at all times.” The blonde-haired girl stared at the scene, almost in disdain, and then immediately continued whining again. “Hurry up, Daddy! I want to ride Secret Service again as soon as we get home. That horse is so much better behaved!”

Buy the Book

About the Author

Alison Bellringer has been writing short stories to share with friends and family for many years and always enjoys exploring her creativity when putting pen to paper, so she is excited to have the opportunity to share her love of writing with others.

Alison loves spending time with her pet dog, a Labrador x Huntaway called Smoky, teaching her tricks and taking her for walks. She lives in a small town in New Zealand near many beautiful parks and beaches.

Alison has been playing trombone since about 2010, euphonium since mid-2019, and always likes getting together with a few friends to ‘make a joyful noise’ and share music. She also enjoys a bit of freelance photography when she gets the chance, especially if it involves sunsets.

One of her books, The Bronson Escapades, is a Silver Recipient of the Mom’s Choice Awards® honorary seal of excellence, and The Wolf Cub is a 2^nd Place winner of the Royal Dragonfly Book Award Competition of 2024 in both the ‘Education’ and ‘Coffee Table & Gift Books’ categories, in addition to obtaining Honorary Mention in several others: Best Cover Design, Children’s Chapter Books, Middle Grade Fiction, and Animals/Pets (a complete list of results can be found on the Story Monsters Book Awards website). Alison’s 2024 trilogy, titled Whisper, Lucas, and Escape, has also been awarded the NAPPA Award-winning seal. Alison hugely appreciates receiving this outstanding recognition, as well as all the other encouraging comments regarding her earlier works.

For more information, check out alisonbellringer.ampbk.com

This interview—Interview with Alison Bellringer, Author of ‘The Horses of Saddlers Ranch: Cloud’—was conducted between Alison Bellringer and Dr. Jen Harrison.